Imagine coming back from years of hell on earth.  You’ve served overseas in Iraq for multiple tours, watched as your best friends got shot or blown up right next to you, killed countless enemy soldiers, nearly lost your own life multiple times to sniper bullets or roadside bombs, been shot at almost daily, and yet you are somehow still alive to tell the tale.  You’re not the same as when you left.  You can never seem to forget the screams of the horrifically wounded, or ever shake the paranoid feeling that you could be taken out by a sniper or hidden bomb at any second.  You believe that you must always stay alert, always be ready to fight, even though deep down you know you shouldn’t feel this way.  Perhaps you’ve been given medication to take, which the government claims will make these feelings go away.  Unfortunately, none of the pills ever seem to work in the ways you desperately need them to.  Sadly, this hypothetical situation is the grim reality many veterans with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD, face on a daily basis.  For many of these men and women, this disease will define the rest of their lives, as there’s little to no hope of recovering or even finding a cure.  There is currently no true cure for PTSD.

However, recently there’s been a supposed discovery of what might be a new, more effective form of treatment for this mental illness.  It’s been found by many veterans who have turned to self-medicating due to the lack of effectiveness of their prescribed medications. The drug they use?  None other than the ever-so-controversial marijuana.  Veterans who use it claim that marijuana does the job that their other pills couldn’t; but unfortunately, most of those suffering from PTSD can’t acquire medicinal marijuana legally, due to the federal government’s stance on the drug.  The government has currently classified marijuana on the same danger level as Heroin and LSD, making the drug nearly impossible to research, let alone acquire.  As such, veterans must pay large sums of money out of pocket to attain the only drug that they claim actually helps their symptoms.  

Opposed to the veterans’ claims are the many campaigns and research articles that each believe that marijuana holds up to its classification as a dangerous drug, and as such there’s an understandably large voice against the drug’s medicinal use.  However, most veterans, and even some scientists, claim the drug is perfectly safe and even medically beneficial.  Most people would agree that PTSD is a terrible disease, and those who have served overseas should get whatever treatments they might need to combat this horrible mental illness.  Should marijuana, then, be legalized for medicinal use for those who suffer from this disease?  While there are valid downsides to marijuana, the drug should be reclassified from its Schedule 1 drug rating so that its known benefits can be better researched, and testimonials in favor of it can be better verified; that way it can then be prescribed to veterans and others suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. 

Before delving into anything too heavy, I want to start simply by discussing Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.  The Department of Veterans of Affairs, or VA for short, defines PTSD as “a mental health problem that some people develop after experiencing or witnessing a life-threatening event, like combat, a natural disaster, a car accident, or sexual assault” (VA).  The disease can cause the victim to feel uneasy, lose sleep, relive the memories that caused the mental illness, be in a state of hyper-alertness, or just feel depressed or think negatively on many things.  As stated above, PTSD certainly isn’t a disease exclusive to those who’ve fought overseas.  Many events can cause it, and even some children have the disease; however, generally, those who have served in wars tend to have a much more severe case of this mental illness.  This is due to the fact that the situations that soldiers are put in are much more intense, the injuries they sustain are often more grotesque, and therefore the memories they bring back are more horrifying and haunting than what we can ever imagine.  An article written by Neil Shea for National Geographic explores this harsh reality of the war that many soldiers can’t seem to ever forget.  “…somewhere in Iraq, an Army convoy hits a roadside bomb and a medivac helicopter rushes in a seriously wounded soldier…The soldier arrives medically dead.  A tourniquet encircles the right leg.  Below the tourniquet, the limb hangs by threads of flesh.  The femoral artery is like a severed hose.  There is the coppery smell of blood” (Shea 88).  This brief excerpt shows the grim reality most soldiers had to face overseas.  Thankfully, in this particular example, the soldier survived her injuries.  Too often, lives would be lost, and others scarred by these circumstances.  

Sadly, these instances and injuries were all-too-normal in Iraq.  It’s upsetting to know that for most of those who served overseas, death, or at the very least injuries like these, would be a daily possibility they’d have to face.  The soldiers would always have to be alert for fear of losing their lives, or at least a handful of limbs.  Unfortunately, many carried this extreme sense of paranoia home with them.  For many veterans, the war never truly leaves them when they return.  Many live on in America as if they were still in Iraq, desperately on the alert for attackers, potential threats, or hidden bombs.  This mental state is what is known as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

The bomb that wounded the soldier in the story above is one of the more common and scarring problems soldiers had to face in Iraq.  The Iraqi war introduced the IED, or Improvised Explosive Device, a shoddy bomb which was often found hidden along roadsides where military patrols were common, or strapped to a suicide bomber who would rush American soldiers.  Needless to say, IEDs have been the cause of many soldiers’ injuries or deaths, and are the root of many haunting memories of those who have survived their tours overseas. 

