Re: marijuana treats the itch

[Guest guest]

hello all. i am new to this group, although i've been diagnosed almost ten

years now. i have a question to ask the group that some might consider

offensive, but that i feel must be addressed.

i began smoking marijuana recreationally, but over the years have found it

to be a gentle, effective treatment for itching. i know that, chemically,

marijuana doesn't fix the problem, but it does help me relax- and that's

huge. sometimes after a long day of wearing my uncomfortable skin, it's one

of the only things i can take that still allows me to function - ie i can

still do things around the house and it doesn't " knock me out. " the high i

receive from the drug has lessened over time, but the benefits itch-wise

have not - it still calms me down, zones me out for awhile, and lets my mind

forget about the pruitis. i guess that i consider some of my itching to be

mentally stimulated - not that it isn't a physical condition, but one which

can be greatly aggrivated by my mental state. i find relief with marijuana.

i don't condone smoking marijuana and using a motor vehicle, or heavy

machinery - these guidelines, i feel, are similar to the ones i place on

drinking alcohol, and could be considered " common sense. " similarily, i

don't smoke before work or meetings. i have never been a " partier " so

abusing this drug doesn't appeal to me in the least.

however, i have always been bothered by the stigma attached to smoking

marijuana. i live every day with the fear that someone could turn me in and

take away one of the only forms of relief i have. i would definatly lose my

job - and that's the least of my worries. plus, you know, people think that

" only hippies smoke pot " or that it must make me incredibly stupid - in

practice, i have found both of these stereotypes to be grossly untrue. i

hold down a full-time job, work as an artist, and have many responsibilities

that i fulfill to the utmost without any trouble at all - that is, from the

marijuana. my psc, as you all know, can be a distraction at the very least

and an all-time consuming illness at it's worst.

i live in a state that allows medical marijuana use, with the approval of a

doctor. most of the doctors i have seen for my psc have been " cool " with

the idea - ie, they don't see any harmful effects from smoking it (although,

to be fair, tests really haven't been performed to investigate fully the

long-term effects of smoking marijuana) and don't find it to be an abhorent

idea - in fact, they are happy that i can find some relief from my pruitis

that isn't a medication.

my question to the support group is this - do you consider consistent

itching to be " constant, debilitating pain? " i am seriously considering

applying for a medical marijuana allowance, which requires the approval (and

signature) of my doctor. i could finally rest in peace knowing that the

cops aren't going to bust me for treating my illness with marijuana - but

frankly, i know that people who suffer from cancer and AIDS probably need it

more than i do. i feel a little weird about taking advantage of a system

created to treat terminal patients, when my disease is certainly

uncomfortable but not necessarily lethal.

plus, i'm interested in anything other support-group members might have to

say about marijuana use, recreational, medicinal, or otherwise. i'm looking

to open a dialouge, and i'm giving my personal email address for anyone who

smokes marijuana and doesn't want to " out " themselves to the group.

moniquedixon@...

thank you to all who took the time to read this.

monique dixon

_________________________________________________________________

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[Guest guest]

most of the doctors i have seen for my psc have been " cool " with

the idea - ie, they don't see any harmful effects from smoking it

**I cant imagine any GI or HEP who would be cool with that, unless

you were TERMINAL. You have to be " illegal drug free " to be listed.

ALL the transplant programs are very strict about that.

There are " legal meds " out there for pruritis.

Andi

[Guest guest]

Dear ;

I would like to echo Andi's words of caution about using marijuana

and the possibility that this might jeopardize chances of getting

listed for a liver transplant. A recent article on this problem is

shown below:

_______________________________________

Prog Transplant. 2004 Sep;14(3):217-21.

Shopping for a transplant: when noncompliant patients seek wait

listing at multiple hospitals.

Bramstedt KA, Stowe J, Kotz M.

Department of Bioethics, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH

44195, USA.

United Network for Organ Sharing policy allows patients to be listed

for a transplant at multiple hospitals. This strategy can sometimes

lessen the transplant waiting time for patients because waiting times

vary geographically. We explore the ethical dilemma of " shopping for

a transplant " by presenting the case of a patient with an addictive

disorder who was listed for liver transplantation at one hospital on

the east coast of the United States and was seeking listing at 2

additional hospitals in midwestern United States, when marijuana use

was suspected by 1 of the latter 2 facilities. Although the

transplant team at this facility deferred listing the patient, the

team's bioethicist posed the concept of a duty to notify the facility

where the patient was already listed for transplantation about any

confirmed substance abuse, in an effort to prevent a scarce resource

from being allocated to an individual who is noncompliant. PMID:

15495781.

_______________________________________

Some alternatives for controlling pruritus (itching) include

cholestyramine, rifampin or naltrexone. My son has had good success

with rifampin recently.

Best regards,

Dave

(father of (19); PSC 07/03; UC 08/03)

[Guest guest]

i used the term " cool " loosely, of course. and i'm not on a

transplant list, so i haven't been following the guidelines. if i

was, i would of course abstain from using marijuana. i'd rather

be alive and itching than...otherwise.

i find that it works better than the " legal " drugs i've been

prescribed - most of them, such as questran, haven't been

effective with me, and i've been told that that's not unusual. so

yes, while i have some prescription options available, i haven't

found the degree of relief to equal that of marijuana's. if i had, i

probably wouldn't smoke it. i'm not just using my disease as an

excuse to smoke pot - it helps. a lot.