Help with Pain Relief

Well about 8 years ago I shattered my L2 and L3 in my lower back falling through a 3rd floor and landing on the first floor while I was a firefighter for a fire department I worked for in Boise Idaho. I went through 6 surgeries and was told I might be in a wheelchair the rest if my life, but behold I walk, run, and have a very good job. I have had to go home twice this week because the pain is so bad I start uncontrollably shaking and just can't concentrate. There is nothing more medical science can currently do for me.
I have known my boss since I was 3, he is well aware of my problem, and has no problem with me using Pot even illegally.

My problem: The weed isn't doing as much as it has been for a while due to tolerance. I am finding myself spending more time in the chair than on my feet due to the pain. I have been smoking around an 1/8th or more a day and as of recently and adding a 5th of vodka a day to kill the pain "Not ok at work". For the first two years after the accident I took Opiate based pain killers.
Needless to say I ended up going through the worst experience of my life getting off them.
I will never touch opiate again as long as I live and OTC pain relief does not work. Drinking alcohol isn't a solution either, because I know that is killing me.

Does anyone on here who also uses MJ for pain relief have any suggestions on how to take a tolerance break without laying in bed for a week?

Any suggestions at all would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

smoke some nice indica hash man.... works for my buddy who also broke his falling off a rooftop. he still roofs too this day and has had multiple ''spinal'' operations. not a break but an up in dosage. and idk about you but if you alternate and use hash when the pain is unbearable. then our tolerance might be fine.
hope ya find some help man. couldnt imagine. thx

I am so sorry to hear about the pain your are enduring.
I had a bulging disc a few years ago and it drove me crazy, I can't imagine what you are going through.

Are there any medical marijuana groups in your area? Even if your not in a MM state, there are usually
groups that promote MM and are pushing for legislation. They might have good info on what works for
their pain.

Also, are you able to exercise? I've found that exercise helps me. Even if it is just walking.
I hope you find a solution to your pain problem, I know that it is mentally and physically punishing.

I come from a similar background and am now retired. I suffer from PTSD and was told by a friend about his success on MM. I hadnt smoked weed in 25 years and still mostly thought of it as a recreational drug as it was back in the mid 80's. I researched the overwhelming benefits of this medicine and figured I had nothing to lose as Psych meds were not an option in my mind. I was approved a MM card in my state almost a year ago. My state of mind has vastly improved, my PTSD although clearly still there is more like flashes in my mind now than scenes from a movie. I am happier, healthier, drinking less and actually pretty content most days.
I use a vaporizor to ingest my medication as I am still very active and prefer not to smoke anything. I make potent edibles from the remains of my vaporized medicine. This type of high is stronger and more of a body high IMO. This really relax's me, eases pain and I also use it as a sleep aid with no narcotic side effects. I do also have arthritis which is helped by the medicine and I make a balm that gives immediate pain relief. I went to a new dispensary the other day and got a free gram with signup. I chose some hard candies instead which came in a small bag of 6. Total MM dose was 250mg or 41.6 per treat. I have a pretty good tolerance so I took one after I was vaped. Dude I went on the spaciest and most relaxed walk in the woods I have ever had, wow.
So if you have the option to go the MM route, by all means do so. They have so many differant types of medicines, including edibles, tinctures,hash, waxes, ecigs and the list goes on and on. If you can't and have to grow your own plant, do so. I made some previous posts of some of my methods which really work well for me. I am a patient that has learned from research and from reading the constructive posts on this site and others. I wish you luck and know what chronic pain is like. I like you am avoiding opiates at all cost and so far I am being very successful at it. Good luck Sir.