For many, encounters with IEDs were the memory or circumstance they never really recovered from, greatly attributing to their PTSD.  One such veteran, Jose Martinez, who lost three limbs to an IED, recalls how he felt once he got home from Iraq in an article written by Mark Thompson. “I was going insane because I did not understand why I was still alive…I was scared of people looking at me, and everybody was staring at me” (Thompson).  Jose’s injuries, thoughts, and behavior, are sadly quite common for those who have been involved in such horrible IED blasts.  However, Jose’s symptoms actually seem to air more on the lighter side of PTSD.  For other soldiers, PTSD can be significantly more intense and horrifying, often leaving them with little to no hope of recovery or even regaining a sort of normality in their now-shaken lives.

Danny Palmer is one of these unfortunate cases.  Danny served in Iraq until 2006, when he was sent home after an IED blast badly damaged his back and knees.  Unfortunately for Danny, though he left the war, the war has never seemed to want to leave him.  A television show on the legalization of marijuana, “Weediquette”, aired an episode on veterans suffering from PTSD, and interviewed Danny.  During the interview, as Danny elaborated on his time in Iraq, it became apparent through his shaky voice and horrified expression just how scarring his time overseas was.  

“…mortar attacks on us all the time.  Roadside bombs, or IEDs.  You don’t think someone’s gonna strap bombs to themselves and come running at you.  You don’t think people are gonna cut open deceased children, and stitch ‘em back up with bombs in ‘em, because they know that we would offer aid to ‘em.  I could sit here and tell you everything to the detail and you still won’t know what it’s like, because you don’t know the sounds that stay with us.  You don’t know the smells that stay with us.  You don’t know the visuals that we see…” (Weediquette).  

This short conversation is extremely moving and real, and yet only seems to showcase the surface of what goes through the mind of a veteran who suffers from PTSD.  The entirety of what they struggle with on a daily basis will never be able to be fully comprehended by someone who has never served overseas.  

Due to his intense PTSD, Danny has secluded himself from society, living alone in an almost hermit-like state.  He rarely leaves his home due to his paranoia, and uses old rifle scopes to peek behind his permanently-drawn curtains to keep an eye on anyone around his house.  He views his house as his “area of operations” (Weediquette), and will do anything to keep it safe.  Danny even goes so far as to keep a large pile of combat knives on his bedroom floor as preparation should anyone come to ‘attack’ him.  Danny admits that he knows that he doesn’t really need the pile of thirty knives on his floor, but he regrettably claims, “I need it to function” (Weediquette).  We can see here that these symptoms Danny is experiencing line up perfectly with the symptoms the VA gave for PTSD, as Danny is in a state of hyper-alertness, is depressed, and thinks negatively on things.  However, I hope that Danny’s story really put these symptoms into perspective.  PTSD isn’t to be taken lightly; as we can see through Danny, these symptoms aren’t just symptoms, but are more akin to a prison, holding the shell of what once was a brave man inside. Danny’s experience with the disease is the side of PTSD that is, sadly, rarely shown.  The harsh, paranoia-filled reality of someone who has served overseas is far bleaker and much more hindering than is normally discussed, and the treatments required to cope with the disease can be, unfortunately, just as bleak.

For his symptoms, Danny has been prescribed thirty-five different pills, to be taken three times a day, by the VA.  The side effects of these pills range anywhere from completely stripping the user of testosterone to causing a dangerous increase in suicidal tendencies.  What’s more is that each pill must be taken delicately so that overdoses won’t occur, as those can be fatal.  Unfortunately, despite Danny’s 105-a-day pill count, he claims that he still doesn’t get the relief he so desperately needs.  “I don’t wanna sit here and take twenty different pill bottles three times a day and feel like a zombie; and if I forget one or the other one’s gonna overpower…the other” (Weediquette).  Danny then elaborates, “I have no medication that is giving me a fighting chance…there’s no therapy or talking…that’s it (just pills)” (Weediquette).  These comments on the actual treatment most veterans get from the VA shows just how dire their situation is.  The pills prescribed to them do nothing more than numb them from their inner turmoil.  It’s not the treatment they want or need, and if one pill happens to be overdosed on accident, the consequences the person might face can be horrific, even deadly.

