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| For Some, Marijuana Grows Mean |
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Posted by FoM on April 30, 2002 at 06:39:54 PT By Howard Markel, M.D. Source: New York Times 
Recently one morning, I received an urgent call from the mother of an 18-year-old named Daniel, whom I treat for marijuana abuse. For most of the past few years, Daniel had smoked more than a quarter of an ounce of marijuana daily and was almost always high, except, perhaps, when he was asleep.His marijuana problem has led to many others: he has been hospitalized, fired from jobs and thrown out of high school. He has faced run-ins with the police and lost the trust of most of his family members and friends. "Daniel had another relapse," his mother said that morning. Released only a month earlier from a drug rehabilitation program, Daniel and a friend had obtained some potent hash-oil-laced blunts, or marijuana-filled cigars, and smoked themselves into oblivion. Marijuana, of course, can make one giddy and euphoric but it can also make one quite paranoid. Instead of the mellow high they were promised, the young men became enraged and began fighting over who would take custody of the remaining marijuana. In an angered haze, Daniel pulled out his jackknife and threatened to use it if his friend refused to give up the blunts. In reality, he nicked the other boy's skin. But at the time, Daniel was convinced that he had killed his friend. Inebriated and frantic, Daniel ran home to confess his crime to his mother. When she called me, he was already being evaluated in the emergency room. Since the 1960's, many Americans have been more lenient in assessing the risks of marijuana than those of heroin, cocaine or even alcohol. Marijuana does not destroy the liver, as alcohol does, nor is it as vicious a drug of abuse as heroin or cocaine. Indeed, the physical manifestations of dependency on pot are small in comparison. And because marijuana's active ingredient, tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, is lipophilic, it remains in the fat cells of the body for days to weeks, slowly working itself out without any of the harsh physical withdrawal symptoms seen in the alcoholic or heroin user who goes cold turkey. But today marijuana is anywhere from 10 to 20 times as potent as what was passed around at Woodstock. With that increase in potency, the risks of daily dependence have increased. In fact, many users are dependent on marijuana and suffer from all the psychological ramifications, if not the serious signs physical addiction. These include feeling a need to use the drug daily to cope with life, consuming ever-increasing amounts to achieve a high, expending considerable money and effort to get and use the drug in relation to other needs or priorities, lying about drug use to family members, and losing loving, trusting relationships. With marijuana dependence, these destructive forces can be every bit as severe as the forces that can bring havoc to the lives of people who rely on the bottle, the syringe or crack pipe. Addiction specialists have long understood that some people have a genetic or neurochemical predisposition to particular drug addictions or dependencies. One colleague explains it this way: "These people have a light switch in the brain, and if they come in contact with their substance of abuse, that switch is turned on and is very hard to turn off." Moreover, marijuana use is widespread among American teenagers. In the past year, more than 40 percent of all high school seniors used marijuana at least once and more than 10 percent of them used it monthly, or more often. Invariably, some of these young people, like Daniel, are hard-wired for THC dependence. But we have no diagnostic test to predict which ones they are. When I visited Daniel in the hospital, he was relieved that he had not injured his friend but ashamed about his relapse. "I keep saying I will quit," he told me, "but every time I begin to do well, I go right back to it." He is hardly alone. Among addicted teenagers, who do not always think through the long-term consequences of their actions, well over two-thirds who try abstinence will relapse. At the end of our chat, Daniel timidly asked, "Maybe this is just too big for me to fight, you think?" As he spoke, I could see more of the 9-year-old I used to reward with lollipops for taking vaccinations than the troubled young man he is today. I reassured him that he did not have to fight this alone, that there were people who cared about him who wanted to help and that he needed to keep trying. As I left his room with a profound respect for the illness he was battling, I could only hope that next time he might be able to wrestle it to a draw. Related Articles & Web Site: Chronic Cannabis Use in PDF Format Marijuana Anonymous Clears Smoke of Pot Myths Marijuana's So-Called Gateway Effect Is Pot Truly 'Addictive'? Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
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Comment #16 posted by el_toonces on April 30, 2002 at 10:10:34 PT:
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...or become the Ritalin popping, martini consuming person your family and culture so desperately want. But, personally, I think you ought to take Jose's advice and simply run FOR YOUR LIFE! This "physician" is not an addiction specialist, I take it, since: "As he spoke, I could see more of the 9-year-old I used to reward with lollipops for taking vaccinations than the troubled young man he is today." Apparently, he is Daniel's family doc or pediatrician and still treating him at age 18. Might "Daniel" have some problems with overprotective parents? Or, as elsewhere suggested here, be self-medicating for a disorder this primary care doc is too morally wrapped in drug hysteria to detect? We won't know until Daniel is seen by a clinician with real expertise in these matters. Most "addiction treatment" professionals I know will at least admit to me in private that they rarely , if ever, are faced with patient who really needs help with MJ. More often, a court thinks so and expects the treater to tell the court the poor boy is "better" so he can stay out of the harsher corridors of the legal system, especially if "Daniel" is white and middle class. Run, Daniel, run. At least to competent medical evaluation and help! [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #15 posted by E_Johnson on April 30, 2002 at 10:02:24 PT |
| These people are real whores. I'm astounded. The NYT apparently will do anything to make themselves sound more dramatically compelling and important. I guess it's how they plan to compete with the television. Of course we can forget any possibility of an equal time rebuttal of this Gothic pseudoscience, because objectivity is not emotionally compelling. The Times now wants to be the newspaper of the emotionally compelled, not the newspaper of the factually informed. Fine, they can establish their reputation as the newspaper where one goes when one wants to be the least informed about marijuana of anyone in the world. [ Post Comment ] |
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Comment #14 posted by Kevin Hebert on April 30, 2002 at 09:59:57 PT:
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| Dear Editors:
Reading Howard Markel's "For Some, Marijuana Grows Mean" stretched my credulity quite a bit. Dr. Markel cites one youth who has been in his care for over 9 years who has difficulties with marijuana. One kid. I feel bad for him, no doubt he has personal problems. But what about the millions of Americans who use pot regularly who never develop these "reefer madness" symptoms? The real problem is that we throw millions of loyal American adults in jail every year for using a substance less harmful than legal alcohol or legal tobacco. It explains why the youth in the story can get marijuana: street dealers never check ID. Marijuana can cause some problems in a handful of users, most of whom have pre-existing mental or emotional problems. This should not justify subjecting millions of American adults to the horrors of a modern prison. [ Post Comment ] |
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Comment #13 posted by Kevin Hebert on April 30, 2002 at 09:59:01 PT:
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| Dear Editors: Reading Howard Markel's "For Some, Marijuana Grows Mean" stretched my credulity quite a bit. Dr. Markel cites one youth who has been in his care for over 9 years who has difficulties with marijuana. One kid. I feel bad for him, no doubt he has personal problems. But what about the millions of Americans who use pot regularly who never develop these "reefer madness" symptoms? The real problem is that we throw millions of loyal American adults in jail every year for using a substance less harmful than legal alcohol or legal tobacco. It explains why the youth in the story can get marijuana: street dealers never check ID. Marijuana can cause some problems in a handful of users, most of whom have pre-existing mental or emotional problems. This should not justify subjecting millions of American adults to the horrors of a modern prison. Sincerely, Kevin M. Hebert 83 Edbert St. Apt. F Chicopee, MA 01020 (413) 593-1624 [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #12 posted by Sam Adams on April 30, 2002 at 08:59:09 PT |
| "But today marijuana is anywhere from 10 to 20 times as potent as what was passed around at Woodstock. With that increase in potency, the risks of daily dependence have increased." Where's the proof of this theory? There isn't any, is there? What a crock. This reminds me of something that happened when I was in college. A freshman was injured in what can only be described as "caffeine abuse". Pulling an all-nighter to study for a final exam, he drank a full 6-pack of Jolt cola. As the night turned to dawn, he lost track of the time in his caffeinated/sleep-deprived state. A friend burst in to tell him that he was late for his exam. He ran out the door, and in the process of sprinting to the exam, he tried to hurdle a stone wall, did not make it, and severely broke his leg. In the story in student newspaper, he claimed that the Jolt had scrambled his brains so bad he thought he was Superman, and could leap any obstacle. There are 250 million people in America, with a little looking you can find just about anything you're looking for. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #11 posted by Robbie on April 30, 2002 at 08:36:52 PT |
| Once you see the phrase "marijuana abuse" you KNOW it's a prohibitionist rant.
