Patrons learn all about medical cannabis at program
On Tuesday, Dec. 12, Bartlett Library adult patrons learned about medical cannabis (marijuana). Kirsten Velasco, patient advocate for Illinois Women in Cannabis (NFP), explained the steps in obtaining medical cannabis.
Velasco opened up the program by explaining her three goals for those in attendance. The first was to build up everyone's confidence about the benefits of medical cannabis. Second, she wanted to provide all possible assistance in providing them access to the program. Lastly, she wanted everyone to be comfortable in their understanding of the substance so that they would be better able to talk to others about it.
Velasco explained that medical cannabis is safe, no one has died of an overdose, and that it has been researched extensively since the 1960s.
Patients using the substance have shown to have improved sleep, better moods and reduced pain, Velasco pointed out to the audience. Her suggestion when starting out using medical cannabis is to "Start low, go slow."
It is up to the patient to understand their level of comfort with how much medical cannabis they need in order to feel better. It is also up to the patient in which way they would like to consume it: Edibles, vaporization, inhalation, topicals and transdermal patches.
Patrons were given some examples of how medical cannabis has helped out with specific ailments. For Parkinson's, it reduced tremors in patients; for Crohn's, it reduced inflammation; for multiple sclerosis, it relaxed muscle spasms and relieved pain; for PTSD, it controlled anxiety and treated insomnia; and for cancer, it killed cancer cells and treated pain and nausea.
Some of the other qualifying conditions besides the list above include AIDS/HIV, Fibrous Dysplasia, Glaucoma, Lupus, Residual Limb Pain and more.
The first step a person needs to take is to have their physician verify that he/she has a qualifying condition. They fill out the paperwork and then mail it in, which ends their participation from that point on in the process. Then, the person needs to fill out an application, which can be done online or mailed in on physical paper.
To find out more on how to get medical cannabis, Velasco provided that interested people should go to Bit.ly/MedicalCannabisProgram.
If you missed these programs, an upcoming adult program at the Bartlett Library is the "Bittersweet Christmas Band" on Sunday, December 17 at 2 p.m. The holidays are a mixed bag and so is the Bittersweet Christmas Band! Artists Phil Cooper, Kate Early and Margaret Nelson join forces with songwriter Susan Urban for a show that presents every possible perspective on the holiday season from the reverent to the ridiculous. Two to four-part harmonies and masterful instrumentation on guitar, banjo, mountain dulcimer, hand drum and other percussion instruments make the Bittersweet Christmas Band an act not to be missed!
For more information and a complete listing of scheduled programs, call 630.837.2855 or visit www.bartlettlibrary.org.