The Physical benefits of marijuana are far-reaching, widespread, and long-term. Because of the way marijuana impacts the Autonomic Nervous System which expands the breath and relaxes the body, its potential for health and healing are enormous, and have been completely unrealized by Western Medicine. The following passages are excerpted from The Benefits of Marijuana: Physical, Psychological, & Spiritual:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The simultaneous opposing action of marijuana is akin to balancing our entire system. Such balance in the ANS can be understood as a charged equilibrium, which is defined as “well-being” experienced as physiological expansion and psychological contentment and responsible for health. (p. 29)
The net effect is a highly functioning, yet relaxed, system with better fuel. This is why, with marijuana, the feeling is both relaxed and alert, which explains, in part, the experience of being “stoned.” Normally the body vacillates between the two opposing modes of being. The effects of the complicated marijuana molecule somehow actually integrate these two modes, simultaneously, as absolutely nothing else does. (p. 30)
Although specific effects of marijuana in the body are well known, each has been taken in isolation without noting that both sides of the Autonomic Nervous System are conjoined. Instead of a perspective that sees the whole person and the simple holistic effect of marijuana, a myopic and reductionistic method of measurement has been employed, and marijuana’s profound meaning for health has been lost. (p. 31)
Marijuana, by its effect on the ANS, enhances both sides of the brain. Through increased Sympathetic action, left brain perception is heightened, while, at the same time, right brain reception is enhanced. This is a physiological fact. More blood, and cleaner blood, is sent to the brain, as in the “fight or flight” reaction. And because of Parasympathetic dilation of capillaries, which signifies relaxation, the blood supply to the entire brain is increased. More blood means more oxygen and consequently clearer and broader thinking. Since marijuana works on both sides of the brain, the most noticeable effect, in our fast-paced mind set, is one of slowing down, which blends the thrusting competitive attitude with the contrasting viewpoint of nurturance to arrive at a more cooperative balance. This experience is, however, not innate to marijuana, but to the mental set of the subject. When we are mellow, tired, and relaxed, marijuana is energizing and affords alertness, determination, and even strength. This variation in the physiological effects has caused great confusion from an either/or framework. And the balancing nature of marijuana (both/and) has not been understood. It both stimulates and relaxes, simultaneously, which equates to an unpredictable variation in effect that is solely dependent on the state of its subject. When the system is sluggish, as with natives in warm climates (Africa, India, South America), marijuana has been used extensively and for centuries to energize it:
A common practice among laborers... have a puff of a ganja (marijuana) pipe to produce well-being, relieve fatigue, stimulate appetite. (Chopra and Chopra, 1939, p.3)
When the system is hyper-aroused, as in today’s lifestyle, marijuana calms. The significance of this fact cannot be ignored. It explains the increased creativity reported as a part of the marijuana experience, because when both sides of brain processes are heightened, both types of brain activity are greater. The left brain notices more, while the right brain receives more. This is the unification of logic and intuition. The term “expansion of consciousness” is explained physiologically as a “shifting of brain emphasis from one-sidedness to balance” (Sugarmena and Tarter, 1978), which fits precisely with the feeling called “high.” (p. 35)
Marijuana ingestion has been shown to change the worried state by producing alpha waves, experienced as well being. (p. 36)
When we ingest marijuana, the heart swells through capillary enhancement and is fueled more by more fully oxygenated blood, while, at the same time, its contractions and expansions are greater, allowing for stronger pumping action to the rest of the body (p. 37)
As rigidity in the body is released or reduced by the action of marijuana, there is a corresponding reduction of mental tension that translates into a feeling of expansion and well being and explains the reverential attitude commonly expressed by marijuana lovers. (p. 39)
As the body’s workings can become more harmonious with marijuana, the functioning of the five senses can be noticeably improved ....In our discussion, the trigger to the high experience is marijuana, but many other activities can also produce it, such as jogging, chanting, fasting, isolation, meditation, and prayer. (p. 41)
The marijuana experience itself does not miraculously cure. Instead, it allows the body a respite from the tensions of imbalance, while exposing the mental confusion of the mind. The marijuana experience of balance becomes a learned and, over time, somewhat permanent response as the essential human tendency to homeostasis is reawakened and the natural healing process restored. (p. 49)
For a serious psychosomatic disease such as cancer, the benefits to be derived from marijuana cannot be overstated:
1. The causal element of unconscious (repressed) pain can be ferreted out.
2. The breath can be restored to fullness, thereby eliminating directly the built up toxicity and, at the same time, enjoining balance throughout the whole organism. A depressed system is a weakened system, and since it works holistically, marijuana gives strength where weakness exists, and expansion and relaxation where there is contraction and nervousness.