I'm in the same boat buddy, chronic back pain and the shakes just plain suck. It happens every time if walk down stairs, no muscle control and legs feel like a signal is getting interupted from brain to legs. followed by birth contractions lol, and a sea of sweat just because it hurts so bad.

one thing I can say is cannabis helps with the spasms and as far as the pain goes, being stoned helps me to ignore the pain, it by no means takes it away. Don't care if it's hash oil or what. Pain killers do help but like you said it's not fun getting off them. Plus I'll hurt still taking those too. so being addicted and then still having the pain is a no go as well.

the best strain I've found so far has been from tga...time wreck. It has an opiate feeling effect to me, which is great for pain and gives ya a little boost for energy as well. It's my go to in the morning when I wake up so I can get through the morning pains. And then I continue to smoke it thoughout the day.

ask your doctor about a pill called moxicam ( think it's what it is called) it's a NON opiate... that helps tremendously with inflammation which by what your injury you described is, I can guarantee it will help. I guess slowly over the years I have excepted I'm always gonna be in pain and there's gonna be days I'm down. I was actually amazed at how much moxicam helped though, pain still is there but it makes it so with a strong mind you can at least move. The down side is, it's extremely hard on the liver so you can only take it for a year. There is no withdrawl though so that's a plus.

I wouldn't wish chronic pain on my worst enemy...to feel pain at 10 on the scale is a life changing event...it slowly sucks your soul from you and without the proper mind set can really put you in dark times. 3 yrs ago I could barley walk, couldn't stand to pee because no muscles would work to piss, and was lucky if could stand for more than 2 mins in one spot without wanting to cry. I took a natural approach(except for the moxicam) and still have a counter top full of vitamins. I can walk now, pee standing again and am thankful to have that back. Hope fully one day I will operate day to day with minimal pain...like a five or six on the pain scale and I'd be a happy camper. I do applied kinesiology and that has helped me greatly to get muscles working in the right fashion to relieve some of my pain. It's way less stress on the body than a chiropractor.

It's called Meloxicam, you were close. I've recently been prescribed this, haven't really noticed any improvements yet but I have just started taking it. As said, its an extremely strong anti-inflammatory (that's what my Dr told me anyway, I haven't had time to read up on it yet).

dangerlow said:

Well about 8 years ago I shattered my L2 and L3 in my lower back falling through a 3rd floor and landing on the first floor while I was a firefighter for a fire department I worked for in Boise Idaho. I went through 6 surgeries and was told I might be in a wheelchair the rest if my life, but behold I walk, run, and have a very good job. I have had to go home twice this week because the pain is so bad I start uncontrollably shaking and just can't concentrate. There is nothing more medical science can currently do for me.
I have known my boss since I was 3, he is well aware of my problem, and has no problem with me using Pot even illegally.

My problem: The weed isn't doing as much as it has been for a while due to tolerance. I am finding myself spending more time in the chair than on my feet due to the pain. I have been smoking around an 1/8th or more a day and as of recently and adding a 5th of vodka a day to kill the pain "Not ok at work". For the first two years after the accident I took Opiate based pain killers.
Needless to say I ended up going through the worst experience of my life getting off them.
I will never touch opiate again as long as I live and OTC pain relief does not work. Drinking alcohol isn't a solution either, because I know that is killing me.

Does anyone on here who also uses MJ for pain relief have any suggestions on how to take a tolerance break without laying in bed for a week?

Any suggestions at all would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

Click to expand...

Sorry to hear about your problem. My advice would be to take a t break, switch to bho or you can try tylenol/advil but they do make you tired after a while. Maybe ask your doctor about another method of pain relief if you hadn't already.

About the shaking, i get that alot too mainly when its a little chilly so i just use my portable heater. if the shaking becomes uncontrollable you might have parkinsons idk for sure im not a doctor.

Have you tried a creme? I am currently researching how to make a creme for my arthritis. It involves cooking the mj with olive oil or vegetable oil on 300 degrees for a while, then straining the result and refrigerating, then mixing with beeswax or a premade creme that you currently use.
What I am really interested in is using the roots, which has been dated back to ancient chinese times as a great anti-inflammatory.

i suggest you prepare a topical..

qwizoking said:

i suggest you prepare a topical..

