The first quarter Medical Cannabis program newsletter published by the state earlier this year includes an entire section on the low and slow approach to Medical Cannabis treatment. One of our team members saw it and began wondering how many new patients had never heard of it before. We decided to publish this post as an explanation.
Utah now has more than 83,000 Medical Cannabis Card holders. We are adding thousands to the roles every quarter. That tells us there are plenty of new Medical Cannabis users throughout the Beehive State who may not be familiar with the low and slow principle.
The low and slow approach two Medical Cannabis treatment is easily illustrated by taking a dip in a swimming pool. Imagine a hot, summer day complete with a blazing sun and no breeze to help you cool down. You are ready to take the plunge, but your brain tells you not to do it. Instead, you are just going to dip your toe in the water. You just want to see how cold the water is before you jump in.
This is essentially the low and slow approach to Medical Cannabis. Rather than taking as much as you can as frequently as possible, you start out slowly. Let us look at both aspects of the principle a little more closely.
Since Medical Cannabis isn’t provided via traditional prescription, you may not have exact instructions from your doctor. The low aspect of the low and slow approach is to start out with the lowest possible dose – just to see what happens. But how low should you go?
We recommend having a conversation with your Pharmacy Medical Provider (PMP). Ask them where to start based on your condition and symptoms. A PMP is arguably the most qualified person to recommend a starting dose.
In addition to a starting dose, your PMP can also recommend a delivery method. Different forms of Medical Cannabis can offer different effects. Here is where the slow component comes in. Do not be ready to jump up to a higher dose if your initial dose doesn’t seem to work. Give it time. You might also try a different delivery method at the same dose. A different delivery method could make all the difference in the world.
When it is time to increase your dose, do so slowly and gradually. The goal is not to get from zero to sixty as quickly as possible. In fact, your goal is just the opposite.
The goal of the low and slow approach is to guide you to the most optimal dose and delivery method. It is to ensure that you are using the smallest possible amount combined with the most effective delivery. That way, you are not taking too much too frequently.
By the way, this approach is not limited to Medical Cannabis. Medical providers tend to take the same approach to prescription medications. They understand that you can get too much of a good thing, which is why they write prescriptions the way they do. Work with your PMP and medical provider to do the exact same thing with Medical Cannabis.
The low and slow approach is a proven strategy that has helped untold numbers of patients realize maximum benefit from Medical Cannabis. If you have any questions about low and slow during your next appointment with a medical provider, do not hesitate to ask. The only way to get answers is to ask questions.