3. The more richly oxygenated blood that is in effect with marijuana can help to cleanse the poisons at the cellular level.
4. And a broader perspective through activation of the entire brain leads to positive feelings and thus eliminates the usual and debilitating attitudes so common in cancerhelplessness, depression, fear, resignation, and dread. (p. 60)
Application of Marijuana:
In a Costa Rican study, it was found that chronic marijuana smokers who also smoked cigarettes were less likely to develop cancer than cigarette smokers who didn’t use marijuana. Since marijuana (smoking, as well as ingestion by other methods) dilates the alveoli, toxins are more easily eliminated with cannabis use regardless of its method of application. Nicotine, on the other hand, constricts the alveoli, so it is likely that the use of cannabis neutralizes, or even overwhelms the constriction, by its own tendency to dilation ...As an aid for all psychosomatic disease, marijuana can benefit the participant, generally because of its health-restoring effects... The fear of marijuana... stems from its limitless potential for treating illness, in that both the pharmaceutical industry and the medical monopoly would lose billions of dollars if marijuana became the non-drug of choice. (p. 61)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PSYCHOLOGICAL BENEFITS
When we balance the Autonomic Nervous System, there is an effect on the mind that is both energizing and relaxing SIMULTANEOUSLY. In other words, we can think more clearly and more efficiently.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The following are excerpts from The Benefits of Marijuana:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Natural feelings of expansion that correspond to favorable perceptions, such as a sense of accomplishment, are experiences common to us all, What makes marijuana unique and beneficial is its ability to summon these states of well-being at will (p. 44) We might suggest that those hundreds of millions of people around the world who face marijuana to experience higher levels of life, do so specifically because of the great import they ascribe to being “ high,” i.e., feeling better, happier, more expansive, and therefore more tolerant and compassionate. (p. 4545)
Whereas marijuana results in an “altered state of consciousness,” the depressant drugs have been described as producing “altered states of unconsciousness” (Sugerman and Tarter), allowing for relaxation without awareness. (p.45)
Marijuana exposes things. When used over a period of time, it allows us to witness our many subtle motives which, under normal consciousness, are usually not noticeable. (p 46)
It was just this catalytic effect of marijuana to expose the unconscious and increase the patient’s vulnerability, while maintaining awareness and understanding that prompted psychologists (in the 1960s and 1970s) to utilize marijuana extensively in the therapeutic studies before the government ban (P. 47)
With the expansiveness that occurs with marijuana, the subject may begin to notice infinite possibilities to raise the quality of his/her life that would otherwise have remained hidden from normal, defensive consciousness. And feelings of health and happiness naturally lead to hope, which of itself can be curative. (p. 49)
Marijuana can act as the loosening agent, so that whatever has been banned from consciousness may come cascading forth. To uncover our deceptions without our usual rationalizations can be unpleasant, an experience that has turned many psychologically fragile individuals away from marijuana despite its therapeutic catharsis. (p. 50)
Regardless of the model used, marijuana resolves conflict by de-emphasizing extreme aggressiveness and stroking the receptive sides of human nature. This unification or balance, however, may be responsible for changes in goals and values. It Is the healthy balancing nature of marijuana that is most beneficial to the individual and most threatening to modern society. (p. 51)
When it first became popular in the West, marijuana was imported mainly from tropical zones, where the sativa strain of cannabis is indigenous. This type of marijuana is known for its “cerebral high,” having little noticeable body participation. No studies concerning the different effects of sativa vs. indica have been done, but from the lack of physical sensation, it is reasonable to assume more Sympathetic or stimulant qualities in sativa than indica (a cooler climate type). This is compatible with the notion that in hotter climates, less calming is desirable from a recreational substance, since hot climates in themselves cause lethargy. Many connoisseurs of marijuana prefer the sativa high, although in the last decade it has become very scarce due to domestic cultivation of strains that thrive in temperate zones (and indoors). “Cerebral highs” are experienced as lightness of thought beyond usual concern with self esteem. In relationships, a cerebral high attunes the participants to a less separate sense of themselves. Conversation is animated and a general feeling of camaraderie is in the air.
