While Hit It Pass It is a spry young 21-year-old zine, I’m now in my mid 40s and my take on cannabis has matured. It’s gone from “Hey this makes me laugh a lot” to “Hey this makes getting through the day so much easier.” With many states legalizing medical marijuana, the opportunity for research and medical studies has increased significantly. Cannabis has so many forms and uses to help us “old people” naturally and effectively without having to rely on synthesized products with harmful side effects and heavy addiction rates.
Using cannabis medicinally doesn’t mean you have to become a “stoner” or even smoke the substance. Here are 5 common ailments many of us experience with age and 5 different ways you can use cannabis to treat them without having to blaze up a blunt.
- MUSCLE PAIN – After 30 it seems like even the simplest task can result in sore muscles. Does any of this sound familiar… Fell asleep on the couch binge watching your favorite streaming series and now your neck doesn’t want to turn all the way to one side? Sat in your office chair too long without taking a break and now your back is wound up tighter than Karen in HR? Thought you were in shape enough to join the local adult kickball league? Or carried your stubborn (grand)child off the playground kicking and screaming all the way to the car after telling them you would be leaving in 5 minutes 5 different times and now your arms feel like sore spaghetti?
A strong THC CREAM/BALM can be just the answer you’re looking for. The cannabinoids help to relax tense muscles and block the pain and discomfort while you rest up for the next small thing that will make you feel old all over again. - ARTHRITIC/RHEUMATIC DISCOMFORT – At this age it’s not just the muscles that hurt, it’s the muscles that hurt but all the joints too… and not just when it rains. Whether you’re swiping your phone, typing on your computer, doing some sort of craft like crochet, playing a musical instrument, doodling (both kinds), opening a jar of peanut butter or simply trying to light the lighter so you can hit the bong you’re starting to feel your fingers cramp up more and more.
Stay ahead of this sort of pain setting in by stocking your bathroom with POT SOAP for regular handwashing. The cannabinoids in the soap regulate inflammations and enhance the maturation of collagen which reduces cartilage discomfort allowing you to get a better grip on the steering wheel but not necessarily your life. - OSTEOPOROSIS – Whether you’re “big boned” or not bone density begins to drop in our 40s end even more so when exposed to chemotherapy. Gen-Xers all joked about the life alert lady who had fallen and couldn’t get up, but now we’re eyeballing that portable panic button for our parents and maybe even ourselves. Even if we’re not to break a hip age we’re approaching the age where those of us who haven’t kept up with it are a little more risk adverse in potential bone breaking activities like roller skating, downhill skiing or cliff jumping.
New studies suggest that even if you break a bone or have indicators of osteoporosis, cannabis can help. Long term cannabis consumption is already linked to increasing bone density but adding or starting CBD TINCTURE use to your daily routing not only slows bone degeneration it accelerates bone healing and can help prevent future fractures. - GUT HEALTH – There are plenty of contributing factors when it comes to gut health or the lack thereof as we age. Increased stress, poor diet, the rise of hormones and genetically modified additives to even seemingly healthy food and of course plain getting older. If, like me, you’re not really into yogurt (sorry Jamie Lee), or any of the supplements slinging buzzwords like microbiomes, probiotics, or detoxification you might consider cannabis. Research has found that THC increases the particular gut bacteria akkermansia muciniphila which produces the gut mucous that is critical to protecting the cells in the gut lining.
One way of ingesting cannabis in a soothing and stomach friendly manner is to sit back and sip on some ROOT TEA. Because it reduces diarrhea and nausea and promotes absorption, this method is effective even for those with more serious digestive issues. Not only does it reduce abdominal pain and minimize inflammation, it also promotes balance of bacterial species in the gut. - MENOPAUSE/MENSTRUAL – Guys, you can just skip to the end now, unless you have a lady in your life whose health and happiness you care about. Perched on the precipice of pre-menopause, women in their 40s are inflicted with the worst of both worlds, menopause plus periods, and all the afflictions that come with it like irritability, insomnia, anxiety, bloating, and pain. Additionally, there is an increased risk for other women’s health issues like endometriosis and chronic pelvic pain but studies are showing that cannabis is a very effective treatment for all of these issues and more.
It might never have occurred to you that it was even an option but VAGINAL SUPPOSITORIES are a particularly successful method for treating women’s health issues. Because female pelvic organs have a very high density of cannabinoid receptors, vaginal suppositories can be easily absorbed for rapid relief. As a bonus they can also help promote sex drive, decrease pain while enhancing pleasure sensitivities. See guys, aren’t you glad you didn’t skip to the end and read this bit anyway?
These are just a few ways that cannabis can help relieve the effects of aging, but the more research and clinical studies are done the more amazing benefits are found. Like any medical advice, you know your body the best and should talk to your doctor and do the research rather than just taking my word for it but for me, cannabis has greatly enhanced my quality of life more and more the older I’ve gotten. While I still appreciate passing the blunt with friends and laughing until our faces fall off, I’m increasingly grateful to live in a time where we aren’t allowing a stigma to stop us from using a plant the God gave us to heal ourselves.
