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Help My Dad By Reading And Replying To This Please.

Discussion in 'Apprentice Marijuana Consumption' started by MasterChron420, May 24, 2013.

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  1. #1 MasterChron420, May 24, 2013
    Last edited by a moderator: May 24, 2013
    Hello everyone. I've been signed up for quite awhile now and typically just browse around when my curiosity strikes. Anyhow, today I am here and posting for an entirely new cause. My dad.
     
    Since my dad had a brain aneurysm, which he had a successful surgery for, he has been enduring a tremor in his left hand. After paying numerous visits to many different neurologists, we believe the symptoms (hand tremor, low quality of life, depression) are the beginning stages for a diagnosis of Parkinson's Disease.
     
    My father currently takes Carbidopa and Levadopa in one pill. This is supposed to help increase the dopamine in his basil ganglia to help stop the involuntary movements in his hand. Sadly, this medication has not done much... He was on a dosage of 3 pills per day for a year to help treat the shaking but it hasn't been as effective as anticipated. The last neurologist we saw upped the dosage by double (6 per day) which was causing my dad horrible migraines and increased depression. He is now back to his original dosage of 3 per day.
     
    Upon further research, we are now resorting to treatment through medical cannabis. We are hoping this will help with many of the ongoing tasks performed b the endocannabinoid system, responsible for the low dopamine levels associated with Parkinson's Disease, in the brain.
     
    My dad has never smoked cannabis in his life so this is something entirely new for him.
     
    Over the past two days, we've smoked the following strains out of a chillum and bubbler (he didn't like either of those instruments):
    Blue Dream
    Big White
    Skunk Wreck
     
    I don't think his first "high" has occurred yet. However! We noticed that the hand stopped shaking after taking a few hits along with a "better feeling" notion hinted on his end.
     
    In your professional opinion(s), should we continue on the path that we are on?
     
    Should we be concerned of any side effects of self-medicating?
     
    What would be the most efficient way to help stop the shaking without constantly having to medicate?
     
    As a former man who underwent brain surgery after enduring a brain aneurysm, is smoking cannabis safe for him factoring into account the increased flow of blood/heart rate?
     
    Sativa or indica? (Maybe indica due to the past brain surgery so it is not as much of a shock to the body?)
     
    Finally..
    We'd like to avoid any anxiety/panic associated with longterm use. What is the best way to ensure this does not get in the way of self-medicating? 
     
    Pelase let us know!
    Thanks so much.
    Masterchron420

     
  2. #2 seaf0ur, May 24, 2013
    Green light bro, perhaps try an edible or a tincture?
     
  3. #3 seaf0ur, May 24, 2013
    or just a simple joint..... always works for me
     
  4. #4 Torontoke, May 24, 2013
    Load .2 in the bong and your dads gonna be all right. All the best.

    Sent from Samsung Galaxy Note II using Grasscity Forum App

     
  5. #5 StickyDro, May 24, 2013
    Make edibles, easiest form of high there is.
     
  6. #6 OGsmokr, May 24, 2013
    Sounds like a nice heavy indica should help with your father's shaking, as for the depression an uplifting sativa high might help. Maybe try a hybrid, but hope everything goes well. Best wishes
     
  7. #7 mrmuffinman, May 24, 2013
    Edibles are best bet. Go down to the dispensary and get a candy or something and let him try it
     
  8. #8 rain dancer, May 24, 2013
    I usually don't recommend smoking to anyone and though I smoke a lot, I don't recommend you start if you don't already, as I don't want to encourage anything that is detrimental to health, where health is important.

    I recommend edibles.

    A crock pot with water butter and ground up herb (the finer the better, I recommend an electric coffee grinder which could be found second hand at most thrift stores) cooked on low for two days will dothe trick. Play around with your dosages by adding or subtracting herb from each batch. I typically add about an ounce to two sticks of butter, but that is extreme overkill and will probably add to his fears, as I've heard some old schoolers refer to it like an acid trip, because my dose is incredibly high due to constant debilitating pain.

    You could try adding a quarter ounce to two sticks, each stick being a batch of :cookies, tacos, brownies, spaghetti, the list is endless as it can be added to whatever requires butter.

    The difference is that the dose will last for many hours, up to 8, continuously without taking more and by cooking it, you release other medicated compounds, such as cbd, which will relax your father.