The indica strain of cannabis offers more of the “body high.” Depth rather than height best describes the subjective experience. Rather than freedom in the mind, the felt sensation is freedom of the body. This state more closely mimics deep relaxation. Thought patterns do not approach the clarity of thought of a “cerebral high.” In contrast, the “body high” is similar to the reverie that precedes sleep. While thinking may be diminished, more sensitivity to nonverbal experiences, such as music and color, comes into play. Physiologically, a true “body high” probably is the result of more Parasympathetic input. Participants ofen become quieter, since internal silence predominates.
Indica thrives in temperate areas, and as such it has become more popular with the American marijuana farmer. It is a shorter variety, thus it is more suited for the limits of indoor gardens and comes to fruition earlier in outdoor gardens. In less tropical zones, recreational substances are compatible with tempering the bustle usual to cooler climate cultures. As horticultural interest has grown, a cross between the indica and sativa species of cannabis has given the modern marijuana user the subtleties of both strains. Nowadays quality marijuana, grown in the US, is usually a hybrid of the indica and sativa varieties. (p. 56)
Marijuana will not tolerate repression. Tranquilizers and depressants relax the body and release tension, but the state of mind associated with these drugs is “unconsciousness” whereby we escape rather than resolve our dilemmas. Alcoholism is an extreme need of both the body and personality periodically to release the nervousness that has accumulated and continues to accumulate to an unbearable degree. It serves the same function for the collective personality for the society, as well A culture in which alcohol and tranquilizers are the prevalent form of release prefers not to witness internal confusion and actually choose to act without conscious participation, maintaining a semi-numb condition. (p. 56)
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
PHYSICAL BENEFITS
The Physical benefits of marijuana are far-reaching, widespread, and long-term. Because of the way marijuana impacts the Autonomic Nervous System which expands the breath and relaxes the body, its potential for health and healing are enormous, and have been completely unrealized by Western Medicine. The following passages are excerpted from The Benefits of Marijuana: Physical, Psychological, & Spiritual:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The simultaneous opposing action of marijuana is akin to balancing our entire system. Such balance in the ANS can be understood as a charged equilibrium, which is defined as “well-being” experienced as physiological expansion and psychological contentment and responsible for health. (p. 29)
The net effect is a highly functioning, yet relaxed, system with better fuel. This is why, with marijuana, the feeling is both relaxed and alert, which explains, in part, the experience of being “stoned.” Normally the body vacillates between the two opposing modes of being. The effects of the complicated marijuana molecule somehow actually integrate these two modes, simultaneously, as absolutely nothing else does. (p. 30)
Although specific effects of marijuana in the body are well known, each has been taken in isolation without noting that both sides of the Autonomic Nervous System are conjoined. Instead of a perspective that sees the whole person and the simple holistic effect of marijuana, a myopic and reductionistic method of measurement has been employed, and marijuana’s profound meaning for health has been lost. (p. 31)
Marijuana, by its effect on the ANS, enhances both sides of the brain. Through increased Sympathetic action, left brain perception is heightened, while, at the same time, right brain reception is enhanced. This is a physiological fact. More blood, and cleaner blood, is sent to the brain, as in the “fight or flight” reaction. And because of Parasympathetic dilation of capillaries, which signifies relaxation, the blood supply to the entire brain is increased. More blood means more oxygen and consequently clearer and broader thinking. Since marijuana works on both sides of the brain, the most noticeable effect, in our fast-paced mind set, is one of slowing down, which blends the thrusting competitive attitude with the contrasting viewpoint of nurturance to arrive at a more cooperative balance. This experience is, however, not innate to marijuana, but to the mental set of the subject. When we are mellow, tired, and relaxed, marijuana is energizing and affords alertness, determination, and even strength. This variation in the physiological effects has caused great confusion from an either/or framework. And the balancing nature of marijuana (both/and) has not been understood. It both stimulates and relaxes, simultaneously, which equates to an unpredictable variation in effect that is solely dependent on the state of its subject. When the system is sluggish, as with natives in warm climates (Africa, India, South America), marijuana has been used extensively and for centuries to energize it:
