5 minute read
Daily Dose
Serious Wound Care with a Cannabis Protocol
Daily Dose
BY SHARON lETTS
At the beginning of November I had a horse accident. My boot was stuck in the stirrup and by the time I got it out the horse had turned, I fell, and she stepped on my leg. She didn’t apply full pressure, thank goodness, or my leg would have been crushed. The tibia has a clean break just above the ankle, but the wound from her hoof was more of a concern, as they can’t put a cast on the break until it’s healed.
Immediately following the accident, I took two cannabis oil capsules, reserved for sleep and daily prevention. I’ve taken a cannabis oil capsule every night since putting breast cancer into remission and replacing all pharmaceuticals seven years ago (see my own Daily Dose on all my deliveries). https://www. vegascannabismag.com/education/the-daily-dose-withsharon-letts/
By the time I arrived at the emergency room I had no pain and very little swelling, to the point that the triage nurse didn’t believe my leg was broken.
Soon, I had a gathering of hospital staff around me in a teaching moment, giving them all a cannabis 101 lesson in antiinflammation, tissue and bone regeneration, and anti-infection, as I shunned antibiotics and painkillers in lieu of cannabis oil, much to their surprise.
Dosing for a Serious Wound I continued to take a cannabis capsule every three to four hours, as needed, for pain. Initially inserting one cannabis oil suppository at night for the first week.
Suppositories get the beneficial compounds from the plant directly into the bloodstream, bypassing the digestive system and the liver, doing away with any head high from the oil, that tests upwards of 80 to 90 percent activated THC. This is needed for severe pain and healing.
The average patient searching online for information on cannabis quelling severe pain may find a paper published by Harvard Medical School stating, “marijuana isn’t strong enough for severe pain (for example, post-surgical pain or a broken bone)….” They are wrong. I use whole plant cannabis oil for full effects from all the beneficial compounds (see my website for recipes). CBD only may be good in treating daily chronic pain, but a serious infliction or pain that comes from cancer needs a high THC formula.
I also applied the strong cannabis oil salve topically, smoked throughout the day, enacting the entourage effect, known to increase efficacy of all applications of the plant.
Per a study, smoking alone raises the efficacy of whatever else you are taking, including pharmaceutical pain killers. Some will say this is a drug reaction, I look at it as a boost to pain killers that may not be fully quelling the pain. Call it insurance. Of course, if you ingest cannabis oil, you won’t need the pain killer at all – I’m living proof. Smoking also raises endorphins immediately, and in my current situation being laid up for weeks, I needed all the emotional support I could get.
Chamomile concentrate is another go-to for me in treating depression, and I continued to take them daily, giving me an overall feeling of well-being. I continued to take them, as needed, for anxiety – which is part of my daily protocol.
Expedited Healing As of this writing, it’s been three weeks and four days since the accident. The wound is scabbing and coming off nicely, with no sign of infection. As of this writing it’s been nearly six weeks, and the bone is still not healed, waiting for the wound to heal before we can access if I need surgery, a pin and a cast.
Besides being an amazing analgesic, the bonus of cannabis oil is that it’s a regenerator of tissue and bone, per a survey done by emergency room physicians. While doing intake, they noticed that patients presenting with THC in their systems bones healed faster after a break.
Ten years ago, Janie Maedler, seven-year-old Rylie Maedler’s mother, was desperate to help her daughter after surgeons removed two-thirds of her facial structure to bone cancer. After finding the ER physician’s survey, she illegally purchased cannabis oil and gave it to Rylie in the hospital, telling staff that it was a benign herbal remedy.
Within months Rylie’s facial structure regenerated with no reconstructive surgery necessary, with severe pain quelled. Rylie’s experience taught the cannabis community another lesson in healing, and helped me understand my own healing after this accident. This knowledge also reconfirmed my trust in the plant.
Politics of the Plant When the wound is healed I’ll have another X-Ray done, and see if I’ll need to have surgery, causing me to be laid up for another couple of months. Good thing I don’t write with my toes – a friend joked. My hope is that the cannabis oil is healing the bone along with the wound.
The sad part is, California’s Governor Gavin Newsom, just vetoed a Bill that would have allowed California cannabis patients to use cannabis products in hospital. This means my teaching moments are over, and I’ll become a criminal. I won’t take the pills, I’ll lie about my use, and no one will learn anything.
Forcing cannabis patients to be criminals is nothing new. But, in the face of the opioid crisis in the U.S. and around the world, the decision to ban cannabis use is a huge step backward for patients – and staff, as they won’t hear from patients who present that may already be using cannabis successfully.
Illegally healed, that’s what we continue to be. One thing is for sure, I’m grateful for the knowledge of cannabis. The plant has kept me healthy for seven years now, and continues to heal me, no matter what afflictions I may have – including a serious wound with a broken leg.
For more information on Sharon Letts and her work in cannabis visit, www.sharonletts.com
