Medical Marijuana

Here you can share your experiences with substances that are ingested, inhaled, or otherwise consumed for the purpose of relieving RLS, other than prescription medications. For example, herbal remedies, nutritional supplements, diet, kratom, and marijuana (for now) should be discussed here. Tell others of successes, failures, side effects, and any known research on these substances. [Posts on these subjects created prior to 2009 are in the Physical Treatments forum.]

Important: Posts and information in this section are based on personal experiences and recommendations; they should not be considered a substitute for the advice of a healthcare provider.
NatWest
Posts: 162
Joined: Wed Jan 06, 2010 7:06 pm

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by NatWest »

Good morning, Orrel. We have laws here in the US that don't make much sense either. Since it is still illegal at the federal level, each state has it's own laws, which vary greatly, and in a number of states it is still illegal. When California first legalized MM in 1996, federal agents actually came in and closed down dispensaries on a regular basis. Fortunately, they have since backed off on this practice, but that could change depending on who wins in the next national election. I am planning to visit my cousin who lives in Colorado later this summer, but because it is illegal at the federal level, I cannot legally bring my MM with me from Oregon to Colorado, even though it is legal in both states. And because I don't have a Colorado MM card, I would need to try to find it at a recreational marijuana shop after our plane lands. And then, whatever I buy, I would legally have to leave in Colorado. At least in Canada you have the MMPR so it is legal everywhere. My son lives in Florida, where MM just became legal, and he wants us to come and visit him, but it would not be legal for me to bring mine into Florida or purchase it there. But as long as I stay in Oregon everything is great! But I agree, your law does seem strangely restrictive and cumbersome. Hope it goes well for you!

Bess
Posts: 21
Joined: Tue Jun 09, 2015 9:08 pm

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by Bess »

Yeah I live in Virginia and it's illegal to get any kind of MM, even CBD oil which doesn't contain THC (so dumb). It is however legal to buy CBD oil if it is derived from hemp, so I recently purchased some and will let y'all know if it works. Apparently the problem with hemp oil is that the CBD content is much lower than the legit medicinal formulation, so some places have bred hemp plants that have higher levels of CBD and process the oil in a way that maximizes the CBD content (I just purchased some from Earth Science Tech, but I'm maintaining a healthy skepticism about this company since I didn't get an order confirmation). *sigh* It seems like I have a slightly atypical variety of RLS (daytime symptoms, no PLMD) so a lot of the things that work for others don't work for me but I'm really hoping this does the trick!

NatWest
Posts: 162
Joined: Wed Jan 06, 2010 7:06 pm

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by NatWest »

Hope it works out for you. I'll be glad when it's legal in the US, not just state by state, and we all have access to the same things. Recreational marijuana just became legal here on Wednesday. I was having the symptoms all day long, too, before I went to MM, but those are totally gone now. I'll look forward to hearing how it works or you with the hemp oil.

Bess
Posts: 21
Joined: Tue Jun 09, 2015 9:08 pm

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by Bess »

I just finally got the CBD oil in the mail... apparently it only contains 0.55 mg of CBD per drop and I just went back and read that the kind you have is a 0.5 g cartridge so I doubt I'm going to be able to vape this stuff. The entire bottle doesn't even have 500 mg. Probably should've read more carefully beforehand..

One last ray of hope for this experiment:
http://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplem ... b-20059701
This website says that as little as 40 mg of CBD taken by mouth can be helpful for sleep disorders. OK so this might be worth a shot still... now I just have to wait until I have symptoms again and I will give an update.

ViewsAskew
Moderator
Posts: 16566
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 6:37 am
Location: Los Angeles

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by ViewsAskew »

Do let us know.
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest

Managing Your RLS

Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.

NatWest
Posts: 162
Joined: Wed Jan 06, 2010 7:06 pm

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by NatWest »

Hi Bess, I wish I was more knowledgeable about what the labels mean. It may be more potent than it sounds. The .5 gram in the vapor pen cartridge, which I have been using since March, is still half full. They told me at the dispensary it should last 6 months or more. I use it every night, occasionally more than once. So the 500 mg that you have should be equal to that, if it was put into a vapor pen cartridge. I also have a tincture, which is taken by mouth, and works equally well, but I'm going to ask them some more questions next time I go in about the amount of CBD listed on the label (.60 mg) and the actual amount I'm getting with each dose. Wish I could be more helpful, but I'll let you know what I find out. And I'll look forward to hearing more from you ......

Bess
Posts: 21
Joined: Tue Jun 09, 2015 9:08 pm

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by Bess »

Boy did I get the opportunity to put this to the test! Last night was the worst RLS I've had in a long while, by 2AM my legs were climbing up the walls. Valium didn't work, nyquil didn't work, magnesium didn't work... I finally downed four dropperfuls (equating to possibly 50 mg of CBD) of the oil within the span of an hour... I think maaaayyyybe it calmed the legs a little? I think it's too low a dosage to know though. Also my insomnia was so severe I ended up just getting up and going to lab to get some work done so that complicates things a bit too. Based on what you've told me NatWest, I'll give the vape pen thing another go.

