Hello everyone! In this article we are featuring a short letter from a friend of the Schwannoma Survivors & Schwannoma Fighters page named Nirit Avnimelech. She lives in Israel and uses legal Cannabis to control Schwannoma related nerve pain. Nirit was kind enough to detail some thoughts how Cannabis has helped her regain her life after dealing with a Schwannoma - and we appreciate her taking the time to do so. - Neil
*Notice: the Schwannoma Survivors & Schwannoma Fighters page wishes for everyone to make certain, before they consider the medical use of Cannabis to control Schwannoma related nerve pain, that they are fully aware of the laws regarding Cannabis usage, and that you follow the laws according to the place where you live. (In the United States, medical Cannabis / Marijuana laws may vary from state to state, so checking is extremely important to be sure you never violate the law.) For ourselves at the SS and SF page, we take no position on medical Cannabis other than what may be supported or suggested by one's own doctor. However we feel that a perspective is useful, and we want people to have a full slate of information when deciding upon a primary means of pain relief.
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Nirit writes:
Hi Neil, I'll be glad to write about my experience with cannabis.
I'm from Tel-Aviv, and I get *subsidized* legal medical cannabis. My schwannoma was C.E. (L3-L4), and post-op I was on a cocktail of painkillers, which I really hated, and which many of your readers probably know well (even though the brand names may differ). Tramadex,(Tramadol) Targine (Similar to Oxycodone). They were effective regarding the pain and paresthesias, but I was drowsy, dry, had blurred vision, and, in general, couldn't get on with my life.
I started taking cannabis after I got off most of them. My cannabis dose is about 0.1 gr (It's really a tiny bit), and I inhale it only when needed, as opposed to oral medicine that has to be in your system 24/7. I'm getting a low-THC, high cannabinoid variety, so I'm never high. Side effects are minimal (Very different from person to person - for me my heart rate is elevated for the first half hour), but it takes 3 minutes and I'm perfect. An additional benefit is that I can really monitor my leg - I know when it's worse or better, and can now study what is good for me (walking) or bad (standing for a long time), which you can't do when you're on painkillers all the time. Plus, as I get better (lot's of physical therapy) I can decrease the dose. I now take it maybe 2-3 times a week, before I go to sleep. That's it.
And the best thing is that it's out of my system by the time I wake up (I can sleep!!!!), so I get up in the morning, work full time, drive, go out, have fun, and live a normal life. Not semi-normal. Normal. To the point that I'm totally off disability, and think of my medical condition only once every 3 months, when I have my follow-up MRIs. And - one more thing I need to mention - I'm not the type that uses drugs or alcohol. I'm a middle aged women, a very boring statistician, so really - I'm not advocating drug usage here. This is medicine, and it's the best medicine for me. I don't even want to imagine what my life would look like if it weren't for medical cannabis...