A common practice among laborers... have a puff of a ganja (marijuana) pipe to produce well-being, relieve fatigue, stimulate appetite. (Chopra and Chopra, 1939, p.3)
When the system is hyper-aroused, as in today’s lifestyle, marijuana calms. The significance of this fact cannot be ignored. It explains the increased creativity reported as a part of the marijuana experience, because when both sides of brain processes are heightened, both types of brain activity are greater. The left brain notices more, while the right brain receives more. This is the unification of logic and intuition. The term “expansion of consciousness” is explained physiologically as a “shifting of brain emphasis from one-sidedness to balance” (Sugarmena and Tarter, 1978), which fits precisely with the feeling called “high.” (p. 35)
Marijuana ingestion has been shown to change the worried state by producing alpha waves, experienced as well being. (p. 36)
When we ingest marijuana, the heart swells through capillary enhancement and is fueled more by more fully oxygenated blood, while, at the same time, its contractions and expansions are greater, allowing for stronger pumping action to the rest of the body (p. 37)
As rigidity in the body is released or reduced by the action of marijuana, there is a corresponding reduction of mental tension that translates into a feeling of expansion and well being and explains the reverential attitude commonly expressed by marijuana lovers. (p. 39)
As the body’s workings can become more harmonious with marijuana, the functioning of the five senses can be noticeably improved ....In our discussion, the trigger to the high experience is marijuana, but many other activities can also produce it, such as jogging, chanting, fasting, isolation, meditation, and prayer. (p. 41)
The marijuana experience itself does not miraculously cure. Instead, it allows the body a respite from the tensions of imbalance, while exposing the mental confusion of the mind. The marijuana experience of balance becomes a learned and, over time, somewhat permanent response as the essential human tendency to homeostasis is reawakened and the natural healing process restored. (p. 49)
For a serious psychosomatic disease such as cancer, the benefits to be derived from marijuana cannot be overstated:
1. The causal element of unconscious (repressed) pain can be ferreted out.
2. The breath can be restored to fullness, thereby eliminating directly the built up toxicity and, at the same time, enjoining balance throughout the whole organism. A depressed system is a weakened system, and since it works holistically, marijuana gives strength where weakness exists, and expansion and relaxation where there is contraction and nervousness.
3. The more richly oxygenated blood that is in effect with marijuana can help to cleanse the poisons at the cellular level.
4. And a broader perspective through activation of the entire brain leads to positive feelings and thus eliminates the usual and debilitating attitudes so common in cancerhelplessness, depression, fear, resignation, and dread. (p. 60)
Application of Marijuana:
In a Costa Rican study, it was found that chronic marijuana smokers who also smoked cigarettes were less likely to develop cancer than cigarette smokers who didn’t use marijuana. Since marijuana (smoking, as well as ingestion by other methods) dilates the alveoli, toxins are more easily eliminated with cannabis use regardless of its method of application. Nicotine, on the other hand, constricts the alveoli, so it is likely that the use of cannabis neutralizes, or even overwhelms the constriction, by its own tendency to dilation ...As an aid for all psychosomatic disease, marijuana can benefit the participant, generally because of its health-restoring effects... The fear of marijuana... stems from its limitless potential for treating illness, in that both the pharmaceutical industry and the medical monopoly would lose billions of dollars if marijuana became the non-drug of choice. (p. 61)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PSYCHOLOGICAL BENEFITS
When we balance the Autonomic Nervous System, there is an effect on the mind that is both energizing and relaxing SIMULTANEOUSLY. In other words, we can think more clearly and more efficiently.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The following are excerpts from The Benefits of Marijuana:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Natural feelings of expansion that correspond to favorable perceptions, such as a sense of accomplishment, are experiences common to us all, What makes marijuana unique and beneficial is its ability to summon these states of well-being at will (p. 44) We might suggest that those hundreds of millions of people around the world who face marijuana to experience higher levels of life, do so specifically because of the great import they ascribe to being “ high,” i.e., feeling better, happier, more expansive, and therefore more tolerant and compassionate. (p. 4545)
