We have been privileged to work with countless patients wanting to get their Utah Medical Cannabis Cards. In so many cases, these patients have tried other medications to treat everything from chronic pain to PTSD. They have chosen to turn to Medical Cannabis over other meds because those other therapies have not worked.
How about you? Do you use Medical Cannabis as a substitute for other meds? If so, you are not alone. Searching for alternatives to traditional prescription medications is a common theme among many of the patients we see. It also seems to be a theme consistent across the country; it is not confined just to Utah.
We did a little digging around and found a fascinating study published in November 2021. It showed that women were more likely to use cannabis in place of other prescription meds. The research was conducted as a survey study by The Cannigma.
They surveyed more than three hundred respondents about their prescription meds and cannabis habits. They discovered that 72% of the women reported using cannabis as a prescription med substitute. By contrast, only 55.5% of the men reported doing so.
Combining both groups reveals that 65% use cannabis as an alternative to other prescription meds. That is a clear majority no matter how you divide up the demographics.
One of the more fascinating aspects of the study is that it did not isolate Medical Cannabis users from their recreational counterparts. An entire cross-section of consumers was surveyed. That makes a difference with some of the other findings the survey revealed.
For example, Medical Cannabis users generally reported using it more than once per day. They also reported more frequent use days throughout the week. In a nutshell, those who use cannabis for therapeutic reasons tend to use more of it more often. No surprises there.
The Cannigma study confirms many of the things we have believed about Medical Cannabis for years. At the top of the list is the fact that a lot of patients finally turn to cannabis when other things don’t work. They absolutely should.
At the risk of sounding pious, we believe that Western medicine has taken the wrong approach toward cannabis for far too long. Cannabis doesn’t fit with Western medicine’s narrative, so it gets ignored or outright vilified. How disappointing is that?
We often work with countless chronic pain patients who have tried everything their doctors recommended. They have tried OTC pain medications and stronger opioid prescriptions. They have tried physical therapy, lifestyle changes, dietary changes, etc.
For many of them, Medical Cannabis is a measure of last resort. That’s not the way it should be. Medical Cannabis should be on the table as a treatment option from the very start.
We are happy to say that we have seen some impressive results among many of our patients. For example, we have seen lots of reports of patients completely giving up their prescription opioids after getting into a stable Medical Cannabis regimen. If you’re looking for a way to measure the success of cannabis therapy, freeing people from the clutches of opioids would be a good place to start.
As for why women are more likely than men to use Medical Cannabis as a substitute for other prescription meds, there is no clear answer. It could be that women are just more willing to try alternatives. Who knows? The fact is that the majority of Medical Cannabis patients have turned to it as a substitute for other therapies. That’s what’s important.
