What is recreational marijuana? What is the difference between medical and recreational marijuana?

Those are hot questions these days for sure. Truly, there is no real difference between medical and recreational marijuana, except for the purpose for which they are used. Medical, kind of says it all, meaning something is meant to heal or treat a condition in a living body, human or animal. Recreational though can mean more than a few things, and is confusing. Recreation implies fun does it not? Relaxing, pleasurable, for enjoyment etc.

Recreational Marijuana, those two words are creating quite the stir these days. Canada’s parliament is hashing through all the amendments for our new legalization of Marijuana or cannabis. If they don’t get all these various amendments sorted out soon, I heard in a recent news report, then our governing officials will not get the summer off.

While most of us work all summer, our governing officials might not be able enjoy their usual recreation and have to attend parliamentary meetings….So sad.

*Edit- shortly after this was written, our Parliament and Senate finally did come to their agreements but instead of a projected Sept.1st official legal date, it’s been pushed back to mid October.

Back in 2001, using Marijuana as a medicine became legal here in Canada and 2018 will go on record as the year Marijuana became legal as a recreational product as well. It will be interesting to see how the present cannabis medical system will integrate with the recreational system.

The idea that a plant can be fun, relaxing, pleasurable and enjoyable…

that does not sit well with some folks. Cannabis in both Hemp and Marijuana forms has been around a very long time, but only became restricted plants in the 1930s. Read about it in Stop the war on Hemp if you have not already.

Our politicians and their cohorts, tried to ban alcohol too, back in the Prohibition days. Alcohol was being blamed for most of societies problems. I see the same pattern emerging, those who are against cannabis use, are claiming that using a plant for enjoyment, will increase crime and will injure our young. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Marijuana does not cause violent reactions in people, does not cause death even with over dosing, does not injure  those that use it. Can you say the same for alcohol? Alcohol is known for bringing the ‘ugly’ out of people. You’ve heard of a ‘mean drunk’, right? Marijuana or cannabis mellows a person’s mood to a happier state.

It can lift depression or it can drift you off to sleep, depending on the type of cannabis and potency. There are no lasting side effects that anyone has documented. Can you say the same for all those prescription drugs that doctors prescribe today? You certainly can not say that the more notorious illegal drugs do not cause harm, like cocaine, opiates, heroine, meth and others.

How is Marijuana used as medicine?

Patients, whether they are using it under their doctor’s supervision or are flying under the radar, generally use it by smoking it or taking it by mouth in capsule form.

Under a regulated legal system, Patients are restricted in where they can buy marijuana from, which is only from an approved list of licensed producers.

Patients are restricted in how much product they can use as well. As a medical plant, it’s use has been very tightly regulated. So tight in fact that it has increased the numbers of people finding other sources of cannabis for their medicinal needs.

There are also cannabis products in the form of salves, lotions and balms for pain. I use a certain wonderful cannabis infused salve (my Doctor has given me the thumbs up) for my pain. It has replaced fentanyl patches for a certain family member of mine as well.

When my discomfort needs a little extra, I use a Cannabis concentrate (one small dot of this) that I add to a small ‘glob’ of the salve, and rub it in well. I ask you, what is better…. fentanyl or cannabis? I think you know the answer to that question.  

*FYI- Did you know that by  law, no one is allowed to open your mail except for you? Unless your  mail crosses international borders, the Mail is private (for North America anyway).

How is Marijuana used recreationally?

The sky is the limit when you choose to use it for relaxation. Many people use marijuana to ease anxiety, not as patients, but to relax like you might choose to do with a glass of wine or a mug of beer.

Cannabis products are wonderful to calm and sooth a jangled irritated nervous system .I remember reading a particular story, somewhere in one of the social media outlets, of an adult son relating how cannabis had changed his parent’s marriage for the better.

His father was known to be a disagreeable fellow, given to fits of rage. It was taking it’s toll on his mother who was seriously contemplating leaving her husband. A family friend introduced the husband to marijuana to calm his nerves.

As the husband and father began to regularly smoke cannabis, his raging tempers became a thing of the past. The son related how his father became a relaxed and happy individual. It saved his parent’s marriage and the relationships with the rest of his family too.

One could say by using cannabis recreationally to feel good, it also had the desired effect of acting medicinally. Whatever was causing those out of control fits of temper, was soothed by the medical components of the cannabis plant.

Of course there are many people who purposefully over dose

in order to ‘fly high’, (which I do not recommend by the way). The larger majority of people who choose to use Marijuana products do so to relax. Newbies to marijuana should start very small and very slow to avoid an overdose.

An overdose will not injure or kill you, like a prescription or other illegal drugs might.

However, the effects are not pleasant as I can attest. My first attempt of taking a cannabis concentrate by mouth was a disaster. Some people are very sensitive to the THC component of Marijuana, as apparently I am.

Avoid the concentrates at first, but rather try an edible like a small portion of a gummie. If you are into smoking, choose the lower THC satvia strains like Charlotte’s Web and see how that affects you.

Smoking the herb, vaping the herb or concentrates of it are the most common ways of making use of Marijuana. Second are edibles, eating decarboxylated herb in various food items, from baked goods like cookies, bars, brownies to candies like gummies. The company Coast to Coast has a lot of edibles. The herb can also be taken in tea form or as a concentrate tincture or capsule.

For recreational purposes though, smoking, vaping and eating/drinking cannabis are the preferred ways of enjoying it.

So now you know the difference. Use it medicinally or recreationally to enjoy life more, to relax (or sleep), but use it responsibly. In other words, don’t be a pot head! Do not give those un enlightened folks any reason to say that cannabis should never be legal. Prove to others, how valuable a plant Cannabis really is, both the Hemp and the Marijuana strains. Peace 🙂