Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a horribly debilitating and lethal disease that affects about 1 million Americans. It can cause progressive loss of movement control, painful spasms of muscle groups and, in some cases, the loss of ability to swallow and breath. There are two subtypes: primary progressive, and relapsing and remitting.
Let’s explore the myths and realities of MS and how cannabinoids can be helpful.
Myth #1: MS is uniformly fatal
As mentioned above, there are two types of MS: primary progressive, and relapsing and remitting. The primary progressive type is sadly a steady decline toward eventual death. The rate, however, varies greatly from person to person, and take a few years to several decades. The relapsing and remitting kind waxes and wanes, typically over several decades, and may not be the cause of death at all.
While there are some treatments for MS, there is no cure at present, and most of our treatment efforts are focused on pain management and improvements to quality of life.
Myth #2: MS patients suffer muscle weakness (only)
Weakness is a significant part of MS, but so too are spasticity and pain. There is little we can do at this time about the weakness, but the spasms and pain are areas where we can and must intervene.
As most people are aware, pain is generally a huge issue, and is generally poorly treatable with current conventional options. Muscle spasms are equally difficult to tame using conventional medications.
However, Multiple Sclerosis is a disease for which there are good data on use of cannabinoids for both pain and spasticity. In this case, specifically THC dominant products have been shown to be helpful. In fact, Dronabinol (a synthetic THC) is FDA approved for pain and spasticity in MS. In reality, Dronabinol, while studied and approved, is less effective than whole-plant extracts, so cannabis products are the way to go.
Myth #3: MS is a movement disorder (solely)
In reality, MS, like so many diseases, affects the whole person. While movement is the primary problem, that problem creates other problems that we must address. Just like Parkinson’s Disease is a movement disorder that leads to mental health and sleep disturbances, MS creates similar issues with mood and sleep.
Anxiety and depression are common in MS patients. Frankly, how could they not be for someone having been diagnosed with such a life-changing illness? To address this, often conventional anti-depressants like SSRIs and SNRIs are used. Cannabinoids can be helpful here too. When used carefully with proper medical guidance, cannabinoids can be used to address anxiety and depression.
Sleep is yet another area of daily life where MS can cause problems. In addition to having trouble sleeping from anxiety, MS patients often find their inherent sleep-wake cycle gets disrupted. Cannabis can be helpful for sleep disturbances, but can be a double-edged sword – largely based on dose and regimen. Careful medical guidance helps ensure best outcome.
Myth #4: Cannabidiol (CBD) is an important part of treatment
We do know that tiny (trace) amounts of CBD are necessary, in general, for cannabis to be effective medication. However, this does not mean that CBD should be used as its own medicine. In fact, we do not have any data that support use of CBD for Multiple Sclerosis.
The data that we have, dating back to the 1970s, shows that THC is the main medicine.
Treatment of MS, given its chronic nature, should usually be orally delivered. As you know, inhaled cannabis is rapid acting, but its short duration of benefit leads to being a poorer choice for ongoing problems like pain, spasticity, and in this context, the mood and sleep issues. Orally delivered THC gets processed in the liver to become a slightly different medication that works for a much longer period of time, thus being a better medication for the issues confronting MS patients.
As a side note, orally delivered cannabinoid medications are easier to dose correctly and lead less often to development of escalating tolerance, dependence, and use-disorder.
If you, or someone you know, has MS, please understand that cannabis and various cannabinoids can be used very successfully to help with the symptoms we’ve discussed here and to improve quality of life. However, it’s crucial for patients to get good medical guidance and follow-up. Not only should no one ever have to go up against this disease and the cannabis industry alone, but as this illness is ever-changing, we must be able to respond to the ups and downs along the way.
Consult with a Qualified Massachusetts Medical Marijuana Expert Today
Those considering using THC, CBD, or any type of medicine found in cannabis to help manage their condition should consider speaking to a trained medical expert who is knowledgeable about using cannabis therapeutically.
Massachusetts medical marijuana doctor Jordan Tishler, M.D. sits on the faculty of Harvard Medical School and has years of experience helping patients treat pain and other ailments using cannabis. He and the team at inhaleMD stand ready to assist patients in determining whether medical marijuana is right for them.
For more information, or to set up a virtual consultation with the team at inhaleMD, call us at (617) 477-8886 today.