It’ is a fact increasingly known: cannabis can be very beneficial to relieve the symptoms of’anxiety and chronic pain in its users.
More and more veterans are turning to cannabis-based medication every year to calm the’anxiety generated by post-traumatic stress disorder (which is unfortunately very common among women veterans), as well as to calm their pains on a daily basis ( 1 ). The ACC (Veterans Affairs Canada) can reimburse a maximum amount of 3 grams per day of dried cannabis to Veterans. In 2021, the organisation reimbursed a total of 115,942,159$ of medical cannabis to 17,495 Canadian veterans ( 2 ). Although many veterans find the amount of 3 grams per day very insufficient to meet their multiple needs, research and data on this subject are constantly evolving and are increasingly enabling Veterans to stop or significantly reduce their use of opioid-based drugs ( 3 ).
RADIO INTERVIEW WITH LOUIS-PHILIPPE LEBEL - CJMD LÉVIS
To illustrate this issue, Awa Diagne (CEO of CanEmpire) received Louis-Philippe Lebel, veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), in an interview during her bi-monthly cannabis-themed column on CJMD 96.9 FM. The veteran gave a strong testimony recounting his own experience with medical cannabis upon leaving the Forces.
Having served 10 years in the FAC within the 1st Battalion Royal 22nd Regiment and having participated in two deployments to Afghanistan, Louis-Philippe has been using cannabis for medical purposes for several years now to relieve his symptoms of post-traumatic stress.
Although cannabis is being used more and more by veterans for medical purposes, it is, additional studies are needed to help them and especially to make it easier for them to access the plant.
Veterans who wish to take information about medical cannabis and/or who would like to start the cannabis procurement process can contact a clinic specializing in medical cannabis.