We had a good trip to Northern CA over the weekend. Every minute was filled so there was no time to visit a dispensary. Although I wanted to see one, it was low on the list of things to do.

We did take a couple brownies with us for the night. I ate 1/2 brownie before bedtime, same as always.

I now have two "whips" for the vaporizer. Whips are the tube that heats the bowl on one end and the other end is where the cannabis is inhaled. Not sure if it makes sense as I try to describe it.

The reason for the second whip is really for the bowls. I wanted two bowls because it is easier to use a sativa and an indica without going through the trouble of cleaning it out anytime I want to switch.

So if there is a need to vape during the day, all I have to do is switch whips. Less of a mess.

I have not used a sativa often. I battle pain/discomfort from the MS hug without medicating. But after a few hours of maximum effort, a sativa may be good.

I will have to see how it goes.

The indica is good for the late night interruptions of bathroom breaks at 3-4 AM when getting back into sleep mode cannot be achieved and spasms begin to interfere with being in a prone position in bed.

A couple draws of a vaporizer are quick acting and serve its purpose of relaxation allowing me to sleep a few more hours and wake up naturally.

The marijuana buds I have are lasting a lot longer than I anticipated. I am hoping to have enough to create cannabutter in the future and experiment with making my own edibles from start to finish.

I have a cookbook with sweets. The study is supposedly going to start in September. I have not heard from the cancer center but either way, the caretaker has supplied me with cannabis while everything gets set up.

Just bumping this up so that I do not lose it.

and...I had the results of the EEG and MRI. One "new" lesion but it is considered mild because the lesion is in the gray matter rather than on the cortex.

so no one can diagnose why I fainted/have total memory loss.

Such is the path of MS.

Study has still not begun but it is not an issue. I have plenty of product for vaping, just not to make my own edibles. But the cannabutter was so strong that the brownie pieces I eat at night are literally just a bite.

The bite at night makes sleeping easy.

Negative? I get hungry while I am sleeping!

This may not be the place to post, but since we're all talking about the evil "Mary Jane" here, I wanted to share.

I went to my gp last week because it had been 6 months and I needed a refill of Gaba. It doesn't seems to do much good when I take it, but I had some really bad days after getting off of it, so I figured I'd continue.

I dont have insurance and my GP is pretty good imho. I had mentioned before that I smoke pot for pain and he mumbled something about self-medicating that I ignored at the time. This time around he asked me how my pain was. I told him I woke up ok and it progressed through out the day until it was unbearable and then after dinner I smoke pot for relief.

I asked him if he had anything better for me (other than pain pills) and he said no. He said that pot has been found to do some pretty miraculous things and if it worked for me, I should stick with it.

I was pleased with his open-mindedness to tell you the truth. Although, I will do what I have to do to try and live a normal life, it's nice to be told by someone you respect that what your doing is ok with them. Btw, I have PN.

@Clarkstar. I am sorry that your experiences with trying to use cannabis to relieve your symptoms was such a nightmare and I hope all is going well now that a week or two has passed.

@Surfer. I had the same "self medication" comment from my psychiatrist time before last. I see him every three months for conversation. The last time, he asked if a dr in training could sit in on our session. Of course, no problem for me...I love an audience.

With all doctors, I am very open about MMJ. It did feel weird at first, almost as if I am doing something wrong. But I would add marijuana to the list of medications and it has been received with respect and curiosity.

I wear contacts so as my eye guy was asking about medicine, he wanted to know a few details. He has patients with glacoma.

Using MMJ is not making anything "all better." It is more of a substitute for the meds I take now that really did not do wonders anyway.

Pineapple is one of my favorites so far because of the mood elevator. Ironically, I had MJ that is older so I am using it up first.

Reminds me of eating my vegetables in order to justify eating dessert!

Aarcyn,

I'm with you on MJ not making things all better. It helps though and gives me something to look forward to during the day when I hurt (relief). Neuronten, (I take generic Gaba-something) doesn't seem to do much if anything to relieve my pain, but when I hurt bad, I figure it can't hurt to try.

"Pineapple is one of my favorites so far because of the mood elevator."
Is this a Sativa? Indica has always been preached as the strain for pain, but sometimes I've felt better with Sativas than with Indicas. You know, I think with mj, results are pretty unpredictable. I know I've smoked a certain type and had wildly different results. Sometimes I'm chatty, sometimes hilarious and sometimes very quiet. Sometimes I never think about pain the rest of the night and sometimes I can't think about anything BUT pain.

Unfortunately, it's not a miracle cure, but it's better than anything I've been offered by my doctor.

BTW, I may have missed a post somewhere, but why do you want to make your own cannabutter? I've never tried (dont like the way i feel with edibles and it's too slow for my taste) but always assumed it would be cost-prohibited compared with buying pre-made butter. Is it to control the strain used?

Hope you have a good day. With any luck, my son will invite my wife and I to go baby-sit their dog and I can swim in his pool! (One of the few things that doesnt aggravate my condition). Oh, and he has Wii and I'm addicted to bowling, lol.

Making your own cannabutter is nasty. smelly, messy work, but it is one way to know how strong it might be, and how finely it has been strained. That is why it is wise to make bigger batches and freeze it. The usual proportions I have been told is an ounce per pound of butter . . . but that would be very strong butter! The best (and most cost efficient) cannabutter I have ever made was done with shake I got for free. Put it in the blender and cooked it in butter/water mixture most often described in recipes for hours . . . really smelled up the house. But the end product made the best medicine in the form of gingerbread cookies. Three 2" cookies was a good dose . . . five was overstone. The spices did a great job hiding the taste and even helped with the odor.

I used to get a good snickerdoodle cookie made locally, but she moved. The new baker didn't seem to like to fully bake the cookies, and I got tired of soggy, flat, doughy cookies. I found 1/4 - 1/2 of one of those was a dose.

Ingesting is not the best way to fight nausea, as it takes too long to act. Inhaling is still faster and better relief for nausea, IMHO.

Pineapple is a indica. The only sativa I have is Blue Dream and even though I have a separate whip, I have not used it. My body does not seem to require any kind of pain/spasm medication during the day. It is only in the evening when sitting to watch TV that my spasms often become so annoying as to use medication in order to relax. My pain is manifests mainly as heat/icy cold and again, I can ignore it during the day.

@Surfer. Do you suspect that the different results could be that although you thought you purchased the same strain that in fact, you got a different variety or was your reactions just based on a different day?

I want to make my own cannabutter for a few reasons.

1. I would know exactly the ratio of buds to butter mixture.

2. There seems to be no control when it comes to the cannabutter I have used. When getting an edible, I ask what strain was used but every time, nothing is printed on the homemade food label.

When I talked to Mo at the Colorado dispensary, I asked about edibles and if the strain used would effect the reaction of my body. He said yes.

So part of my self exploration will be if I can discern a difference.

Mo suggested a mild roast of the buds to release the THC and make the cannabutter stronger. I have very little product so although I would like to experiment, I have nothing to "waste."

3. When it comes to homemade goods, I know my kitchen is clean/sanitary.

4. Smell and mess? I am ready for it. It will be noted eventually!

5. Although MMJ in Arizona is going through a lot of challenges, if it ever becomes legal enough, I may go into the cooking edibles business. That is really far off in my planning and may never happen.