Cannabis a Treatment for Childhood Mental Disorders

[Frazz]

In 1996, California legalized cannabis as a treatment for "any... condition for which marijuana brings relief." Although the law does not constrain physicians from approving the use of cannabis by children and adolescents doctors have been reluctant to approve cannabis use by patients under 16 years of age, and have done so only in cases in which prescribable pharmaceuticals had been tried unsuccessfully.

 

The case of Alex P. suggests that the practice of employing pharmaceutical drugs as first-line treatment exposes children gratuitously to harmful side effects.

Alex aged 15 years and six months, had previously been prescribed Ritalin, Prozac, Paxil, Maxalt, Immitrex, Depacote, Phenergan, Inderal, Thorazine, Amitriptaline, Buspar, Vicodin, Seroquel, Risperdal, Zyprexa, Clozaril, Norco, and Oxycodone.

 

Although Alex showed facility communicating verbally, his reading and writing skills disappointed his teachers and prior to going to middle school he was evaluated for an Individual Educational Plan.

According to Alex's mother, Barbara "They didn't say he was dyslexic, they said he 'had trouble processing things.' He wasn't acting wild in school. He was always well behaved. But they said he had ADD because he couldn't concentrate and process things."

At age 11, Alex was prescribed Ritalin for attention deficit disorder.

In middle school Alex befriended some 13- and 14-year-olds, with whom he was caught stealing a car (and with whom he had shared his stimulant medication, and who introduced him to marijuana). Thus began a four-year sojourn through institutions of the juvenile justice system and hospitals and clinics.

In this period, according to Barbara P., "They put him on all these medications and not only couldn't he sleep at night, but he started having rampages, hitting -mainly me. He fought with his brother and his dad, too. He beat up the truck. He couldn't remember afterwards what he actually did. He seemed like a completely different person. I don't think that's because of who he is. I think it was because of the medications he was taking." Barbara P. expresses remorse that she obeyed court orders to force Alex to take his prescribed medications.

At age 13 Alex made a serious attempt at suicide by hanging himself from a tree outside his house. He was rescued by his brother returning home unexpectedly.

 

Alex had known since age 11, when he first smoked cannabis with his older friends, that it had a calming effect. Many of his encounters with the juvenile justice system were for marijuana possession. His mother says, "He was aware that it helped him not feel stressed out and not have headaches. It helped him concentrate. It helped him sleep. All the things he needed. But I wasn't for smoking it." She reports feeling social pressure from her community and pressure from her husband to oppose Alex's attempts to obtain and use marijuana.

"Alex went through three rehabs--two inpatient and one outpatient, all court-ordered, all for marijuana. He could not do inpatient and I told them that. It's not that Alex wanted to be out there doing drugs, he wanted to be home! He had a thing where he didn't want to be put in an institution where he didn't know anybody. "

Perceiving that Alex's mental state was worsening, and in response to his repeated requests to be allowed to smoke marijuana, Barbara did research on the internet that alerted her to similarities between cannabis and Marinol (dronabinol), a legally prescribable drug. Her request that a Kaiser physician prescribe Marinol for Alex was rejected.

 

Through the internet she identified the author as a specialist in cannabinoid therapeutics and arranged an appointment for Alex.

 

A prescription was written in February 2005 for Marinol (10 mg), along with a recommendation to use cannabis by means of a vaporizer. Alex has consistently maintained he prefers smoking cannabis to ingestion by other means, due to rapidity of onset and ability to titrate dosage. ("It works great and you can use just as much as you need," he says.)

 

When Alex and Barbara P. were seen by a doctor in February 2006. Alex reported dramatically improved mood and functionality with only one migraine attack in the past year. He is in an independent study program at a small public school and getting straight As and Bs. "They love me at school," Alex asserts. His teacher is aware that he medicates with cannabis with a physician's approval. He smokes approximately one ounce per week and would use 50% more if it were cheaper to obtain.

He summarizes his status thus: "I use(d) to use a lot of medication like Klonopin and other pain medication but I haven't had to since the use of cannabis."

His mother reports: "We knew after about three months on Marinol that he was going to be okay. He started doing a lot better. He sleeps well, he's not on any of the other medications, I haven't had to take him to the emergency room for migraine since he first went on Marinol. He's been totally fine. He walks the dog, cleans up his room, does chores for the family. And I know that he's going to be okay. Before, I never knew what was going to happen. I couldn't picture him getting a job." Alex's father has relented in his disapproval of Alex's cannabis use, having seen its effects on the household.

 

Physicians and parents both face stigma and take risks in authorizing cannabis use by children, but the risks are legal and social rather than medical. The case of Alex P. exemplifies this reality.

 

This article has been condensed

Author: Dr. TOD MIKURIYA

Date: July 9, 2006

Source: http://www.counterpunch.org/mikuriya07082006.html

Copyright: Counter Punch

[WantDaChronic]

interesting read, but it just goes to show that parents are like sheep when it comes to drugs, ie. if the government says they are bad, they must be even though their own 2 eyes have told them differently

[stonedstump]

Thanks for the interesting read.

 

They offered him Zyprexa? WTF.

 

I have a mate who takes that for schizophrenia which he developed from taking too much meth. (hes clean now)