    Indica is relaxing, think couch lock, no pain, and hungry. There's no doubt his shakes will cease with indica.

    Sativa is uplifting and the effects at times mimick uppers like caffeine, suppress appetite and increase feeling, in my experience.

    Also, don't pay attention as much to names of cannabis as most are made up street names. Stick to indica/sativa and you'll be fine. Make sure to ask the person you get it from which one it is.

    If you have any more questions, feel free to ask here or write me directly and I'll do my best to help you.

    I wish you all the best!
     
  9. #9 Blackphobiaz, May 24, 2013
    Start with some heavy indica. I have tremors and sativas usually make it worse. Good job on taking a more natural medical route.
     
  10. #10 Storm Crow, May 24, 2013
    By all means continue! There are 100s of studies on how cannabis treats Parkinson's.
     
    Methods of use? I would suggest a vaporizer, tinctures or edibles. Vaporizing is far easier on the lungs than smoking! Don't get an "el cheapo" knock off on ebay- they are made in other countries and to put it mildly they REEK of plastic fumes and phthalates ("bad news" chemicals)! Get an American made vaporizer- Vapor Brothers, Da Buddah, Silver Surfer, etc!
     
    Tinctures are a good bet. Easier to control the dosage than with edibles. There are 2 types, alcohol and glycerin based tinctures. Alcohol tinctures sting the mouth, but are quicker to make. Glycerin tinctures are a better bet- they taste sweet and "warm", and don't sting your mouth. "My" local dispensary carries both types in "High THC" and "High CBD" varieties.
     
    Edibles come on slowly, vary in intensity due to what you have eaten recently and when, but give longer lasting relief than other methods.  Check this out for recipes-
     
    BadKat's CannaPharm: -Linked- Table of Contents  (forum post - 2012)
    http://forum.grasscity.com/blogs/badkittysmiles/30689-badkats-cannapharm-linked-table-contents.html
     
    Now about the panic attack problem- you need cannabis that still has some CBD in it! CBD (cannabidiol) is an anti-anxiety drug! It stops the panic attack before it can happen!  It also helps with the short term memory loss that THC causes!
     
    Cannabidiol inhibits THC-elicited paranoid symptoms and hippocampal-dependent memory impairment.     (abst – 2012)          http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23042808
     
     
    These folks have a list of "High CBD" strains that may help you find the right strain for him!
     
    http://www.projectcbd.org/  
     
    Don't worry about his heart! Cannabis does good things for hearts (although the CO2 from smoking it is bad- so vape, use tinctures or edibles!)
     
    Pot Smoking Not Linked To Greater Risk Of Death For Those With Coronary Disease
    (news – 2013)  
    http://norml.org/news/2013/01/31/study-marijuana-smoking-not-associated-with-greater-mortality-risk-among-heart-attack-survivors
     
    An ultra-low dose of tetrahydrocannabinol provides cardioprotection.    (abst – 2013) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23537701
     
    "CONCLUSION: A single ultra low dose of THC before ischemia is a safe and effective treatment that reduces myocardial ischemic damage."
    \n 
    Now as for studies on Parkinson's and cannabinoids, I have pages of links to studies and articles for you on Parkinson's!  Just check out the bottom of my sig and send me an email! I'll send you back my full List as a PDF with over 1000 pages of links on everything cannabis-related on subjects from ADHD to Wounds and Injuries!
     
     
    Hope that helps!
     
    Granny   :wave:
     
  11. #11 MasterChron420, May 24, 2013
    Good News Everybody!! :)
     
    My dad smoked a joint then ate an edible and got super high!
     
    It stopped his tremor entirely!
     
    It did kind of seem that he got a bit "TOO high" though. He was running around making weird noises and pretending like he was flying a spaceship.. He ended up telling me he was "REALLY high!"
     
    He is now sleeping... :)
     
    Should we continue with an edible a day or what?? Maybe some more joints?
     
    Personally, I have a very low tolerance so I can 't really keep up with him at this pace. Is it okay if I jus smoke a little bit around him or will he feel like I am abandoning him?
     
     
  12. #12 seaf0ur, May 25, 2013
    He will have to learn his limits...
     
    he ought to be comfortable while treating his issues. If he smokes too much and gets too anxious, than thats an issue. I have to grow to keep up with how much I personally consume.
     