However, while the pills from the VA might seem like the only treatment option veterans have for PTSD, there has been a new alternative treatment on the rise: medicinal marijuana.  Recently, this self-medication treatment has become popular with many veterans suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.  Users claim it’s fast, effective, and most importantly, safer than the pills they are prescribed by the VA to treat their symptoms.  Veterans say that the drug works where the VA’s many pills simply fall short, claiming it to be the only truly effective treatment they’ve ever had for their PTSD.

According to many veterans’ testimonies, marijuana might just be the ‘cure’ so many of them need.  Unfortunately, few even have access to the drug, due to the large federal ban on marijuana.  While the pros and cons of marijuana have been debated often, most veterans’ testimonies seem to imply its usefulness.  Take Jose Martinez, who lost three limbs to an IED while serving in Iraq, who claims marijuana changed his life.  Mark Thompson, in his article “Post-Traumatic Marijuana”, says Jose claims that marijuana “stayed his pain and tamed his demons” (Thompson).  Jose then goes on to specify, “My brain's telling me to freak out because I'm missing my limbs, but when I'm on cannabis, it tells me to calm down, you're O.K., you're fine” (Thompson).  This shows the benefits of marijuana’s soothing qualities for those suffering from PTSD.  While some view this as ‘desensitizing’ or ‘brainwashing’, for many veterans it’s simply helping them keep a sound mind.  

Interestingly, scientific evidence backs these testimonials up.  The Brown University Child & Psychopharmacology Update magazine summarizes scientific evidence that points to marijuana actually possessing some sizeable medical benefits that can help combat PTSD.  

“Consistent with a potential therapeutic effect, oral cannabinoids such as dronabinol, which is a synthetic version of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), has been shown to reduce the response to fear stimuli and trauma-related symptoms in people with PTSD. In addition, nabilone reduces nightmares and improves sleep, according to two trials, and a retrospective study of nabilone shows promising results for PTSD-related nightmares” (Brown).

This scientific information perfectly correlates to Jose’s testimony in Thompson’s article.  “Not only does it soothe the phantom pain of his missing limbs, but it also eases a racing and apprehensive mind ridden with PTSD.  ‘It relaxes me and helps me sleep at night,’ he (Jose) says” (Thompson).  What this information presents is that scientific evidence not only shows that there are benefits to marijuana, but it also backs up testimonies from veterans about the drug.  What’s more is that Jose’s story is just one case of marijuana changing a veteran who suffers from PTSD for the better.  A significant number of other veterans have similar testimonies, claiming that smoking weed is exactly the ‘cure’ they’ve been struggling to find for their crippling mental illnesses. 

However, just because veterans and scientists claim marijuana works as a treatment for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder doesn’t mean that it’s used as such.  The issue is that marijuana, medicinal or not, is federally illegal, and has been since the mid-twentieth century.  Because of this, the VA cannot prescribe medicinal marijuana to suffering veterans, regardless of any state laws legalizing the drug, due to the fact that they are a federally-owned organization.  On top of this, despite what evidence may point to, many people are still opposed to marijuana’s medicinal uses for some seemingly valid reasons.  

The first reason that complicates the matter of medicinal marijuana is that many people agree with the federal stance of keeping marijuana illegal due to marijuana’s addictive qualities.  Many people claim that if the drug is used medically, it can easily be misused, ending in addiction and drug abuse.  An article by the Office of National Drug Control Policy on the prohibition of marijuana lists several reasons why they believe medicinal marijuana shouldn’t be legalized.

 “Approximately 4.2 million people met the diagnostic criteria for abuse of or dependence on this drug (marijuana). This is more than pain relievers, cocaine, tranquilizers, hallucinogens, and heroin combined…There are very real consequences associated with marijuana use. In 2010, marijuana was involved in more than 461,000 emergency department visits nationwide…in 2011, approximately 872,000 Americans 12 or older reported receiving treatment for marijuana use, more than any other illicit drug” (ONDCP).

This research points to the misuse of marijuana being the cause of several health problems, specifically addiction and the consequences thereof.  These issues stand in the face of veterans and their claim that marijuana is safe, and should be legal to prescribe to those suffering from PTSD.

Admittedly, many of these points have some validity, which clearly shows why a legalization of marijuana would be difficult.  It is very true and unfortunate that people do get addicted to marijuana, and many times the drug can eventually run people’s lives into the ground, or at least into the emergency room.  In many contexts, the ONDCP’s points do have quite a bit of weight behind them, and they should not be overlooked when discussing this drug.  However, while the ONDCP raises good arguments, their points are relevant only when discussing a more widespread legalization of marijuana than most veterans are requesting.

