PTSD, Marijuana and the Atlantic Magazine

“... Leveque estimates he signed 1,000 permits for PTSD, and said he did so with a clear conscience.” - The Atlantic

Salem-News.com

(MOLALLA, Ore.) - Every once in a while a major world class magazine will produce a story on this subject. The Atlantic hits the nail right on the head with, The Case for Treating PTSD in Veterans with Medical Marijuana by Martin Mulcahey, Jan. 17, 2012. It also includes 77 interesting comments by readers. I wrote about this last July, in an article titled, Marijuana May Be Studied for Combat Disorders for Salem-News.com.

Mulcahey has some good points but some not so good. Dr. Sue Sisley along with Dr. Rick Doblin want to “study” 50 veterans with PTSD. 25 will use poor grade Marijuana from the U.S. Government’s Marijuana farm in Mississippi, the other 25 will use placebo or fake Marijuana to see which works best for PTSD Veterans.

They have applied to about 6 Government anti-Marijuana agencies for permits but as of Sept. 16, 2011 their protocols have been denied. Actually it is against U.S. Law to do ANY studies promoting any use of Marijuana. To think that military PTSD veterans who have probably used Marijuana before or even heard about it will not be able to tell the difference and “jump ship” for real stuff is a bit absurd.

Brian Vicente of Sensible Colorado which is an advocacy group for Medical Marijuana for PTSD Veterans says that 2 federal agencies are fighting about this. The VA is half way approving while the DEA, and NIDA, are totally against it.

Mulcahey points out that studies in Israel, Germany, Switzerland and Spain have found that the use of Marijuana and similar drugs immediately post trauma blocked development of PTSD.

I am pleased to see that Mr. Mulcahey devoted a paragraph to me and my experience with over 1000 PTSD Veterans who have found Marijuana better than any other medicine for immediate “battle terrors” and PTSD. I think Mr. Mulcahey misquotes the attitude of the VA about allowing use of Medical Marijuana.

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A governmental lack of decisiveness has created unintended consequences and casualties in the medical field. One is Dr. Phil Leveque, a World War II veteran who had his medical license revoked based on the large number of medical marijuana permits he issued for PTSD in Oregon. Leveque estimates he signed 1,000 permits for PTSD, and said he did so with a clear conscience. "Whether they were World War II, Korea, Vietnam or vets from the current conflicts, 100 percent of my patients said it was better than any drug they were prescribed for PTSD," he said. Sixteen states and the District of Columbia currently have laws permitting marijuana for medical use. However, Veterans Affairs physicians are expressly prohibited from recommending patients for enrollment in any state's medical marijuana program. This, again, highlights contradictions at different levels of government agencies.

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The number of PTSD Veterans seeking help seems to be at least 300,000, maybe even more and the VA Clinics and Hospitals are totally overwhelmed and in fact mistreating these patients who resort to alcohol, nicotine, Oxycontin, Heroin and God knows what else for some escape from PTSD demons.

LET'S HOPE THE FEDERAL AGENCIES WILL READ THE LITERATURE AND FIND OUT MARIJUANA REALLY WORKS FOR PTSD!!!

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Got a question or comment for Dr. Leveque?
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More information on the history of Dr. Leveque can be found in his book, General Patton's Dogface Soldier of WWII about his own experiences "from a foxhole".
Order the book by mail by following this link: Dogface Soldier

If you are a World War II history buff, you don't want to miss it.

Watch for more streaming video question and answer segments about medical marijuana with Bonnie King and Dr. Phil Leveque.

Click on this link for other articles and video segments about PTSD and medical marijuana on Salem-News.com:
Dr. Leveque INTERVIEWS & ARTICLES

Salem-News.com Marijuana Coverage

Where and How to Smoke Legal Marijuana without Fear of Arrest in the U.S.

Eulogy of a Great Warrior: Hoss Plourde

The Ripple Effect How Marijuana Laws Are Impacting Society

Audit the Audit

Welcome Home, Tom

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kathryn_ginorio@yahoo.com February 10, 2012 7:18 am (Pacific time)

More press needs to press harder to save lives. Also States, should not keep vets from getting medical cannabis across different state lines.

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