Kori Austin

English 1010
Research Paper
Medical Marijuana
Should marijuana be legalized for medical purposes or not is a huge debate going on right now
all over the United States. Some states have already decided that there is no reason why it should
be illegal and made it legal medically as well as recreationally. Some people are against it, while
many are for it, and in order for it to become legal there will be some serious debates and trials
of all kinds to see if it will be worth legalizing it or not. Dr. Sisley's case is an extreme example
of the obstacles and frustrations scientists face in trying to study the medical uses of marijuana.
Dating back to 1999, the Department of Health and Human Services has indicated it does not see
much potential for developing marijuana in smoked form into an approved prescription drug. In
guidelines issued that year for research on medical marijuana, the agency quoted from an
accompanying report that stated, "If there is any future for marijuana as a medicine, it lies in its
isolated components, the cannabinoids and their synthetic derivatives (Kovaleski).
Marijuana has been shown to be therapeutic in treating patients with glaucoma, AIDS, and
cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy (ProQuest Staff). Marijuana is also know n to help in
controlling the pain and discomfort from Fibromyalgia. From a personal experience, I have seen
the wonderful things that Marijuana has to offer when normal pain medications do not help with
the pain and only make the person feel worse with the side effects of the medications. The person
I know who suffers from Fibromyalgia locked herself up in her house for years never leaving or
doing anything outside of her home including family functions or going shopping. She left her

house only to go see her doctor. She tried taking all sorts of different medications, none of which
did any bit of good. Her doctor finally told her she could try using marijuana and baking it into
cookies or brownies and just eating tiny squares every couple of hours for the pain. She took his
advice and it has done her wonders. She is no longer in pain all the time, she goes to every
family function, she socializes so much more and it has helped her confidence in herself so she is
all around so much happier now.
There are many people who do not like taking pills to manage their pain. Some who refuse
knowing addiction running runs in the family and they are more likely to become dependent on
the pills. You also have people who just cant stomach the pills, they make them sick. Having the
options of medical marijuana would be much more relaxing and a better option for many people.
About 60% of the nation's fatal opioid overdoses occur among patients who have legitimate
prescriptions for their medications. The authors wrote that in states where access to medical
marijuana is legal, legitimate opioid drug users may take lower doses of that prescription pain
medication, making overdose less likely. Others may use marijuana in place of benzodiazepine
drugs--sedatives that make a fatal overdose much more likely. Still other patients who might
initiate opioid medication use--and go on to risk overdose--may never start if they are able to get
pain relief from medical marijuana, the study authors wrote (Healy, Melissa).
Marijuana has many different forms it can come in, a liquid form, pill form, as well as just the
regular plant. The liquid form that has been shown to help people especially kids who suffer
from seizures. As of right now there is not many medications that are able to help them manage
and lessen how many seizures they have. As a parent if my child was suffering from severe
seizures on a daily basis I would want to be able to get ahold of some of this marijuana to ensure
that my child is not in pain and to help lessen the seizures. Especially if nothing the doctor is

prescribing is working. Last year, Nicole Gross, of Naperville, took her 8-year-old son, Chase,
to Colorado where he legally receives a liquid form of cannabis that's very low in THC, the part
of marijuana that gets users high, but high in cannabidiol, or CBD, which some studies have
suggested reduces seizures. The marijuana reduced Chase's brief but debilitating seizures from
about 1,500 a day to 400 a day, said his father, Randy Gross.. "The cool part is he's happier,"
Randy Gross said (McCoppin, Robert).

Work Cited
Healy, Melissa. "Marijuana May Curb Overdoses." Los Angeles Times. 26 Aug. 2014:
AA.1. SIRS Issues Researcher.Web. 10 Nov. 2014.
Kovaleski, Serge F. "Medical Marijuana Research Hits Wall of U.S. Law." New York Times. 10
Aug. 2014: A.4. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 10 Nov. 2014.
McCoppin, Robert. "Legal Pot for Kids' Seizures Hailed." Chicago Tribune. 22 Jul. 2014:
5. SIRS Issues Researcher.Web. 10 Nov. 2014.
ProQuest Staff. "At Issue: Medical Marijuana." ProQuest LLC. 2014:
n.pag. SIRS

Issues Researcher. Web. 10 Nov. 2014.