Veterans who smoke marijuana to help with their PTSD aren’t necessarily asking for the drug to be fully legalized so they can smoke all the joints they want and get high.  Yes, when taken too much and in high doses, any drug will reap adverse consequences, marijuana included.  The difference here is that most veterans just want to use the drug as a controlled medical treatment, prescribed to them by the VA’s doctors, in order to cope with their horrific PTSD symptoms.  Thompson’s article briefly discusses the veterans’ stance on this issue, saying “Backers argue that marijuana should simply be one more thing in a therapist's tool kit” (Thompson).  Most veterans aren’t asking for full legalization so that they can have free reign with the drug.  They simply want a re-defining of the drug, so that it can be researched, tested, and then be able to be distributed to them in controlled amounts by a doctor or therapist as a treatment to combat their illness.  While the ONDCP raises good points, in this situation they do not bear nearly as much weight as they would when discussing a more widespread legalization of recreational marijuana, and as such bear little relevance on this particular situation.

Another issue marijuana must face is that when it comes down to it, the current research done on the drug seems to only point to it being harmful for users, and not fit for medicine.  To again quote the article from the Office of National Drug Control Policy, “The raw marijuana plant, which contains nearly 500 different chemical compounds, has not met the safety and efficacy standards of this process” (ONCDP).  However, while this may be the case, and though this issue should undoubtedly be taken into consideration when discussing the drug, there have been several other tests that have shown that marijuana does, indeed, have medical benefits.  

One such benefit of marijuana is its ability to alleviate mental stress due to its soothing characteristics.  In Thompson’s article, he mentions that “Animal studies suggest that it can ease anxiety, depression and pain” (Thompson).  The Brown University article also discusses this.  “Cannabinoid agonists may do more than provide symptom relief, because they specifically target some of the root causes of PTSD symptoms… There are many cannabinoid (CB1) receptors in amygdala–hippocampal–cortico–striatal circuits that have a role in anxiety, emotional learning, and fear-related memories” (Brown).  Furthermore, a quite exhaustive book entitled, “Legalizing Marijuana: What Everyone Needs to Know” also shows that the drug has medical benefits.  “Proponents point to marijuana as having therapeutic value in treating a range of symptoms; the most common are appetite loss… anxiety, sleeping disorders” (Caulkins et al. 95).  What all this information shows that there’s at the very least some beneficial uses for medicinal marijuana; and that many of these benefits directly correlate to the most severe PTSD symptoms.  It’s clear then, that marijuana has great potential to be a fantastic option as a medicine for symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.  So why isn’t it, then?  Turns out, the only issues truly standing in its way are the options of other drug alternatives, and the governmental classification on the drug.

As far as alternative drugs go, there’s quite a bit of relative information to discuss.  Drug alternatives are a big point of contention when arguing for or against medicinal marijuana, as a significant number of citizens claim that the VA’s prescription pills are safer than, and just as effective as medicinal marijuana.  This seems to be backed up by the track record cannabis has with addictions, criminal activity, and so on.  However, there’s one point many seem to overlook with the VA’s prescription drugs, and that is that the pills, in actuality, are far more dangerous than marijuana.

Now, it is important to state that the VA isn’t some sort of evil organization that doesn’t care for its patients and prescribes them essentially death pills.  The VA is actually often extremely helpful to those who have served overseas, as their medical system provides medication to those in need of it at no charge, and this helps many veterans.  However, just because the VA prescribes drugs doesn’t mean all of them are completely safe.  PTSD isn’t entirely understood, after all, so the medicine used to treat it isn’t always the most conventional, or safe.  This is where opioids come into play. 

Now, if you’ve been watching the news recently, the word opioid should ring a bell for you.  Recently, on October 26, 2017, President Trump declared a national public health emergency over the ‘opioid crisis’.  This crisis can be understood through statistics have shown an increased rate in opioid-related deaths due to overdoses.  To quote the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, “Opioids were involved in 33,091 deaths in 2015, and opioid overdoses have quadrupled since 1999” (CDC).  While this may be shocking, what really needs to be shocking here is the following fact: opioids are one of the most common drugs prescribed by the VA to veterans to treat PTSD.  

