Using Medical Marijuana for Depression

Are you feeling gloomy? Do you lack enthusiasm for the activities you once enjoyed? Are you overwhelmed with negative thoughts?

If you are, you may be suffering from depression. And you are not alone, there are over 350 million people worldwide who are in the same boat as you.

 Treatments for depression are varied, doctors prescribe oral treatment or therapies for their patients. Since marijuana is now recognized for its therapeutic ability, researchers are starting to investigate the medicinal benefits as an additional treatment. Read on to learn about depression and how marijuana can alleviate this mood disorder.

What is depression?

Depression is a clinical disease that adversely influences how you feel, and the manner in which you think and act.

It slowly creeps in a person’s life; not knowing how it started it quietly builds up over time. It begins with little, insignificant things which lead to big changes. Then out of the blue everything seems hard, you don’t find joy in things that you previously appreciated. You find difficulty to get in and out of bed: you have to drag yourself every day. You are caught up with the feeling of being down and out; entrenched in negative thoughts that bury you in a hole.

Most people who committed suicide were suffering from depression.

The Reasons for Depression

Depression can have an emotional impact on anyone regardless of age or gender. The World Health Organization (WHO) approximates that 5% of men and 9% of women will be affected by depression annually.
There are many causes of depression. Although it is not preventable, it is treatable. Some causes are:

Substance abuse

Drugs or alcohol are an easy way to escape problems, but the feeling is only temporary. Eventually, the ill effects will catch up with the user and worsen depression.

Traumatic experience

Past emotional, sexual, and physical abuse torments a victim and increases their susceptibility to depression. For example, a childhood trauma disrupts the way in which the body responds to anxiety and stressful conditions.

Certain medications

There are some drugs that cause depression such as anticonvulsants, statins, stimulants, benzodiazepines, corticosteroids, and beta-blockers.

Conflict

A person who is biologically susceptible to depression can develop this ailment from disagreements with family members and acquaintances.

Loss of a loved one

The demise of a loved one can trigger depression.

Family history

A person is likely to experience depression if other family members also suffered from depression. The risk is great if a parent and grandparent are victims.

Medical conditions

People who are suffering from an ailment can experience symptoms of depression such as chronic illness, insomnia, chronic pain, or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Poor nutrition

A diet low in nutrients can lead to depression in many ways. Deficiencies in vitamins and minerals are associated with symptoms of depression. Also, diets high in sugar can cause depression.

What is Medical Marijuana?

Marijuana which was illegal and once known as a substance of abuse, turned into medical marijuana because of its medicinal prowess in treating ailments.

There are over 100 chemicals found in marijuana called cannabinoids, but the main compounds used for medicine are THC and CBD. THC or delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol gives the high effect in marijuana that reduces pain and stimulates the appetite. CBD or cannabidiol doesn’t have the psychoactive effects and is found to be responsible for the therapeutic benefits of marijuana.

Patients use medical marijuana to relieve symptoms of chronic pain, nausea, muscle spasms, arthritis, migraine, glaucoma, and anorexia. It can induce the appetite of AIDS patients.

How Medical Marijuana Can Treat Depression?

Although research looks promising, more clinical work needs to be done regarding the usefulness of medical marijuana as a treatment for depression. Most findings were based on anecdotes and theories; there was not much hard evidence to come up with a descriptive conclusion.

Right now, researchers are focused on the restoration of the chemicals in the brain called endocannabinoids. Which have a chemical character like marijuana and are responsible for motor control, cognition, emotions, and behavior.

A clinical study applied to rats revealed that the production of endocannabinoids was lower when the rats are under stress which can lead to depression. Initiating marijuana into the system helps reestablish typical levels and capacity which ease manifestations of depression. They concluded that marijuana can restore normal endocannabinoid function cutting the indications of depression.

Although the future seems bright, more studies are needed to prove the medicinal effects of marijuana to treat depression.

If the normal treatments fail, consider discussing this with marijuana doctors. A shift to medical marijuana might be the right option to treat your depression.

Guest Author:

Olivia Davis is an enthusiastic, creative author and the Communications Assistant at Dr.Green Relief - Medical Marijuana Doctors. "Our mission is to aid patients with qualifying conditions to get their MMJ card so they can use, possess, and cultivate medical marijuana legally." 

Thank you to Anna Tarazevich for the blog cover picture

 https://unsplash.com/photos/cU53ZFBr3lk