Wondering if anyone here has tried a Medicinal Marijuana regimen? At this point I'm willing to give it a try, but I live in IN--where we always tend to wait ten years before trying anything "new"...as if marijuana were new.
Many thanks.

Hello and welcome to Neuro talk. There is a whole thread about this issue. MM is being used now for many different kinds of disorders. I am going the legal route in trying to get the law passed in my state. On the search bar just type in Medical M. I wish you all the best. ginnie

Since there are little more than "unconfirmed" reports of the benefit of MM in PD , i suggest that we all try it and come up with a verdict of just how helpful MM is in PD. I have tried it, and had considerable success with calming dyskinesia, and found that it can be the only thing that works for depression, much better than SSRI's and the like. But that is me, i am sure that it's not for everyone of us (getting "stoned" is not for everyone!) There are also anecdotal reports that the antidyskinetic and antiseizure principle is cannabidiol, which is apparently not psychoactive, and may be useful by itself. If used properly i think it has a useful role to play in PD therapy. But it still doesn't do anything to make one feel "asymptomatic", so, is probably just another palliative agent. But if it works dont try to fix it!
I tried to find anything on the web about cannabinoids being excitatory amino acid antagonists, but no real hits.

Yes the thing is, it does work for many people. I have PN and had a window of opportunity last year to try it. There was a noticeable difference, so I joined the campaign to get it on the ballot. In my opinion a grown adult should try what ever he can to help symptoms and live a better life. It is about quality of life. I don't care if it is all in the head, I really don't, if it helps suffering, it is worth the try. ginnie

I'm not big on getting stoned so, the THC route isn't really for me however, I did try THC after watching a video showing great results on an older PD man. I was desperate and willing to try most anything. It did nothing for me. I then had dbs which helped with many issues. I did continue to have severe joint pain and sleep problems. I tried a topical called Sootheen Indicreme which was recommended to me by a doctor friend. It did wonders for my aches and pains. I started buying it online and while visiting their site I noticed that they make products that contain cannabidiol derived from
Hemp. So I got some of their liquid cbd and it has done wonders for several issues. I am now able to sleep through the night. It also seems to diminish joint pain. Less specifically it seems to generally help anxiety. Because it is hemp based it is legal and you can order it from any state.

I have been taking a high CBD (cannabidiol) cannabis oil at night and it has definitely helped my sleep, reduced anxiety and relaxed my muscles. It's called Cannatonic and also has THC but it doesn't make me feel stoned. THC makes me anxious but the CBD in this strain takes away the anxiety.

Here's what I posted in another forum regarding a presentation on MM by an MD:

Question: where would you find a Parkinson’s support group that has an MD keynote speaker talking about medical marijuana for PD? Answer: why Santa Cruz, California of course!

So I attended the meeting a few weeks ago. And it was very interesting. I have experimented occasionally with medical marijuana for my Parkinson’s symptoms but not with any scientific discipline and so no surprise that I haven’t seen any interesting and meaningful results to date.

Here’s what I learned from the presentation. First to get some background do a Google search for ”Sanjay weed 2”. The YouTube video is the CNN documentary with Dr. Sanjay Gupta and talking about the latest research in medical marijuana. There are some interesting stories and it’s worth watching for the 40 minute show.

Secondly, the preferred term is medical cannabis, to differentiate from the word marijuana which sort of implies recreational getting high! So here are some of the things I learned:

1.The best delivery method is a tincture - this is the lowest cost and most efficient way using a few drops under the tongue via a dropper bottle.


2.No surprise - different people have different results. It works for some and not for others.


3.You may have to experiment with a treatment for at least three months to see results.


4.Different doses have different effects and so again some experimentation is needed.


5.Two key ingredients in cannabis are CBD and THC - Google these to find out more. CBD has the medicinal properties and THC gets you high. So for many of us we do not want the latter.


6.It was found that a low dose of CBD could reduce symptoms but a higher dose could exacerbate symptoms. And I believe the presenter said the best ratio of CBD to THC is 2:1, unlike the strain mentioned in Sanjay’s documentary called “Charlotte’s Web” which I think is mostly all CBD, and is used on children with seizures.


7.There are a number of interesting studies from places like Israel and clearly more research is needed. I think one study showed that cannabis could be neuroprotective -however I think this was with mice!


8.Finally it helps to live in a state like California where medical cannabis is legal with a doctor’s prescription


So the bottom line. Before this presentation I thought I just needed to get some pot and it would help my PD symptoms. Now I realize there are variables such as dosage, mixture of CBD to THC and giving the drug time to show effects and results. Clearly a lot more research is needed and perhaps I need to do some more experimentation.

Brian

Good information provided. The information about Israel is correct too. They are doing the leading research on all aspects of MM. Seems to me they are years ahead of the USA. We need to get vocal and vote in the US. This choice should not be controlled by Gov. but that is what we have to deal with.
Hope more information comes in time. Talk to your neighbors in what ever state you live in. Someday we all experience pain. It would be nice to know there was a choice less dangerous than current narcotics given. My neighbor is vice Mayor and an ex policeman. Best decision I ever did in talking to that man. I was surprised at the amount of support in this small community. Keep posting information as you get it Brian. ginnie

Don't recall if this study was previously posted. It was open label, so could be some placebo effect. Nevertheless, it's certainly interesting.


OBJECTIVE:
The use of cannabis as a therapeutic agent for various medical conditions has been well documented. However, clinical trials in patients with Parkinson disease (PD) have yielded conflicting results. The aim of the present open-label observational study was to assess the clinical effect of cannabis on motor and non-motor symptoms of PD.
METHODS:
Twenty-two patients with PD attending the motor disorder clinic of a tertiary medical center in 2011 to 2012 were evaluated at baseline and 30 minutes after smoking cannabis using the following battery: Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale, visual analog scale, present pain intensity scale, Short-Form McGill Pain Questionnaire, as well as Medical Cannabis Survey National Drug and Alcohol Research Center Questionnaire.
RESULTS:
Mean (SD) total score on the motor Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale score improved significantly from 33.1 (13.8) at baseline to 23.2 (10.5) after cannabis consumption (t = 5.9; P < 0.001). Analysis of specific motor symptoms revealed significant improvement after treatment in tremor (P < 0.001), rigidity (P = 0.004), and bradykinesia (P < 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS:
There was also significant improvement of sleep and pain scores. No significant adverse effects of the drug were observed. The study suggests that cannabis might have a place in the therapeutic armamentarium of PD. Larger, controlled studies are needed to verify the results.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24614667

cannabidiol excitatory amino acid antagonist

cannabis parkinson’s disease and the endocannabinoid system

Doc