Whereas marijuana results in an “altered state of consciousness,” the depressant drugs have been described as producing “altered states of unconsciousness” (Sugerman and Tarter), allowing for relaxation without awareness. (p.45)
Marijuana exposes things. When used over a period of time, it allows us to witness our many subtle motives which, under normal consciousness, are usually not noticeable. (p 46)
It was just this catalytic effect of marijuana to expose the unconscious and increase the patient’s vulnerability, while maintaining awareness and understanding that prompted psychologists (in the 1960s and 1970s) to utilize marijuana extensively in the therapeutic studies before the government ban (P. 47)
With the expansiveness that occurs with marijuana, the subject may begin to notice infinite possibilities to raise the quality of his/her life that would otherwise have remained hidden from normal, defensive consciousness. And feelings of health and happiness naturally lead to hope, which of itself can be curative. (p. 49)
Marijuana can act as the loosening agent, so that whatever has been banned from consciousness may come cascading forth. To uncover our deceptions without our usual rationalizations can be unpleasant, an experience that has turned many psychologically fragile individuals away from marijuana despite its therapeutic catharsis. (p. 50)
Regardless of the model used, marijuana resolves conflict by de-emphasizing extreme aggressiveness and stroking the receptive sides of human nature. This unification or balance, however, may be responsible for changes in goals and values. It Is the healthy balancing nature of marijuana that is most beneficial to the individual and most threatening to modern society. (p. 51)
When it first became popular in the West, marijuana was imported mainly from tropical zones, where the sativa strain of cannabis is indigenous. This type of marijuana is known for its “cerebral high,” having little noticeable body participation. No studies concerning the different effects of sativa vs. indica have been done, but from the lack of physical sensation, it is reasonable to assume more Sympathetic or stimulant qualities in sativa than indica (a cooler climate type). This is compatible with the notion that in hotter climates, less calming is desirable from a recreational substance, since hot climates in themselves cause lethargy. Many connoisseurs of marijuana prefer the sativa high, although in the last decade it has become very scarce due to domestic cultivation of strains that thrive in temperate zones (and indoors). “Cerebral highs” are experienced as lightness of thought beyond usual concern with self esteem. In relationships, a cerebral high attunes the participants to a less separate sense of themselves. Conversation is animated and a general feeling of camaraderie is in the air.
The indica strain of cannabis offers more of the “body high.” Depth rather than height best describes the subjective experience. Rather than freedom in the mind, the felt sensation is freedom of the body. This state more closely mimics deep relaxation. Thought patterns do not approach the clarity of thought of a “cerebral high.” In contrast, the “body high” is similar to the reverie that precedes sleep. While thinking may be diminished, more sensitivity to nonverbal experiences, such as music and color, comes into play. Physiologically, a true “body high” probably is the result of more Parasympathetic input. Participants ofen become quieter, since internal silence predominates.
Indica thrives in temperate areas, and as such it has become more popular with the American marijuana farmer. It is a shorter variety, thus it is more suited for the limits of indoor gardens and comes to fruition earlier in outdoor gardens. In less tropical zones, recreational substances are compatible with tempering the bustle usual to cooler climate cultures. As horticultural interest has grown, a cross between the indica and sativa species of cannabis has given the modern marijuana user the subtleties of both strains. Nowadays quality marijuana, grown in the US, is usually a hybrid of the indica and sativa varieties. (p. 56)
Marijuana will not tolerate repression. Tranquilizers and depressants relax the body and release tension, but the state of mind associated with these drugs is “unconsciousness” whereby we escape rather than resolve our dilemmas. Alcoholism is an extreme need of both the body and personality periodically to release the nervousness that has accumulated and continues to accumulate to an unbearable degree. It serves the same function for the collective personality for the society, as well A culture in which alcohol and tranquilizers are the prevalent form of release prefers not to witness internal confusion and actually choose to act without conscious participation, maintaining a semi-numb condition. (p. 56)
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Marijuana Legislation
Monday, February 4, 2013
History of marijuana
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Is medical marijuana an effective treatment for depression, bipolar disorders, anxiety, and similar mood disorders?
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