Click to expand...

Do you have experience with this? That's what I was suggesting as well, I just have never done it myself but am wanting to try. A sticky on it would be GREAT.

Yeah a good topical prep would be nice.
Or even a link to one you know to be accurate.

yea...
first you must start with hash by whatever your preferred method, mine is qwiso for a few reasons i can explain if you like.

that hash should be decarbed over a double boil watching co2 bubbles

take that hash and saturate hot unrefined sunflower oil or an oil high in unsaturated low weight fatty acids, oleic is good. if you can adding 5-10% ethanol will help. so will pg

sweet. Are balms effective for anything that that oil is not?

https://www.rollitup.org/cooking-cannabis/795934-making-salve-cannaoil-tincture-decarb.html

ive gone over this topic a few times..maybe check out some of their questions and my resonse...
i could write pages on the pharmacology etc of this and can really go as in-depth as anyone would like.
most of those points could be and have been expaned greatly..

using hash transdermally is great. you can really localize the area needing treatment, making more use of the hash. and thats especially useful for ailments treated with cbd like inflammation etc or certain cancers. and it doesnt have to be decarbed for this...of course it does enter the blood stream and act/treat just like a tincture and get you high if decarbed


a few of us have been working on stickies..sadly life seems to get in the way.. one that would suit our standards would take too much time that life doesnt seem to offer...eventually

Okay. Thanks for all the info.

qwizoking said:

yea...
first you must start with hash by whatever your preferred method, mine is qwiso for a few reasons i can explain if you like.

that hash should be decarbed over a double boil watching co2 bubbles

take that hash and saturate hot unrefined sunflower oil or an oil high in unsaturated low weight fatty acids, oleic is good. if you can adding 5-10% ethanol will help. so will pg

Click to expand...

Have you tried decarbing in the oven with trimmings? I read that 60 minutes at 240 degrees would decarb trimmings. I can't find any information on decarbing in a double broiler. Sorry if these are stupid questions. I really appreciate your information. Do you mix the hash with oil and double broil it until it stops bubbling?

ill start at the beginning..decarbing is removing the carboxyl group
the carboxyl group -cooh overtime turns to co2 and h2o ....that carboxylic acid prevents thc's crossing of the blood brain barrier and reaching receptors...we can speed this removal with heat..the less heat used the more efficient this process is (like everything)

using a double boil we ensure the temp is a steady 210 or so and we are allowed to watch the hash bubbles for complete and efficient decarb not over doing it or under
use straight hash

qwizoking said:

ill start at the beginning..decarbing is removing the carboxyl group
the carboxyl group -cooh overtime turns to co2 and h2o ....that carboxylic acid prevents thc's crossing of the blood brain barrier and reaching receptors...we can speed this removal with heat..the less heat used the more efficient this process is (like everything)

using a double boil we ensure the temp is a steady 210 or so and we are allowed to watch the bubbles for complete and efficient decarb not over doing it or under

Click to expand...

So no more bubbles is the goal?

qwizoking said:

ill start at the beginning..decarbing is removing the carboxyl group
the carboxyl group -cooh overtime turns to co2 and h2o ....that carboxylic acid prevents thc's crossing of the blood brain barrier and reaching receptors...we can speed this removal with heat..the less heat used the more efficient this process is (like everything)

using a double boil we ensure the temp is a steady 210 or so and we are allowed to watch the hash bubbles for complete and efficient decarb not over doing it or under
use straight hash

Click to expand...

Awesome! That clears it up for me. Thanks so much! I can't wait to try this for my arthritis.

yup...the bubbles are the gas released (carbon dioxide and water vapor) all the psychoactive components have a much higher boiling point.
you will release some fine mj stench doing this as well..only a good long cure decarbs and retains all the flavor-5 months is pretty good at room temp in the dark

the terpenes do also have medicinal benefits