Tag Archives: schizophrenia

Time to Recognize Pot as Part of Mental Health Problem

H.R. 2646 Calls for Mental Health Care Reform

Eddie Bernice Johnson
Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas

Former Congressman Patrick Kennedy, Congressman Tim Murphy of Pennsylvania, Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas and Virginia State Senator Creigh Deeds held a press hearing on June 16, 2015, to announce a comprehensive new mental health bill, H.R. 2646.   Patrick Kennedy, son of Senator Ted Kennedy, is a co-founder of Project SAM (Smart Approaches to Marijuana), with Kevin Sabet.

Our criminal justice system is under fire.  The lack of adequate mental health care is in the news.  The mistreatment of the mentally ill who are incarcerated is also coming under scrutiny. Prevention through a comprehensive school drug education program in the United States could greatly diminish all three of these problems. Continue reading Time to Recognize Pot as Part of Mental Health Problem

The Other Side of Cannabis

The Other Side of Cannabis, is a candid documentary film which comes  from a mother’s attempt to understand her son’s psychotic break.  It takes us behind the scenes to tell real-world stories the American press has missed. It’s a real eye opener.

The Other Side of Cannabis was selected to be part of the St. Tropez Film Festival in France, this week, May 10-16.  It has been nominated for awards in 5 categories.   Featured in the San Luis Obispo Film Festival earlier this year, it also won first place at the Sunset Los Angeles Film Festival 2015, in the documentary film category.

Copies of the DVD on the OSC website.

The  power of the film’s message comes from the way filmmaker Continue reading The Other Side of Cannabis

Help Save My Son — for Himself and Others

My son suffers from schizophrenia and marijuana addiction. He has become severely depressed and psychotic smoking marijuana, and talks of ending his life. He has been hospitalized 6 times since Colorado legalized recreational marijuana.  He was not hospitalized the year before the legalization of marijuana.

How could Colorado legalize marijuana without any consideration for the mental heath community?  Amendment 64 is a travesty. I need help. I am so afraid for my son who just leaves his home and is in a state of confusion. He gets so paranoid and believes everyone is out to kill him. It has only been two weeks since his last hospital stay, in which he refused substance abuse treatment.  He wants to drive high while being psychotic and talking to his voices.

He is a veteran and receives his treatment through the Veterans Administration. He has a case manager and I have been trying to have his psych doctor sign a paper from the department of motor vehicles that would pull his license to drive. I don’t want him to kill himself or someone else. He has already had several accidents and now has a careless driving ticket. The police have even told me not to let him drive, but how can I do that when he is actively psychotic?

My neighbors wrote a letter for the doctor who’s had this paperwork from the DMV for two months and still refuses to sign the papers. My son almost hit our neighbor’s car head on. as he was driving down the wrong side of the road, and he almost backed into them.   Does he have to kill himself or someone before this doctor will take any action?  He keeps telling me the VA has to call their legal team.   They don’t make the call, and its so frustrating.

He won’t listen to his doctor’s advice or to anyone. Every day is so very challenging and stressful, and it has been very devastating to my family.   (The author lives in Adams County, Colorado)

Mental Health Care Fails at Addiction Treatment

We’re facing a national tragedy of mental health misdiagnoses because American psychiatry is failing to treat root causes.  Too often young people with mental health symptoms are lumped into categories and given potent anti-depressants, benzodiazapines and/or neuroleptics, while the doctors or mental health treatment centers ignore symptoms of marijuana addiction and fail to treat the addiction.  In some cases, a psychotic episode is treated as bipolar disorder or schizophrenia rather than drug-induced psychosis.*

It may be time for widespread re-education of psychiatrists and emergency room physicians. Continue reading Mental Health Care Fails at Addiction Treatment