My son, Thomas Osborn, took his own life on July 2, 2016. He probably started smoking pot sometime when he was attending the University of Utah and probably with his fraternity Brothers.
Tom was a high achieving student at Arapahoe High School in Colorado, and at Utah where he was a top student in his Math and Calculus classes of 250+ students.
After two years of college, he dropped out of the University of Utah and returned to live at home in Colorado. He told me that he couldn't continue as he was struggling with school and wanted to come home.
When he returned home, he started to smoke pot heavily, and eventually got in trouble with the law...
Shane was my first-born son who grew into a handsome 6’4” young man. He always seemed larger than life and he had a big heart, infectious smile, and zest for life. He excelled at sports, especially water sports, from a young age. Shane was a very normal, healthy teen and even weathered a back injury and surgery which made high school team sports no longer possible–so he transferred his athletic skills to wakeboarding !
When Shane moved away from home at age 19, he began using recreational marijuana (unbeknownst to his family). At age 22, Shane endured prolonged physical rehab to his knee following a serious boating accident. It was later realized Shane had increased his use of pot as he was intolerant of the prescription pain medications.
Shane was determined to proceed with his wedding to his long-term girlfriend...
Andy was born in 1982 and had a joyful life easily making and keeping friends. It was his mission to make friends and family laugh and have a good time and he was GOOD at it. He was class clown. He made parties come alive. When he grew older he helped good friends with their mental health and substance abuse issues.
But it all began to get harder for him to do as he became a teen and thought he had to participate in drinking and drugs to fit in. He was good at hiding the extent to which he indulged in these activities and surprised everyone with his statements in a suicide note:
“My soul is already dead. Marijuana killed my soul + ruined my brain.”
New York Times notes, the CBD industry is pushing FDA to loosen restrictions on CBD products. But FDA’s acting Commissioner, Norman Sharpless, MD, pointed out in his opening remarks to some 140 people waiting to testify, that FDA statutes prohibit active drug ingredients from being added to food or dietary supplements.
WASHINGTON (ABC7/ WJLA)- The cannabis derivative, CBD, is popping up everywhere- lip balm, body cream and even as a shot in your morning espresso. But not all CBD is created equal. The ABC7 I-Team has been given exclusive access to the largest set of test results and analysis on CBD products to date.
BOMBSHELL Study on Adolescent Marijuana Use: Anxiety, Depression, Suicide
Question Is adolescent cannabis consumption associated with risk of depression, anxiety, and suicidality in young adulthood? Findings In this systematic review and meta-analysis of 11 studies and 23 317 individuals, adolescent cannabis consumption was associated with increased risk of developing depression and suicidal behavior later in life, even in the absence of a premorbid condition.
Why Social Justice Arguments for Marijuana Are Flawed
Public health and addiction prevention professionals have been closely watching the development of regulations for, and roll-out of, a recreational marijuana industry in Massachusetts. Many concerning policies are being institutionalized with many public health and prevention professionals sounding the alarm regarding the “Social Equity Program” and all associated components included in the Cannabis Control Commission’s regulations, driven by industry representatives, both internal and external to the process.
The owner of a large Vermont organic vegetable farm said he’s been “sick to my stomach” since learning plants he thought were hemp had tested positive as high-grade marijuana.
CLOSE As more teens vape, schools have struggled to keep the practice in check. Now, area schools are seeing a disturbing twist – students vaping marijuana. Just as with tobacco, students can vape right under a teacher’s nose and go undetected.
Important New Study: Meta Analysis of Research on Marijuana and Violence
The relationship between cannabis and violence remains unclear, especially amid those with severe mental illnesses (SMI). The objective of this meta-a…
Roman, who operates Nature’s Way Medicine in Old City, was one of the first doctors to issue recommendations, similar to a prescription, for medical cannabis in the Keystone State. Since the launch of the medical marijuana program, Roman’s practice has been limited to accepting $200 payments from a stream of patients seeking to access legal weed.
Whoopi Goldberg wrote in her opening 2014 epiphany column (“My Vape Pen and I, A Love Story”) in The Cannibist: “The vape pen has changed my life. No, I’m not exaggerating. In fact, her name is Sippy. Yes, she’s a she.
The Marijuana Delusion
The History Behind MJ Legalization & Its Destructive Path Across America
Our first news article is a well done piece with historical perspective along with current knowledge of marijuana dangers.
After Colorado and Washington State voters gave a thumbs-up to recreational marijuana use in 2012, cannabis advocates needed another six years to win legalization battles in eight additional states. But in 2019 alone, at least eight more states seem ready to pass laws permitting recreational pot.
Scientific American: Link Between Adolescent Pot Smoking and Psychosis Strengthened
In an interview Murray said his research with users in London has shown that high-potency cannabis—approximately 16 percent THC(tetrahydrocannabinol)—was involved in 24 percent of all cases of a first episode of psychosis. (New laws permitting recreational pot use do not make it legal for teens to consume cannabis, but that has not impeded access.)
