Can You Get Medical Marijuana for Chronic Pain in Baton Rouge?
Medical marijuana is becoming a well-known alternative to traditional pain-relieving medications such as opioids. Medical marijuana may ease various types of chronic pain, including pain resulting from nerve damage and inflammation.
If you live in Louisiana, can you get medical marijuana for chronic pain in Baton Rouge? Yes! Visit Teleleaf.com for more information on how you can get your medical marijuana recommendation in Baton Rouge online.
Medical Marijuana for Chronic Pain Management
According to the American Academy of Pain Medicine, more than 1.5 billion people around the world have chronic pain. It is also one of the most common causes of long-term disability in the United States, resulting in around 100 million Americans having chronic pain. Marijuana contains compounds that may relieve pain, nausea, and other symptoms.
A 2015 study entitled “Medical Marijuana for Treatment of Chronic Pain and Other Medical and Psychiatric Problems: A Clinical Review” researched the use of marijuana for various chronic pain conditions and they reported that several trials had positive results. The researchers suggest that medical marijuana may be effective for treating some types of chronic pain including neuropathy (nerve pain).
What is Chronic Pain?
It is completely normal to experience the occasional aches and pains in the body. It is a fact that sudden pain is a sign of a healthy nervous system that helps inform you of possible injury. When an injury happens, pain signals travel from the injured area up to your spinal cord and to your brain.
Pain generally subsides after an injury has healed or an illness has passed. Chronic pain, however, can persist for weeks and even years after a patient’s body has healed. In some cases, chronic pain has no known cause.
Chronic pain can be defined as pain that lasts a period of 12 weeks or more. The pain may feel sharp or dull, causing a burning or aching sensation in the affected areas.
Symptoms of Chronic Pain
It can be difficult to cope with chronic pain. While it can be nearly constant, there may be flares of more intense pain due to changes in activity or stress.
Symptoms include
- joint pain
- muscle aches
- burning pain
- fatigue
- sleep problems
- loss of stamina and flexibility, due to decreased activity
- mood problems, including depression, anxiety, and irritability
Causes of Chronic Pain
Chronic pain syndrome is, not surprisingly, often associated with conditions that cause persistent and widespread pain. Some examples of these conditions are:
- Osteoarthritis: This type of arthritis occurs when the protective cartilage between bones wears away due to wear and tear on the body;
- Rheumatoid arthritis: This is an autoimmune disease that results in painful inflammation in the joints;
- Back pain: may be caused by muscle strains, nerve compression, or arthritis of the spine (called spinal stenosis);
- Fibromyalgia: is a condition characterized by aches and pains in various parts of the body (known as trigger points);
- IBD: This condition is characterized by chronic inflammation throughout the digestive tract, causing pain and cramping in the intestines;
- Surgical trauma;
- Advanced cancer.
Chronic pain can occur even when these conditions improve (via treatments or medications). This type of pain is a result of faulty nerve communication between the brain and body (For unexplained reasons, some people might encounter chronic pain without being aware of any triggers).
For example, according to the Arthritis Foundation, 20 percent of people with osteoarthritis, who get their knees replaced, still, report chronic pain. Chronic pain can affect the neurons in the brain that transmit and process sensory input.
Medical Marijuana Recommendation: Treatment for Chronic Pain
- Drugs for pain-relieving: These can include anti-inflammatories, steroids, muscle relaxants, antidepressants with pain-relieving properties, and, in severe cases, opioids (as a last resort).
- Physical therapy to increase flexibility and range of motion
- Nerve blocks to interrupt pain signals
- Although they may not be able to drastically reduce pain or improve mood, some psychological therapies have been shown to boost mood; cognitive behavior therapy (which helps you change your mindset) has shown to be effective in boosting mood even after treatment ends.
Medical Marijuana As An Alternative Treatment for Chronic Pain
A research paper from 2016 from the US Journal of Pain of the US Association for the study of pain found that medical marijuana use for cancer pain led to a 64% decrease in opioid use, improved quality of life, and caused fewer medication side effects. It also led to research participants using lesser medications.
Similar research has reported positive benefits for other types of chronic pain. For example, of about 17,000 people that were surveyed with cancer, 70% reportedly experienced an improvement in pain and general well-being after marijuana use.
Those that experience chronic migraines saw a decrease in chronic migraine pain after using medical marijuana in a study entitled “Effects of Medical Marijuana on Migraine Headache Frequency in an Adult Population” published by the National Center for Biotechnology Information.
Can you get medical marijuana for chronic pain in Baton Rouge? Yes. Visit Teleleaf.com for more information on how you can get your medical marijuana recommendation online.
