Cannabis: A medical marvel or mind-altering mess?

The debate over whether or not cannabis should be illegal often hinges over its medicinal use.

Thousands of patients with a whole panoply of conditions believe it has a positive effect on them, whether it is in the way that they manage their pain, or in how it affects their mental state.

But there are distinctions between the different forms the drug can take – and how effective each can be in helping manage different conditions.

There are two main chemical components to cannabis – THC, which is the psychoactive compound which creates the high, and cannabidiol, or CBD, which does not have any psychoactive effect.

At present, few people can access cannabis oil, for example. Light in THC, it can be prescribed for some cases relating to epilepsy and chemotherapy.

Last year, Andrea Davies from Longden near Shrewsbury, called for the the NHS to prescribe the drug to her son Adrian Freeman, 34, who has learning difficulties and has suffered severe head injuries because of his epileptic fits.

“I feel that it would be much less drastic than the kind of invasive surgery they are talking about, which is quite experimental and far from risk free,” she said last year. “Especially with Adrian, he just wouldn’t know what was happening to him.”

Michael, 29 has bipolar disorder, and started smoking cannabis in his youth, stealing it from his parents, although now he is only an occasional user.

“I suffer from bipolar and I find that it helps to reduce my stress and anxiety levels quite a bit,” said Michael, who did not want to give his real name.”I find it quite medicinal in a lot of ways. It helps with a more restful sleep and I enjoy it. It doesn’t really cause me other issues.”

Having bipolar disorder causes Michael to suffer high stress levels and this often prevents him enjoying personal time and has him struggling to sleep.

“For me personally I get a feeling of relaxation, wellbeing, a feeling of warmth,” he added. “I will enjoy things like television, films and games more and it just takes all my stress levels down and helps me mellow.”

Michael, who lives in Telford, believes that cannabis should be legalised in other forms than just as an oil, adding that it would also help ensure that the highly psychoactive strains were less prevalent.

“I’m very much in the legalisation camp,” he said. “I think it would free up a lot of police time, it would bring tax into the country.

“People are going to do it anyway, the police turn a blind eye because they can’t keep control of it, nor do I think they really want to as they have better things to do with their time. There’s a lot of talk about alcohol being a big thing at the moment, and I think it could actually be a good alternative for people.

“I think the Amsterdam model is a good model. I myself like to go to Amsterdam for a yearly holiday where cannabis is in certain spaces and a controlled environment which is controlled by those spaces.

“If it was legalised and controlled people could choose the level of THC and could have more options given to them. Some strains will cause more anxiety than others and in a ‘shop’ environment people could pick and choose.”

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Shelley, who has arthritis, psoriasis and mental health issues also believes that legalisation would help those who use the drug medicinally.

“I am always on the go, I can’t sit still,” says the 48-year-old, who also wanted to remain anonymous. “I have emotional unstable personality disorder which gives me really bad anxiety.

“It’s not like I have to get up and have a spliff, it’s more that it helps me to sit down and relax and forget my head where there is stuff going around and around. It takes that away. It reduces my stress levels. It stops the pain, it works better than what is prescribed to me which are essentially painkillers.”

Shelley says that having to seek cannabis from a drug dealer is intimidating.

“I don’t know how I would cope without it,” she says. “It is hard going to a drug dealer, you feel frightened you’re going to get caught, but it really helps me.

“I do believe cannabis should be legalised for medical reasons, not for general use though.

“If people can learn about the amount to use and using it at the right times then that would be a good thing. I had to learn that myself.”

* Tomorrow: A psychiatrist talks about the impact of cannabis.