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Comment #10 posted by Jose Melendez on April 30, 2002 at 08:19:59 PT:
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| From: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n824/a08.html?397 The most popular recreational drug, the one most often associated with violent behavior, is often overlooked in drug education. That drug is alcohol, and it takes far more lives every year than all illegal drugs combined. Alcohol may be legal, but it's still the No. 1 drug problem. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #9 posted by fivepounder on April 30, 2002 at 07:56:36 PT |
| Thank you Dr. Russo for telling it as it is. This crap in the NYT makes me wonder if this is the beginning of a new offense. This is for uninformed parents who have never smoked cannabis so that they are scared to death. Anyone who ever smoked would know this is a crock and this kind of reaction occurs rarely if at all. People get paranoid but this is ridiculous. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #8 posted by BGreen on April 30, 2002 at 07:53:39 PT |
| Here we go. Here are the providers of two grants Howard has received: Burroughs Wellcome Fund - $60,733 U.S. HHS PHS National Institutes of Health - $100,000 Howard is a mouthpiece for the gov't and pharmaceutical companies. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #7 posted by darwin on April 30, 2002 at 07:37:09 PT |
| Its funny how when the media talks about an alcoholic, they will commonly mention the issues that led to the alcoholism, acknowledging that the alcoholism is often a symtom, not a cause. However, it's rare to see the same honesty in references like the one in this article.
Dr. Markel should not be allowed to write this crap without mentioning what led to the kids drug abuse. Its like he's pointing out a case study with his hand over the top of the document.
I wonder if Dr. Markel gets his patients through the legal system, giving him a vested interest in the WOsD. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #6 posted by BGreen on April 30, 2002 at 07:36:26 PT |
| Look at the first paragraph of this comment posted to what appears to be a Balkan e-board: "An emaciated boy named Michael sits in a hospital bed, intently playing a video game. Only 15, he looks like a wizened old man: the color of his skin gray, his hair falling out and the his arm and leg muscles all but melted away." BTW, Howard, cannabis can help those afflicted with anorexia. But that wouldn't give you much of a story, would it? [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #5 posted by Cannabis Crusader on April 30, 2002 at 07:26:00 PT |
| Have written to them and told them this? [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #4 posted by BGreen on April 30, 2002 at 07:18:35 PT |
| This so-called professional sells books and articles by embellishing and fictionalizing the lives of his patients. Dr. Russo, would you take a look at the link and respond? [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #3 posted by aocp on April 30, 2002 at 07:12:23 PT |
| nothing more than covering up this young man's real problems with reefer madness. It's amazing that anyone would not wish to prohibit booze based on the good doctors's take: Marijuana does not destroy the liver, as alcohol does ... and because marijuana's active ingredient, tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, is lipophilic, it remains in the fat cells of the body for days to weeks, slowly working itself out without any of the harsh physical withdrawal symptoms seen in the alcoholic or heroin user who goes cold turkey. Where are your priorities, doc? [ Post Comment ] |
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Comment #2 posted by Ethan Russo MD on April 30, 2002 at 06:56:51 PT:
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| This article is rife with medical inaccuracies. It perpetuates an ages old unlikelihood: that cannabis creates these problems. This young man's difficulties are unfortunate. It is easy to blame a drug when the truth is likely quite different. It is clear that he has problems, but it is extremely unlikely that it started with this or another drug. In such situations, it is easier to rely on myths of amotivational syndromes or cannabis-induced violence that have been countless times been disproved by rigorous scientific investigation and acknowledged by various governmental commissions (India Hemp Drugs, Panama Canal, LaGuardia, LeDain, Wootton, Shafer, IOM I and II, House of Lords, British Medical Association, Jamaican Commission on Ganja, etc.). Rarely, if ever, is the possibility explored that this young man uses cannabis to treat his symptoms, rather than causing them by its use. Yes, he needs treatment, but it is unlikely that he, or this society will be served well by perpetuating misconceptions. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #1 posted by 2Spooky on April 30, 2002 at 06:53:28 PT |
| Boy, they really must be mad about the ads featuring the Mayor! HAR! HAR! HAR! Too bad this is so destructive. [ Post Comment ] |
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