Marijuana capsules HUGE help, anyone else?

[Tif]

I've been taking medical marijuana (mmj) capsules for over a year & the improvements are outstanding. My legs would have painful spasms and I could not straighten my legs due to knee pain. There is no pain now. I was dragging my left leg & couldn't do a 'leg lift' more than a couple inches. The first day my caregiver gave me a capsule at 3pm and at 7:20pm when I went to go to the bedroom, I was NOT dragging my leg, I was walking! I stopped, I looked down and took another step, yep I really was walking and not dragging my leg! You should have seen the smile on my face absolutely could not believe it. Also, all of a sudden I could lift my left leg to cross it. Nice.
I've noticed improvements in my balance, that's huge too. My strength has improved. I did a self test- left hand could not make a fist, I took a large dose & within 15 min I could make a fist so tight that my fingernails left a deep indentation on my palm. I feel an overall body strengthening. My mood is much better on the capsules (sativa -strain). For muscle pain or you can't sleep then indica strain. I sleep great.
I've been on rebif, tysabri, gilenya, tecfidera and a test subject, none of which worked for me and all had side effects.
I hope this info helps.

[HappyPoet]

Hi and welcome to TiMS, Tif,

Thanks so much for sharing your experience which sounds wonderful. Your success with the capsules makes me so happy for you!!

If I may ask, are you RR, SP, or PP? Are you in a state with medicinal marijuana laws? Do you happen to know the strength in milligrams of the THC in your capsules?

I might make my own capsules but need more practice time just melting and working with my RSO (Rick Simpson Oil) which is so sticky and feels like tar. I bought size "0" capsules--do you know what is the size of your capsules? Also, do you happen to know the filler used in your capsules, e.g., agave nectar or coconut oil? Sorry for all the questions, but it's not often that pwMS talk about their mmj use.

Your success, along with the tutelage of a new friend, are helping to motivate me to make my own capsules. I need pain control right now but would love to have other symptom improvements like you've had. Again, I'm so happy for you!!

One last question for you--may I copy your thread to blossom's marijuana thread which is where I post about my experience with hemp oil? http://www.thisisms.com/forum/general-d ... 34-75.html

[Tif]

Hi, I live in AZ and yes it is legal here.

The capsules are a life saver, for me. I have rrms, diagnosed 8 yrs ago or so, but think it probably goes back to 20's.

Idk the strength of the capsules, the size is '00' and asking about oil. But, I do know that I did a super high dosage (over 170 milligrams of thc) and I haven't felt as good, capable, able and strong in...well, forever....The individual capsules are no where near that strong, but do help with everything. I've just decided to do higher doses and see how much improvement I can get....so far, beyond impressed! I showed my neurologist the improvements on mmj vs ANY med I was on. Mmj helps and others have unbearable side effects. He saw my improvements with his own eyes and documented them. Oh, and my MRI's have all come back with 'no new lesions'.

Yes, you may attach to post...I want people to know there is real hope, thanks. I really hope this info helps a lot of people.

[HappyPoet]

Thanks, tif.

Having clear MRIs must be such a relief for you and provides much support, imo, for the continued use of marijuana in your personal MS strategy. One by one, our neuros are going to see the mj light, but I wonder if they're going to try to extinguish this avenue of real hope like they did with CCSVI. Coming from NY, a non-medical mj state, I'm afraid to tell my neuro that I'm using pot. Sheesh. What a world.

Yay--it's terrific that your 'super high' dosage (>170mg) is working for you!!!! I've just memorized that dose. Ty! I wish more pwMS would share their experiences with mj like you did.

[Tif]

I understand about not wanting to tell the Dr.'s and /or have any documentation of it, absolutely. I thought about it for a long time, but the positive results are undeniable and cannot be attributed to anything else. I figured if I didn't clue them in on what works, then "we'll" never find help for this disease, I certainly can tell them what didn't work-rebif,gilenya,tysabri & tecfidera. Guess that's why I decided to post, I want others who suffer to know that mmj really is helping and not a bunch of bull. I was reading other post's and thought that they would benefit from my experiences.

The capsules I'm taking are not at the 170 mill level and I have benefits from them. The 170+ mill dose was an experiment that I did last week, I wanted to see if more improvements and if I could handle that high of a dosage. Yes I could handle it and yes I was stronger than ever, it was great. But a lot lower dosage works wonders, that's what I've been on for year and half now. When I noticed I was walking normal, that was after one of the lower dose capsules. I do want to start taking 175 mill plus doses on a regular basis to see how much and what improves, but it takes a lot to make a dose.

I'm so glad you found the post helpful!!

[orion98665]

Great to see you're doing good tif. i haven't read these articles yet on the benefits of cannabis on blood vessel disease or endothelial cells, but looks like there's merit to its benefits.


http://montanabiotech.com/2011/09/06/ca ... idiol-thc/

Collectively, our results suggest that the nonpsychoactive cannabinoid CBD have significant therapeutic benefits against diabetic complications and atherosclerosis by attenuating HG-induced mitochondrial superoxide generation, increased NF-κB activation, upregulation of iNOS and adhesion molecules, 3-NT formation, monocyte-endothelial adhesion, TEM of monocytes, and disruption of the endothelial barrier function. This is particularly encouraging in light of the excellent safety and tolerability profile of CBD in humans.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/article ... =pmcentrez

edit: Here is another link: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/22658.php

The main compound in cannabis can prevent blood vessels from developing atherosclerosis, an inflammatory condition that is the primary cause of heart disease and stroke in the developed world.

A study in this week's Nature shows that disease progression is halted when mice are given low doses of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

Atherosclerosis occurs when the accumulation of immune cells in blood vessels causes narrowing of the arteries, lipid accumulation and plaque formation. THC prevents immune cell recruitment by binding to proteins called CB2 receptors on the cell surface, report Fran�ois Mach and colleagues. When given chemicals that prevent THC binding to these receptors, the therapeutic effect of THC is abolished and the mice continue to develop disease symptoms.

In the brain, THC binds to a different cell-surface receptor, called CB1. The THC doses given to the mice (about 1 milligram per kilogram body weight per day) were lower than the level required to activate the CB1 receptor, so the psychoactive effects of cannabis were not observed. This suggests that a possible treatment for atherosclerosis might be to use pure, isolated THC - this would avoid other harmful effects of cannabis, such as increased blood pressure. "These findings should not be taken to mean that smoking marijuana is beneficial for the heart," writes Michael D. Roth in a related News and Views article.

Last edit: http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/b ... 3/art00008

Habitual cannabis use has been shown to affect the human immune system, and recent advances in endocannabinoid research provide a basis for understanding these immunomodulatory effects. Cell-based experiments or in vivo animal testing suggest that regulation of the endocannabinoid circuitry can impact almost every major function associated with the immune system. These studies were assisted by the development of numerous novel molecules that exert their biological effects through the endocannabinoid system. Several of these compounds were tested for their effects on immune function, and the results suggest therapeutic opportunities for a variety of inflammatory diseases such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, atherosclerosis, allergic asthma, and autoimmune diabetes through modulation of the endocannabinoid system.

Bob

[blossom]

thanks so much for posting tif. so glad you are doing so good. please keep us posted.