| All photos by Sharon Letts |
| Sharon Letts uses one big handful of fresh chopped leaves per one glass of purchased green drink to make a healing smoothie |
By Sharon Letts
As detailed in my last essay, a spider-web-like mass found in my right breast during both a mammogram and ultrasound found me looking at a biopsy for possible Lobular Carcinoma.
In the past month pending the biopsy I began upping my ingesting of cannabis in tinctures, oil, and raw leaves.
The morning of the biopsy I ingested a tablespoon of infused honey tincture, rather than the usual “Valium” needed for my “medical procedure phobias,” as I’m replacing most everything I can these days with the green.
I was completely relaxed as the technician rolled the ultrasound’s magic wand around my breast, thinking to myself, “Wouldn’t it be amazing if the minimal amount ingested was enough to make that spider-web disappear?” As I lay there further telling myself, “Too good to be true, not going to happen to me,” the technician informs, “I can’t seem to find it.”
After looking at past and current views, the surgeon said, “We might not do this today.”
To which I informed, “I’ve been ingesting raw cannabis – that may be the reason,” to which he asks if he can do that therapy too.
| All photos by Sharon Letts |
Why is it that stoner jokes always seem to come into play whether we are discussing medicine or not? As if getting high is the end-all, as I lay there with my boob exposed and jelled, facing the big “C.”
But this is my moment to enlighten. I advise, no, ingesting of raw cannabis will not get you high, and teased that it may not be the treatment for him, to which he was comically disappointed.
I then ask if he is aware of cannabis as a treatment for cancer, and he quickly says no, but continues to tell me that he was part of a cannabis experiment in medical school in the 1960s.
As he tells it, they injected him with a cannabis serum (heated, no doubt), and he said he became so excited (intoxicated is more like it), he grabbed the ass of the attending nurse.
This admission was met with howls of laughter from the attending staff, but I pressed on.
“That must have been a strong batch,” I say, to more chuckles. I then advise him of the practice of heating cannabis for psychoactive effects of THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol), and that CBD (cannabidiol) is a natural medicine that works with our bodies, promoting health and healing illness.
Mind you, this is all taking place as I lay there, boob lubed for all to see.
| All photos by Sharon Letts |
| Proponents of juicing raw Cannabis leaves say it helps the immune system fight off infection. It’s also good for digestion, and adds energy faster than a cup of coffee. |
He said the trial was to test cannabis in treating nausea, and we all know how that turned out, right?
Stumped at the lack of mass, the good doctor wanted to go ahead with the procedure, “… as long as we are all here,” he declared.
I took this as my chance to do a little trial myself and asked if we could postpone the procedure another month, while I continue with my own therapy. Thankfully, he agreed.
We don’t know if cannabis made a difference with the disappearance of the mass, we can only guess for lack of real research. But what else could have caused the mass to disappear?
As said in my initial essay, according to the Mayo Clinic’s website, hormone replacement (estrogen/progesterone) is the only cause listed for Lobular Carcinoma, but my doctor advised that I had not been on the medications long enough to be the cause – less than three months.
As soon as I was informed of the need for a biopsy I made the decision to stop taking the Hormone replacement. This lasted two weeks, as I melted down emotionally (ongoing symptom of menopause), prompting my doctor to prescribe once more.
Could the two week lapse have caused the mass to go away? My doctor said it’s not likely. Could it have been an error with both the mammogram and ultrasound technician’s findings? I can’t answer this, as I saw the mass myself.
Or perhaps cannabis cures cancer? Sadly, we won’t know until our own government either acknowledges the research done thus far, or helps its own by funding further trials at home.
Until then, it’s up to us to use the plant as God (or Goddess) intended. I’m on my way into the kitchen now to make a Canna-smoothie, and take a dose of “Phoenix Tears,” Rick Simpson’s proclaimed cure for cancer, handmade and gifted from a friend.
On the downside it’s tough to take and sticks to my teeth. I’m finding myself daydreaming of one day being able to open up a little, orange, plastic prescription container from our local pharmacy or collective and popping a highly concentrated Canna-pill into my mouth once a day to ward off the inevitable cancer ravaging this country from its own poisons.
Is that too much to ask?
| Sharon Letts |
| Author Sharon Letts wrote this piece for Toke of the Town. |
Editor’s note: Sharon Letts began her love of gardening in Southern California by her mother’s side, watching as she buried fish heads at the base of roses.
At 24, Sharon hung her shingle, “Secret Garden,” planting flower beds for dainty ladies. Gardening led to producing and writing for television with “Secret Garden Productions.”
Today Sharon makes her home in Humboldt County, cannabis capitol of the world, where she continues to write about gardening and all that implies, advocating for the bud, and writing for many magazines, including Toke of the Town.
Her series, “Humboldt Stories,” is a fictional account, based on fact, of the Humboldt grow scene. Tag line: “It’s not Weeds, it’s real.”
With her partner, Craig Carroll, they pen “Road Trip: In Search of Good Medicine,” touring the Golden State, following the green rush.