Today’s story is by Casey Downs who explains how she uses marijuana for migraines.
After suffering from debilitating pain, and the mental health issues that followed, cannabis became her go-to for migraine relief.
Here’s her story:
Cannabis has always been something I have been open to.
In my early twenties, I genuinely enjoyed the experience of sitting around a crackling fire with my friends, smoking and sharing amazing conversation… and at the same time, I would feel guilty and full of shame for it.
It would fill me with paranoia as I tried to hide it from the people in my life who weren’t accepting of it.
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Cannabis was far more enjoyable for me than alcohol, yet it seemed more socially acceptable to get blackout drunk at a bar than smoke a joint in the privacy of my own home.
It wasn’t until I started to experience chronic pain and migraines that I realized how much cannabis has helped me beyond recreation.
After seven years as a hairstylist – who manages severe anxiety, depression and untreated scoliosis – my body began to crumble under the strain of working 8-12 hour shifts on my feet full time.
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I was doing repetitive motions and inhaling chemicals all day every day. I would go home with my back screaming from the sensation of red hot daggers stabbing me repeatedly.
There were times I would be doing a client’s hair and feared that my body would give out and stop working; I would have to fight back tears and keep pushing because I was working with chemicals.
I began having tension headaches almost everyday, and at least once a month I’d have a migraine so severe I’d end up in the hospital. I wished for death in those times.
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Nothing I did brought relief. I would be locked up in a pitch-black room with an ice pack, crying in pain because no matter what I did my head felt like it had an axe buried in it.
I couldn’t sleep and would crawl back and forth to the bathroom to throw up when the pain became overwhelming.
My mental health suffered from feeling helpless and useless. I was missing more and more work and I knew I couldn’t continue the career I had worked so hard to build.
I ended up leaving my salon job and spent six months unemployed, savings dwindling with no financial aid coming in.
I was seeing a neurologist, physical therapist, behavior therapist, and chiropractor almost weekly – finding no relief. It was around this time that medicinal cannabis had been legalized in Massachusetts.
I was already a fan, so naturally I decided to apply for a medical card. My outlook and relationship with cannabis changed after talking to the doctor who did my examination.
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He gave me resources to look into for using cannabis to treat migraines (Google “Migraines, Cannabis, & William Osler,” one of the founders of Johns Hopkins Hospital) and I found hope.
Could something I love, that I had been shamed for using, actually be beneficial for my health?
For me, it was. I began to learn about different strains of cannabis. I found that I preferred hybrid strains that would help both my back pain and my migraines.
For use during the day, a sativa-dominant kept me focused and uplifted. Indica-dominant worked better for me at bedtime.
When I used indica during the day, I found it increased the symptoms of my anxiety or gave me “couch-lock.”
However, a lot of my paranoia when I use cannabis comes from feeling like a criminal because of the stigma. It has taken some work to overcome my own bias as someone who has always loved this plant.
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It helps that I now study and grow plants for a living, with a special interest in their medicinal properties, so my respect for cannabis has deepened!
Cannabis is simply another medicinal gift from Mother Nature, like so many other plants.
According to James A. Duke for Purdue University, “25% of modern prescription drugs contain at least one compound now or once derived or patterned after compounds derived from higher plants.”
I am looking forward to continued research and findings as cannabis becomes de-stigmatized.
Being a recreational user, I had to learn to treat cannabis medicinally. This meant finding a dosage that works for me. I prefer smoking flower. It allows me to control the psychoactive effects and feel immediate relief.
Concentrates tend to be too strong for me and edibles take a while to take effect and it is difficult for me to find a happy-place with how much to take.
I usually smoke bowls, one in the early morning when I first wake up and one at night before bed. I have found using a small dosage consistently has helped me to ease tension and inflammation that can trigger chronic pain and migraines.
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I will only use it throughout the day if needed and appropriate for what I am doing, but am careful not to overindulge.
When I do, I can get brain fog and it can irritate my respiratory system.
I have found, through the recommendation of a friend, that incorporating a tincture of tulsi/holy basil (Ocimum tenuiflorum) into my daily routine helps to counteract the feeling of cloudiness and lethargy that certain potent strains effective for pain can bring.
I also use aromatherapy for this reason and make a blend called CLARITY that keeps my mind sharp.
I have also used cannabis topically for pain with much success! Both CBD and THC in the form of lotion, salve, and oil.
There are times when I need to avoid THC, though I find it most helpful medicinally, so I use a full spectrum CBD tincture instead. This has worked for me.
Overall, I find that using cannabis consistently for prevention versus treatment when it comes to migraines is the most effective.
It does help relieve my back pain, but when I get a severe migraine I cannot stand to smoke or take anything internally.
I might use a topical with THC, but for the most part it has been incorporating cannabis into a low-stress, holistic lifestyle to lower inflammation that has improved the quality of my life the most.
Since I have started treating cannabis as medicine, I have been able to stop taking all my prescriptions aside from one that is used as needed for migraines when all else fails.
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I no longer need addictive pain or anxiety medication and do not have to take the antidepressant that had horrible side effects.
It fits into my holistic-lifestyle (I always choose organic when possible) and even enhances my spiritual practice.
I am grateful to have found something that works for me with very few negative side-effects.
I highly recommend talking to a medical professional who specializes in cannabis or doing your own research into this miracle plant.
It has not only given me my life back, but it has made it more enjoyable. I hope anyone else dealing with chronic pain and migraines finds relief.
Keep searching for your answer!
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Casey is a cannabis enthusiast and also the owner of Rosies-Apothecary, where she makes herbal products to be used for health and wellness. For more of her healing content, follow her on Instagram.