As physicians, we need to say clearly what is happening and what is not,” says Peter Falkai, a psychiatrist at the Munich Center for Neurosciences at Ludwig Maximilian University. “Looking into the data, clearly yes, the data show increasing risk of psychosis.”
Fact is that while you’re a teen (and even into your early 20’s!), you’re still growing and developing, and drug abuse during these years in particular can have a lasting impact. Another fact to consider: the brain is much more vulnerable to addiction during these years. 90% of Americans with a substance abuse problem started smoking, drinking or using other drugs before age 18.
Drivers of Brain Aging. Credit: Daniel G. Amen, IOS Press In the largest known brain imaging study, scientists from Amen Clinics (Costa Mesa, CA), Google, John’s Hopkins University, University of California, Los Angeles and the University of California, San Francisco evaluated 62,454 brain SPECT (single photon emission computed tomography) scans of more than 30,000 individuals from 9 months old to 105 years of age to investigate factors that accelerate brain aging.
New HHS Report: Marijuana Use Skyrocketing and Higher than Ever Before
There are now twice as many daily or near daily marijuana users in the US than just a decade ago, according to the most comprehensive survey on drug use released today by the federal government.
Commentary: Aldous Huxley Predicted Governments Would Encourage Drug Use to Gain More Control
More and more Americans are reporting near-constant cannabis use, as legalization forges ahead. The proliferation of retail boutiques in California did not really bother him, Evan told me, but the billboards did. Advertisements for delivery, advertisements promoting the substance for relaxation, for fun, for health. “Shop. It’s legal.” “Hello marijuana, goodbye hangover.”
Cannabis and psychosis: what do we know and what should we do?
Abstract It is now incontrovertible that heavy use of cannabis increases the risk of psychosis. There is a dose-response relationship and high potency preparations and synthetic cannabinoids carry the greatest risk. It would be wise to await the outcome of the different models of legalisation that are being introduced in North America, before deciding whether or not to follow suit.
Cannabis is used by approximately 200 million people across the world. The current trend to popularise its medicinal properties, real and imagined, and to decriminalise or legalise it in many countries, is likely to be followed by greater use., However, cannabis is not as safe as was once thought., Just as longitudinal studies of tobacco smokers versus non-smokers nailed the link between cigarettes and lung cancer, so similar prospective studies have shown that heavy cannabis use carries with it an increased risk of psychosis.
Former Rhode Island Congressman Patrick Kennedy marks April 20th, a holiday in cannabis culture commonly referred to as ‘4/20,’ by joining public health officials and others to talk about federal…
This study replicates exactly what Henquet et al. found back in 2005 for the amount of use where you begin to see a rise in risk – 5 times of use.
On an afternoon I occasionally walk with my granddaughter in a London park where teens gather after school, and the smell of pot is unescapable. It’s more pungent than I remember and I presume stronger, possibly super skunk , which is flooding the UK.
“They may be infrequent and thus not problematic for the adolescent, (but) when these experiences are reported continuously, year after year, then there’s an increased risk of a first psychotic episode or another psychiatric condition.”
Marijuana is thought to cause psychosis-like experiences by increasing a user’s risk of depression.
he take-home message from research published last week in JAMA Internal Medicine – let’s liberalize access to marijuana as a way to address the raging opioid epidemic – captured the public imagination. We disagree. Supporting medical or recreational marijuana as an alternative to opioids for conditions like chronic pain is a bad idea, especially for America’s youths.
In a promo for his upcoming report on the role of marijuana in alleviating the opioid crisis, CNN chief medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta, MD, beckons viewers: “Join us as we investigate a search for answers and meet potential pioneers and outspoken critics. Whether you struggle with opioids or know one of the millions who do, …
Marijuana Induced Psychosis Causes Man with No Criminal Record to Attack Strangers
As the federal government prepares to legalize the recreational use of marijuana, an Ontario judge has ruled that cannabis-induced psychosis led a man to a seemingly hate-filled attack on a family, in what appears to be the first case of its kind in Canadian criminal courts.
Two ER physicians from both CO and CA present marijuana harms at SAM Summit
Doctor Who Was Taught to Overprescribe Pills Now Works to Counter the Marijuana Epidemic Ronnet Lev, M.D. ( ER physician at Scripps Mercy Hospital, San Diego, CA)
Karen Randall, ER physician in Pueblo, CO presents at the SAM Summit (Atlanta) 4-5-18 “join the fight against THC marijuana” Karen Randall, M.D. (ER physician at Parkland Medical Center, Pueblo, CO)
Britain could set off a schizophrenia timebomb if it ignores the dangers of super-strength ‘skunk’ cannabis, one of the UK’s most eminent psychiatrists warns today. Strong evidence now shows that smoking potent forms of the Class B drug increases the chance of psychosis, paranoid delusions and schizophrenia.
