Pubdate: Thu, 05 Jun 2014
Source: Westword (Denver, CO)
Copyright: 2014 Village Voice Media
Website: http://www.westword.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1616
Author: William Breathes

ARE THERE STUDIES ON USING MMJ FOR PMS?

Dear Stoner: Have there been any studies conducted on the benefits of
using cannabis to help treat PMS?

I'm Mean Once a Month

Dear Mean: I hear you (sassy finger snaps). No, seriously, I know
that PMS isn't all about being a stereotypical raging bitch to the
random barista who happens to fuck up your caffe latte with a
quarter-teaspoon too much milk. It's a serious condition for many,
many women that can cause the type of cramping, anxiety and pain that
would qualify pretty much anyone for a medical cannabis card. And for
those reasons (and as you probably already know), medical marijuana
can most certainly help treat the symptoms of PMS.

But actual studies are hard to come by. Searching medical databases
and the National Institutes of Health archives doesn't bring up much,
and the few studies on the topic were conducted in the 1980s, at the
height of the War on Drugs; to say they're slanted against cannabis
use is an understatement. There's plenty of anecdotal evidence to
support it, though, and has been for well over a hundred years. Queen
Victoria was prescribed it by the royal physician for PMS as well as
morning sickness. And we've dug up ads from old Colorado papers for
ointments and tinctures containing cannabis that were used for all
sorts of "women's issues." Granted, those tonics occasionally had
other, heavier drugs in them, but that doesn't take away from
marijuana's benefits.

Dear Stoner: I thought it would be a swell idea to try to get a job
in the cannabis industry and recently applied for my "pot badge." I
received an e-mail saying that they had turned up an old arrest for
pot possession way back in 1978 that never went to court and was
tossed due to lack of evidence. I don't have any paperwork from 36
years ago, and I can't get my "pot badge" and move forward until this
gets resolved. Any suggestions?

Robb

Dear Robb: If your possession charge is still coming up on a
background search 36 years later, then the paperwork showing that the
charges were dropped should also be on record. Clear the cobwebs and
pot resin from the old noggin and try to remember what city or county
you were arrested in, then do some digging. Save every e-mail and
response you get - even if it's just the court saying it no longer
has any records - and present those to the Marijuana Enforcement
Division. There's likely a solution here - that, or a really old
warrant. Just kidding...sort of. We would like to think that the
statute of limitations for a hippie pot bust has long since expired.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Matt