August 2, 2018 | CHRONIC PAIN
By, Lauraine Kanders, ANP, ACNP-BC
The rise of Medical Marijuana across New York State has raised many questions and doubts in the minds of the patients. People now want to know more about the formalities involved in the treatment, and how they should go ahead with it. As per recently passed regulations in the state of New York, many ailments qualify for the use of Medical Marijuana. Hence, it is up to the patients to realize how they can benefit from it.
While the buzz surrounding Medical Marijuana might have made things exciting, there is still a lot of confusion regarding the process for getting yourself qualified. People do know that chronic pain does qualify for the use of medical cannabis, but they are not aware of all the intricacies involved in the process. During the course of this blog, we would be looking at these implications. But before delve into these intricacies, let’s shed some light on the types of chronic pain.
Chronic pain can be grouped into two distinctive types. These types include:
NOCICEPTIVE PAIN
Nociceptive pain is usually caused by damage suffered to body tissues and other parts. It is often recognized by a throbbing or aching sensation within the body. Nociceptive pain is believed to develop because of benign pathology, cancer cells or tumors.
NEUROPATHIC PAIN
Neuropathic pain occurs when your body has suffered actual nerve damage. This damage is most commonly suffered across the nerves that connect your spinal cord to the rest of your body. Since these nerves allow the brain to communicate with your muscles, internal organs and skins, this sort of chronic pain can often lead to reduced cognitive functioning. Patients suffering from neuropathic pain often suffer from heavy or burning sensations along the affected nerve.
Now that we are clear about what constitutes chronic pain, we will move on to understanding the implications involved in getting Medical Marijuana for the condition.
GETTING MEDICAL MARIJUANA FOR CHRONIC PAIN
The State Department of Health in New York has initiated a proper Medical Marijuana Program that qualifies patients with Chronic Pain to use Medical Marijuana within the state. The condition is qualified if the person suffers from increasing pain that hinders their mental/functional capabilities and degrades their health. Besides this, the use is qualified only if they have a record of previous therapeutic options that have failed to have any impact on the body and the chronic pain.
Besides what is mentioned above, it is important for the patient to have documented evidence to suggest that the chronic pain has lasted for more than 3 months. In addition to this, your practitioner is also required to make a justified anticipation that the pain will last for more than 3 months during the future. So, if you suffer from any sort of chronic pain, it is necessary for the pain to have lasted more than 3 months, and for your practitioner to give a reasonable estimate that the pain will last for 3 months or more in the coming future.
Moreover, chronic pain is qualified for Medical Marijuana use only if you have another associated condition, which in all probability has spurred from the chronic pain. An associate condition can include the likes of unintended weight loss or muscle spasms to name a couple.
At Medical Marijuana Recs NY, we provide our visitors with online video chats to become certified for Medical Marijuana in New York State. Our group of NPs and doctors strive towards helping get certified. Click here to see if you qualify!