  13. #13 Storm Crow, May 25, 2013
    You'll figure out the right dose eventually. I think he just finally felt "right" and was just acting like a kid again!  :laughing:
     
    Now another thing you have to do is get him on Omega 3 (fish oil- check Walmart or Puritan's Pride online). The way cannabis works is by activating CB receptors. But if you don't have Omega 3 in your diet, the receptors are made defectively. A little chunk called a G i/o effector protein doesn't get "glued down" right and you get a dud receptor! Too many duds and the healing ability of cannabis is lessened! These guys were just looking at the effects on the brain and moods....
     
    Omega-3 deficiency disrupts cannibinoid receptor function in brain        (news – 2011)
    http://www.wellsphere.com/general-medicine-article/omega-3-deficiency-disrupts-cannibinoid-receptor-function-in-brain/1347465
     
    ...but the bad effects in the body are even worse!  This is just one thing that having too many duds can cause-
     
    Turned-Off Cannabinoid Receptor Turns On Colorectal Tumor Growth      (news - 2008)
    http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/08/080801074056.htm
     
     
    Since the neurons of the brain are affected by a lack of Omega 3, it is very likely that the nerves in the body are likewise affected! Cannabinoids are neuroprotectants, but they need FUNCTIONING CB receptors to prevent, and possibly, repair nerve damage! By the way, it takes time to replace thousands of defective CB receptors- a couple months is not unreasonable!
     
    There are some new PubMed studies on Omega 3 reducing the neural inflammation and tremor in animal models of Parkinson's, but they are pretty technical.  ("Ethyl-eicosapentaenoate (E-EPA) attenuates motor impairments and inflammation in the MPTP-probenecid mouse model of Parkinson's disease" is one of them).
     
    So let's just keep it simple and say Omega 3 will help the cannabis treat his condition.
     
    Granny  :wave:
     
  14. #14 MasterChron420, May 25, 2013
     
    Hello Granny!
     
    Thank you for the amazing words of wisdom!
     
    I totally had it in the mind to get him on an Omega 3 fish oil supplement as personal research before all of this hinted that it would be very efficient in treating the tremor. 
    Today, my dad got incredibly high.... LOL! He was feeling really good and got a tad bit anxious.. Thankfully, he was feeling MUCH better with less shaking and a brighter mood and he got A LOT of rest.
     
    My remaining questions are this:
     
    Will we have to continue to get him high every day to help treat his condition?
    Is it possible he will be completely cured without having to medicate anymore? 
     
    Lastly,
    The Levadopa medication he has been taking has been making him severely depressed. Can we possibly replace this with the use of cannabis? 
     
  15. #15 Storm Crow, May 25, 2013
    Yes, it will be an every day thing, but his tolerance will grow and he well be able to function!
     
    There have been years of subtle nerve damage that will take time to heal, if it is possible to heal it. So, no, one dose is not going to cure him.
     
    I have no answer to your last question. But I do know that levadopa can eventually make the dyskinesia of Parkinson's WORSE!
     
    Mechanisms underlying the onset and expression of levodopa-induced dyskinesia and their pharmacological manipulation.  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21881839
     
    Cannabinoids seem to help with this problem.
     
    Granny
     
  16. #16 latinjay, May 25, 2013
    If hes a first timer edibles would probably be a bad idea since theyre hard to control the high and he'll probably crash, but vaporizers are really popular form of admission with older people and they sell the notion of "medicinal" to skeptics. my advice is just to lead him on the right path. I mean having him not do it all day everyday, wake and bakes will destroy his tolerance and that would probably lead him to beacome a very heavy user.
     
    good luck and im really baked right now :)
     
  17. #17 MasterChron420, May 25, 2013
    Last edited by a moderator: May 25, 2013
    Edit: Thanks everyone :)
     
    I shall keep you updated!
     
  18. #18 rain dancer, May 25, 2013
    Take a hit, wait a while, take another, wait a while.....do this til you find your level of comfort.


    I recommend an mflb for vaporizing or a vapor bros hands free setup. These two devices led the industry, ESP the vapor bros. everything else that followed was a knockoff/copy. They can get pricy. Mflb is exceptional in function, price, design and can go with you (portable) whereas the vapor bros box is for home use.
     
  19. #19 JaysForDays, May 25, 2013
    Defiantly sounds like he needs an indica, maybe with a hint of sativa for those 'depressive' states.
     
  20. #20 piepgras, May 25, 2013
    RSO Phoenix Tears! Go go go go
     
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