Impacts of the Legalization of Marijuana
September 10, 2016
In the DSM-V, the classification of substance use disorders became one category, whereas there had been two different classifications in the DSM-IV-TR; substance dependence and substance abuse. A substance use disorder is classified as use of a substance that impacts a person’s life negatively in at least two of the following ways; failing to meet obligations, use even when it is physically dangerous, repeated relationship problems, tolerance, withdrawal, efforts to reduce use do not work, significant amount of time spent obtaining the substance, social life, work, and hobbies are reduced or given up, strong cravings, and refusal to give up substance after repeated problems have occurred (D’Souza et al, 2016).
Medical marijuana has already begun replacing opiates in pain management. Because it would be virtually impossible to die from marijuana overdose, the replacement of opiates with marijuana would lead us to expect “An immediate reduction of opioid poisonings” (Livingston et al, 2017). Livingston et al compares the opiate related deaths from 2000- 2015 in relation to the legalization of marijuana in Colorado. To give an accurate comparison, they also analyzed two other states; Nevada, which legalized only medicinal marijuana around the time Colorado legalized recreational, and Utah, where cannabis use is completely illegal. As expected, the rate of opioid-related deaths decreased in Colorado by over 6% in the 2 years after legalization occurred (Livingston et al, 2017).
There have been a number of small studies that found using cannabis reduces the cravings for not only opiates but other drugs such as nicotine, alcohol and amphetamines. Cannabis is thought to be a “lower-risk” substance to replace other addictions because of lower risks of withdrawal and fewer side effects that come with use, and people have even been choosing to use cannabis as a substitute for alcohol without medical “authorization” (Lucaset al, 331). It would appear that there is plenty of evidence that marijuana is less risky, and less harmful than many of the other common addictive substances. That does not mean, however, that there are no risks with cannabis use. While many people who have used marijuana claim it is not addictive, there is still a risk for some people becoming dependent on it. A marijuana dependency can have very real, negative social consequences such as relationship problems, poor work dependence, or financial troubles (D’Souza et al, 2016).
While searching for information on whether cannabis can help treat PTSD and similar mental disorders, one might not find much information on these types of studies, there is much research to be done on the subject. It is fascinating the amount of people with PTSD who self medicate with not only marijuana but much more risky drugs. We can take into consideration the fact that there are a significant number of patients with PTSD who have a co morbid substance use disorder. Marijuana might be a viable option for these patents due to marijuana being less risky and harmful (Lucas et al, 327) than the other drugs they might be turning to for self-medication.
REFERENCES:
Livingston, M., Barnett, T., Delcher, C., Wagenaar, A. (November, 2017). Recreational Cannabis Legalization and Opioid-Related Deaths in Colorado, 2000-2015. AJPH, Vol 107, No 11. Retrieved from: http://web.a.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.aclin.org:2048/ehost/detail/detail?sid=22a6dd07-3bea-410c-b5dd-3899d73ee972@sessionmgr4008&vid=2&resultId=12&theDisplayFormat=CitationAndFullText&ReturnUrl=%252fehost%252fresults%252fresultlist%253fsid%253d22a6dd07-3bea-410c-b5dd-3899d73ee972%2540sessionmgr4008%2526vid%253d2%2526resultId%253d_resultId_
Lucas, P., Walsh, Z., Crosby, K., Callaway, R., Belle-Isle, L., Kay, R., Capler, R., Holtzman, S. (May, 2016). Substituting cannabis for prescription drugs, alcohol, and other substances among medical cannabis patients: The impact of contextual factors. Drug and Alcohol Review, 35, 326-333. Retrieved from:
D’Souza, Wilkinson, D., Schalkwyk, S., Davidson, G., Davidson, L. (March, 2016). The Formation of Marijuana Risk Perception in a Population of Substance Abusing Patients. Psychiatric Quarterly. Vol 87, Issue 1, p177-187. retrieved from:
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