NatWest
Posts: 162
Joined: Wed Jan 06, 2010 7:06 pm

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by NatWest »

Yikes! Sorry to hear you had such a bad night! Keep me posted. Here is my nightly routine: right before getting into bed I inhale from the vapor pen 2-3 times, then take 2 droppers full of the Cannatonic tincture. Usually, that gets me through the night. But if I feel any symptoms coming on in the middle of the night I immediately take another couple of hits off the pen and/or a dropper full of the tincture. I do this at the slightest tingle. And am back to sleep within 5 minutes. I think taking them before bed helps prevent symptoms, and lessen them when they do occur. The vapor pen works almost immediately, the tincture takes a little longer and lasts a little longer. Hope this info helps. :)

ViewsAskew
Moderator
Posts: 16566
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 6:37 am
Location: Los Angeles

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by ViewsAskew »

Just as an FYI - it's likely you should not use Nyquil anymore! It has an antihistamine in it. While the sleepy meds in it can make a person drowsy, the antihistamine will often make the sensations/symptoms worse. Older antihistamines (and some of the newer ones) are on the Do NOT Use list.

Not sure if magnesium helped in the past...general consensus (and one small study) seems to be that it (and any other minerals or vitamins) only help when someone is deficient. If you're not deficient, it likely will not help, either.
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest

Managing Your RLS

Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.

Bess
Posts: 21
Joined: Tue Jun 09, 2015 9:08 pm

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by Bess »

Magnesium really did used to help me, especially if it was something really quickly absorbed like Natural Calm; on blood tests I was always a little on the low side... same with ferritin until I started taking supplements (those helped too, for a little while). Recently it hasn't seemed like magnesium works anymore, nor does iron.

As for Nyquil, it has saved me in the past, just because it's so sedating that it can override the RLS feelings. I have been cutting down on it recently though because of what I've read here on the forum! I had no idea about it before I joined. If I know the valium won't work nyquil is my only other option.

So last night I smoked maybe 5 mg or 10 mg worth of CBD because I started to get the leggy feeling, and although it didn't eliminate the feelings immediately or anything, it did make it super easy to fall asleep! Bliss! First nine straight hours of sleep I've had in many weeks. I'm not entirely sure yet but I'm going to continue experimenting with it.

ViewsAskew
Moderator
Posts: 16566
Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 6:37 am
Location: Los Angeles

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by ViewsAskew »

YAY on he CBD front!!!!

I imagine the Nyquil is working because of the sedation meds in it. You may be able to find those without the other ingredients.

Two possibilities regarding the iron and magnesium - one, you were deficient and it helped. The second is one that I hate to admit - it makes us sound as if we really do not have a problem. RLS is the only other condition, besides pain, that is highly susceptible to how we think about it. We can literally forget about pain when we get absorbed in something else - just like RLS. We can take a placebo and have it work with pain - just like RLS. There is a medical name for it, but I forget what it is....likely because I don't want to remember it, lol.
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest

Managing Your RLS

Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.

NatWest
Posts: 162
Joined: Wed Jan 06, 2010 7:06 pm

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by NatWest »

Hi Bess, thanks for sharing your recent experiences. I'm very happy to hear that you got 9 hours sleep! I'm jealous!! haha! Also, I second ViewsAskew's shout-out to CBD. I hope you will find some clear benefit in the future. I am still experimenting, too, and appreciate hearing how things are going for you. I'm headed to the dispensary this morning to get a refill on my Cannatonic, and ask more questions and get more recommendations.

pinkynose
Posts: 77
Joined: Sat Apr 25, 2015 10:58 pm

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by pinkynose »

Hi. I am going to one of the mm friendly states next week and wondering if you have advice on edibles that would help me sleep. The reason I'm interested in edibles is I have read they last the longest and I could eat one an hour or so before bed and sleep through the night. I'm not interested in getting buzzed, just being able to sleep through the night would be buzz enough!! Any thoughts on this would be appreciated.

NatWest
Posts: 162
Joined: Wed Jan 06, 2010 7:06 pm

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by NatWest »

Good morning, Pinkynose. I have not yet tried edibles. But, I've found that a vapor pen cartridge, with a formulation with 22.4% THC and 39.8% CBD, is very effective for treating my symptoms. So I would read the lables of edibles, and look for these percentages, or something close to this, when I do eventually purchase an edible. If I do get symptoms in the night, they do not occur until 2-3 hours after I go to bed, so I would probably eat it shortly before getting into bed to get the longest lasting effect.

I'm planning to go to Colorado in September, and I cannot legally bring my MM with me into another state, even where it's legal. Also, my Oregon MM card is not valid in any other state, so I'm planning to go to a recreational marijuana store as soon as we get there to purchase something to use during our stay, and I've been thinking edibles might be a good way to go. I plan to try some over the next few weeks. I'll be very interested to hear how it works for you. Hope your experience is positive.

Rustsmith
Moderator
Posts: 6466
Joined: Sat Sep 28, 2013 9:31 pm
Location: Colorado Springs, Colorado

Re: Medical Marijuana

Post by Rustsmith »

NatWest, I will second pinynose's request since I am traveling in two weeks. When you went to the dispensary, did you find anything that would be useful to us? Any advice that you can provide would be helpful.
Steve

https://www.mayoclinicproceedings.org/a ... 0/fulltext
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.

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