Medical Cannabis Podcast: A Beginner's Guide

In this episode we interview Dr. Dustin Sulak - a nationally renowned expert on Medical Cannabis.  He discusses why the psychoactive effects of THC in Cannabis usually HELPS his patients. It helps with mindfulness and "being in the moment." Plus, he discusses how cannabis can help with chronic pain and how it helps change they way people think about their pain.   There is tons of great information shared in this episode, and if you are wanting to learn more about using Cannabis as Medicine, then this is a great place to start.   

In this episode we talk to Clinical Psychologist Dr. Zach Walsh about Cannabis and its effects on Mental Health.  - Cannabis and the risk of addiction? (Should we be worried?) - Cannabis to treat anxiety?  (Does it help or harm?) - Cannabis to help mood and depression?  - Cannabis and mental processing...does it make us slower? If you have worries about Cannabis and mental health, you'll want to listen to this entire episode. 

Is there a chance your terrible medical symptoms could be due to a dysfunctional Endocannabinoid system?   In this episode we talk about the Endocannabinoid Deficiency Theory and how Migraines, Fibromyalgia and Irritable bowel syndrome may be due (at least in part) to an Endocannabinoid Deficiency. If you don't know what an Endocannabinoid is, don't worry we summarize that too.   

Does Cannabis fry the brain of medical cannabis user? (Are you at risk?) Why is micro-dosing a stupid term? Are we asking patients the wrong questions about THC?  If cannabis doesn't have good results in clinical studies, why do patients use it?   The answers to these questions and more are what I learned from the CannMed 2019 conference in Pasadena. And I heard the answers from the biggest names in the medical cannabis industry. This is a very good episode that you'll want to check out if you're considering using Cannabis as medicine. 

In this episode we look at how Canadians can access Medical Cannabis. Cannabis is now legal in Canada, but the government differentiates "medical cannabis" from "recreational cannabis." We present how a person can get Cannabis for medical purposes, and why someone would want to go through the procedures to get official medical cannabis. It is not an overwhelming process and hopefully this episode will make it clear and understandable for you.  

Do you "struggle" or "battle" with sleep issues and insomnia? In this episode we discuss sleep hygiene, prescription sleep aids, and medical cannabis' role in helping sleep. So if you are wondering if CBD oil helps with sleep this episode is for you. We discuss some of the complexities regarding medical cannabis and sleep. We examine some terpenes that you'll want to have in your cannabis strain to help induce relaxation or sleepiness. And we'll look at a couple options on how to take cannabis as medicine.

Are you worried or concerned about how to talk to your doctor about medical cannabis? In this episode we interview David "Hutch" Hutchinson - an unlikely patient advocate - who gives his tips and advice on how to talk about medical cannabis with your doctor.  I say unlikely advocate because David was an Officer in the British Royal Air Force. He served for over 2 decades. Then due to tragic family health conditions David needed to learn more about medical cannabis to try and help his own family member.   At the end of this episode you'll have a greater understanding on how to talk to your doctor about medical cannabis, and throughout the interview David throws out lots of other useful information concerning medical cannabis.  If you want to contact David directly, you can email him at dhutchcan@gmail.com   Thank you.

Do you ever wonder if Cannabis, and particularly CBD can interact with your prescription medications? In this podcast episode we look at Drug interactions and Medical Cannabis.  We define what a drug interactions is. We looked at additive drug effects, we simplify drug metabolism, and we look at how changes to drug metabolism can result in Drug Interactions. We examine some of the "confusion" around medical cannabis and drug interactions, and then we provide 3 take-home messages that summarize our podcast.  

A lot of people wonder why two different varieties of cannabis - with similar THC and CBD in it - can apparently have different effects on a person.  In this episode we go beyond the cannabis folk knowledge of Sativa vs. Indica, and we explore the chemical reasons why one chemical variety of cannabis may make us feel "stoned" and another variety may make us feel "high" or stimulated.  We explore the fragrant essential oils in the Cannabis plant called terpenes, and how these chemical can help us select a medical cannabis product that is suited to our needs. We look at some of the common terpenes found in Medical Cannabis and how these may have medical benefits, and how they may change or augment the way phytocannabinoids (like THC) work in our body.   We briefly discuss some common terpenes such as myrcene, alpha-pinene, limonene, linalool and beta-carophylline.  Thank you very much for checking out our podcast, and if you enjoy it  please leave a comment or a review.    To see some more simple, easy to understand information about medical cannabis, including the show notes to this episode please check out www.harmonycannabis.ca      

In episode 4 we discuss the people that shouldn't use Cannabis according to the British Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons and we comment on each type of patient.  We try to get to the bottom of why each type of patient is included on this list.  (Every jurisdiction may have a different list, but we examine the list from one particular province in Canada.)  We also discuss Cannabis and anxiety. Why do some people claim that Cannabis causes anxiety, yet others use Cannabis products to help treat anxiety? The answer is in their Cannabis product. In other words, it depends on what they are consuming.  We discuss Cannabidiol (CBD) and its anti-anxiety effects, and the need to "start low and go slow."  The show notes and other easy to understand Medical Cannabis information is available on Harmony Cannabis Episode 4 Thank you for checking out our show!

This episode is an introduction into some of the ways a patient can get Medical Cannabis into their system. In order to use Cannabis as medicine we need to be able to get the phytocannabinoids from the Cannabis plant into our body so they can interact with our Endocannabinoid system. This episode looks at inhaling cannabis (primarily vaporization) as a means to quickly get it into your system, and ingesting cannabis (primarily Cannabis oils) for a slower-acting, but longer-lasting effect.

In this episode we discover how or "why" Cannabis can work as a medicine. It's because we have an Endocannabinoid system within us.  Many people are shocked when they discover we have Cannabis receptors in our body! Molecules from the Cannabis plant can interact with our Endocannabinoid system to help regulate many body functions and keep us in "balance" or in harmony. Not only do we have cannabis receptors in our body, but we also make our own Cannabis! (Well, more precisely we make our own Cannabinoids that we call the Endocannabinoids.) I hope you'll join us for this episode of the Medical Cannabis Podcast: A Beginner's Guide. Brought to you by HarmonyCannabis.ca Our aim is to provide simple, easy to understand information about Medical Cannabis so beginners and seniors can ultimately feel more comfortable discussing medical cannabis with their doctor.      

This first episode of the Medical Cannabis Podcast: A Beginner's Guide is a quick introduction to the podcast hosts and to the Cannabis plant itself. Dan is a nutritional advisor and Tim is a Pharmacist. We take a "simple" approach to the topic and try to make it understandable for all listeners, regardless of previous knowledge or experience with Cannabis. We introduce some of the most common Cannabinoids from the Cannabis plant including THC and CBD.  We touch on Terpenes which are like the essential oils of the plant and how the Terpenes affect the smell of the plant but perhaps also how a particular variety makes us feel.  Our goal is that by the end of the episode everyone will have a basic understanding of the plant so we can build on this knowledge in subsequent episodes.