A general practitioner cannot order cannabis-based medicines; they can only be prescribed by a specialized doctor at the hospital. It is likely that it will only be prescribed to a small number of patients. In the UK, you can now get medical marijuana for anxiety. Five years ago, I experienced panic attacks in public that were so intense and sudden that I became immobile and desperate to breathe.
It is not a pleasant experience to be physically taken over by your own body when you are just trying to buy a train ticket. As a result, I stopped taking my medication, Sertraline, and ended my CBT sessions and private therapy. My panic attacks returned within a few weeks, mostly in the middle of the night. I was constantly checking that windows and doors were locked to make sure no one could come in and hurt me.
The clinic put me in contact with Rokshaw Ltd, a company based in Sunderland that supplies Curaleaf medical cannabis to the UK. Curaleaf is an American company that organizes the production of cannabis products for medical use. The raw materials are cultivated in Portugal, where all drugs are decriminalized. My prescription arrived via DPD the next day. Inside the box was a medium-sized jar full of sticky, dry cannabis buds.
I took a small number of buds, crushed them with a grinder and packed them carefully into a dosing capsule. I placed this capsule inside the main convection chamber of my vaporizer, the FX Mini vaporizer. This device has an adjustable temperature gauge that ranges from 160 to 221 degrees Celsius. It does not directly heat the grass, but rather heats the air around the chamber to limit the amount of carcinogens normally released by burning the grass. Immediately, I felt my anxiety fading away and the sharp edges of the room becoming more rounded and glassy.
Medical marijuana does not drive you crazy like many of the things found on the streets in countries where cannabis is not regulated. The effect is diffuse and light; I found myself smiling quietly and things were more fun than usual, but I wasn't bursting into uncontrollable fits of laughter. The weight that lived in my chest next to my heart and lungs disappeared silently and I was still energetic and agile enough to get up and do things on my to-do list. My first point of contact was going to the post office, which I usually find too stimulating and terrifying. However, this time I stayed in line and admired the trinkets and toys on offer. Throughout the week, I went to a party, visited my in-laws and watched Charmed.
I noticed that my sleep improved, I didn't want to drink alcohol and I wanted to exercise more. My entire relationship with cannabis as a drug had been as a social and recreational drug; it felt strange to pack a vaporizer and burn in the middle of the day. The only downside was being very aware of the cultural and legal ramifications of taking my prescription. Vaping indoors is not recommended as it can make your house smell like a Camden record store. Additionally, there is some evidence that medical cannabis can relieve certain types of pain, although these tests are not yet strong enough to recommend it for pain relief.
