The Healing Powers Of Cannabis For Lyme Disease
Cannabis can help to heal many diseases, and brings relief to many Lyme symptoms. Cannabis operates via the body’s endo-cannabinoid system, which can be thought of as “The Great Balancer.” It is a major part of the homeostatic functioning of the body, interconnecting all systems, organs, tissues, and adapting to changes in the internal and external environment.
The endocannabinoid system regulates hormone levels, inflammation, and the stress-response. It influences the brain, gut, immune, cardiovascular, and reproductive systems and affects both body and mind.
In short, when your endocannabinoid system of the body is out of balance, you are out of balance, and experience symptoms and illness as a result. According to John Hicks, MD, “Most people have not had their cannabinoid system supplemented since they were breast-fed. If they were not breast-fed, this system has not been supported since birth.”
Anxiety, Insomnia, Stress, & Fear
One major reason I recommend the use of medical marijuana or cannabis oil is for anxiety, fear, stress, or PTSD. It is very difficult to heal from complex chronic disease such as Lyme when your body is in a constant state of fear and stress.
Cannabis can help to turn off the sympathetic fight, fright, or flight response that some of us spend most of our time in, and turn on the parasympathetic nervous system mode that supports digestion, healing, and cleansing.
To truly transform fear and anxiety it is also necessary to have self- awareness and personal transformation practices in place that will help you re-pattern your mind and nervous system more deeply. The cannabis serves as a supportive tool for this process, and brings in the moment symptom relief from disabling emotional and stress states.
For people for whom stress and emotions are a roadblock to recovery, the proper use of medicinal cannabis oil can greatly accelerate and support the healing process.
Chronic Inflammation & Auto-Immunity
Chronic inflammation is what Lyme and all complex chronic diseases have in common (including auto-immune diseases). It occurs when the immune system is no longer functioning in a way that it turns off an immune response and cleans up the damage. Because something in the body is triggering on-going inflammation, inflammatory cytokines never cease being produced, and the immune system never moves into repair mode.
The inflammatory cycle must be broken in order for healing to occur. Cannabinoids encourage an end of the inflammatory cycle of destruction by reducing production of all pro-inflammatory mediators of the immune system (cytokines, interleukins, chemokines, and interferon).
Cannabinoids have the capability of turning off the attack of the immune cells, reducing oxidative stress (another cause of tissue damage), and supporting and protecting normal cells.
This means it may provide tremendous benefit for autoimmune disease, nervous system inflammation, pain, and all other inflammatory problems related to Lyme and complex chronic disease.
Neurological Diseases: Seizures, Alzheimer’s, MS, & Others
Neurological diseases involve abnormal nervous system function, as well as inflammation and disease that attacks and destroys nerve cells. Because these diseases involve the brain, it affects many other parts of the body.
While these diseases are complex and also need to be addressed via strategies such as heavy metal detoxification, healing active bacterial and viral infections, diet, and other factors, cannabis can be a great aid for both symptom control and reversing or halting progression of the disease.
It is an ideal treatment strategy for children, and can be used in place of or in conjunction with pharmaceuticals to reduce or eliminate the use of more toxic, side-effect laden drugs.
Anywhere that neural degeneration is occurring, cannabinoids have been shown to reduce damage, protect healthy nerve cells, and even protect stem cells and increase regenerative processes.
Pain
The use of cannabis for pain relief has a very long history. It has been used for many types of pain relief – from surgical anesthesia to childbirth – for more than 5,000 years in China, the Middle East, and other parts of the world.
It suppresses both inflammatory and neuropathic pain, including diabetic neuropathies, arthritis, headaches, and many other forms of pain.
I have helped numerous patients decrease or eliminate pharmaceutical pain relievers altogether through the use of medical marijuana.
If pain is an issue for you, I strongly encourage you to give medical marijuana a try.
Here are a few more tips to help you feel comfortable giving it a try:
- Cannabis oil is very safe. It is fine to take it if you are on other medications.
- Cannabis has an extremely long history of human use for medicine. We are literally wired to be healed and balanced through the use of phyto-cannabinoids. If you’d like to learn more about its history as medicine and how cannabis got a bad rap, you can read more at another recent blog post: Is Cannabis Beneficial For Lyme Disease? A Look At History Reveals The Truth.
- Start with a low dose CBD oil, and gradually increase the dose until you feel an effect. This way you will find the dose that works best for you body without taking too much. If you have access to medical marijuana, which contains THC, this may be more helpful for certain illnesses and symptoms, including pain.
- It is as important not to take too much cannabis as it is to take enough. As with most herbal medicines for complex chronic disease, it is best to work with a knowledgeable holistic practitioner to receive the greatest benefit from using medical marijuana or cannabis oil for treatment.
If you are wanting holistic treatment for Lyme or other similar complex chronic diseases, simply call us at 845-687-6211 or email info@uprootinglyme.com to set up an in-person or virtual holistic Lyme consultation at reasonable rates. Together we’ll co-create a strategic holistic treatment plan. Receive the support and guidance you need to regain your health, strength and resilience. Contact us now!
I just want to share my positive experience with CBD products. I can’t say enough good things about it! CBD has helped me combat my complicated pain in so many ways! I suffer from Chiari Malformation 1, and Sryingomyelia, EDS, Tarlov Cyst Disease, Scoliosis, all 5 of the spinal cord, connective tissue disease, and lymes disease! Water soluble BioCBD help a few of my disease’s. CBD does help cut down on several of the medicine one has to take for relief and work even better. – Betty
Thanks for sharing Betty. It’s so important for others to hear from others with direct experience. It’s helped us wean many patients like yourself off of pharmaceuticals for pain, Parkinson’s, neuralgias and more.