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Speaking Point: From movie stars to housewives, marijuana is here to stay in American culture and there are some very strong arguments both for and against the legalization of marijuana. As an advocate for complementary alternative medicine I’m a big fan of new therapies and healing modalities that aren’t from the pharmaceutical giants, don’t involve surgery, and are beneficial to the entire person. Marijuana when used in this way may be exactly that. But is it? The prolonged use of marijuana by many can create chronic personal problems and lives unfulfilled.

Speaking Point: Medicinal marijuana is a God send for anyone dealing with neuropathy types of issues as well as HIV related wasting, severe emotional (anxiety/stress) disorders, cancer, and even arthritis. When used due to a true medical situation I’m a huge supporter of legalizing marijuana. In these circumstances marijuana use has little or no long lasting or harmful side effects, which is something that no pharmaceutical drug has ever been able to claim.

Speaking Point: Recreational marijuana is something that I’m much less supportive of. As a hypnotherapist I’ve found it increasingly difficult to work with people to create effective change in their lives when they are using marijuana. I’ve had to help wean both men and women off of marijuana as it interferes with their ability to gain perspective and clarity on life AND effectively make the changes that they say they desire. Marijuana seems to take away their ability to move forward in life and when a client comes to me with depression, frustration, lack of will, waning will power, sadness, or unresolved emotional issues one of the first questions I ask them is if they use marijuana. Nine times out of ten they do.

Speaking Point: The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) shows that a survey of Californians reports the top three reported uses of medicinal marijuana: 40% Chronic Pain, 22% AIDS-Related, 15% Mood Disorders. That’s 77% of those using marijuana in a way that is directly health related but with 23% using marijuana in a way that is not. It’s this number that alarms me. Although I have no problem with someone using marijuana once or twice a year when consumption becomes more than that it becomes problematic for the individual.

Speaking Point: Spiritual marijuana? In recent months I’ve come across people that claim to use marijuana as a spiritual tool for connecting with their Higher Self. Frankly, I think this is a rationalization used by someone addicted to marijuana to justify their behavior. Using drugs to connect with Spirit more than once or twice, something I’ve never needed to do, therapeutically sounds delusional. If they are as spiritual as they claim then why do they need outside stimulants to connect with something deep inside themselves. Outside of indigenous shaman and those highly trained in this sort of spiritual work to me this claim is simply an addict looking for validation.

Speaking Point: Marijuana arrests. For a drug as passive as marijuana it’s surprising how angry many people, especially those involved in law enforcement, can become when the topic of legalizing limited marijuana use is broached. If anything, the user of marijuana becomes passive, tired, and unmotivated to do most anything besides satisfy some hunger urges. Yet, in 2009 of the 1,663,582 drug arrests in the United States with 858,408 being for marijuana almost half of them, 758,593, were for marijuana. Nearly half of the arrests made for marijuana charges were against ordinary people who possessed very little marijuana for personal use and yet these people now have a criminal record that disqualifies them from many public and private jobs and careers.