Opioids are a numbing drug, which helps veterans to not ‘feel’ their many traumatizing PTSD symptoms.  This makes sense, as PTSD has a wide range of symptoms, and many veterans require something very strong to help them cope.  Unfortunately, as with all drugs, opioids have some side effects, and far more serious ones than your average prescription medication.  The dangerous aspect of opioids’ side effects is that they can actually be extremely deadly when the drug is consumed in high amounts.  As statistics from Thompson’s article show, “Lethal opioid overdoses among VA patients are almost twice the national average…While it's nearly impossible to die from a marijuana overdose, prescription-opioid overdoses contributed to 14,000 deaths in the U.S. in 2014.  A recent study found that opioid deaths fell by an average of 25% in states where medical marijuana use had been legalized” (Thompson).  What all this shows is that, unfortunately, opioids and other VA pills, while legal, simply aren’t as safe as medicinal marijuana; and many times, these pills can lead to an untimely death for those who take them.  The evidence here shows that marijuana is safer than these other drugs, but unfortunately, medicinal marijuana isn’t accepted by the government as a medical treatment. 

Now comes my final, most important point.  Repeatedly, as I looked through article after article arguing either for or against medicinal marijuana, one phrase showed up again and again.  That phrase was “lack of research”.  Most articles, even ones strictly against the usage of marijuana, would admit that marijuana had some medicinal value, then play it off by stating the “lack of research” done on the drug.  And they’re not wrong – there simply hasn’t been enough research to prove marijuana is a sound medicine, and that can be blamed on the Governmental classification of Marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug.  

Marijuana has, for decades, been classified as Schedule 1 drug.  The definition of which can be seen in Susan Scutti’s article for CNN Wire.  “Cannabis remains a Schedule I substance, the Drug Enforcement Administration classification for drugs believed to have a high potential for abuse along with some potential to create severe dependence” (Scutti).  Essentially, the government believes marijuana possesses no medicinal value, and that it can only adversely affect the user.  Obviously though, not everyone shares this view.  To again quote the book “Legalizing Marijuana”, “The U.S. federal government unwaveringly argues that marijuana has no medical value, the states’ positions are mixed, pro-marijuana advocacy groups often paint it as a wonder drug, the public is mostly positive, and expert medical opinion falls somewhere in the middle of this muddle” (Caulkins et al. 94).  It’s quite clear then, that there’s much division, even among federal and state government regarding the drug. 

However, in the end the proving grounds for medicinal marijuana won’t be in the hearts or brains of any of the US’s top debaters, or in the courtrooms of a state house.  Instead, there’s one test that must be passed in order for marijuana to be used medically isn’t affected by bias or individual opinions at all.  All marijuana must do to be used medically is meet the conditions every drug must meet in order to be accepted as medicine. 

“1. The drug’s chemistry must be known and reproducible.

2. There must be adequate safety studies.

3. There must be adequate and well-controlled studies proving efficiency.

4. The drug must be accepted by qualified experts.

5. The scientific evidence must be widely available” (Caulkins et al. 94).

While this information takes care of bias, it brings up a new issue.  It’s clear marijuana would easily pass the first point, as much about the drugs chemistry is known.  However, the other four points all require immense amounts of research, which marijuana, interestingly, lacks.  

The real issue here is that marijuana cannot even be easily researched for the possibility of medical treatment due to this classification the government has placed on the drug as Schedule 1. Susan Scutti’s article sums this up fairly well.  “With federal restrictions placed on marijuana, scientists must overcome various legal and procedural hurdles to research it… ‘that makes these important studies harder to conduct’” (Scutti).  Essentially, despite any state laws which may have legalized the drug, many scientists must still jump through insane hoops just to get a permit to research marijuana, due to the federal stance on it. “Legalizing Marijuana” further discusses this massive obstacle.  “Those... may ask why it (marijuana) has not been made available as a prescription drug.  The narrow answer is that the federal government has placed marijuana in Schedule… a more fundamental answer is:… Because no one has done the work necessary to make it a prescription drug;… and because the federal government obstructs the process” (Caulkins et al. 98).  The classification of marijuana as Schedule 1 makes it almost impossible to conduct the needed research to use the drug medically.  Therefore, the first step in making marijuana available to suffering veterans is to reschedule the drug. 

To conclude, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is a terrible illness many veterans suffer from after serving overseas, and one that next-to-none have a viable treatment for.  For many, this disease has taken over their lives, and most don’t see a light at the end of the tunnel.  Sadly, an average of twenty-two of these heroes of our country take their own lives every day because they see no cure for, or way out of their suffering.  However, lately many veterans have claimed that marijuana might just be the cure we’ve been searching for over the course of PTSD’s long existence.  Those who have tried it as a treatment claim that the drug does wonders for them and their symptoms, and has actually turned their lives around for the better, describing the VA’s other drugs are either useless or dangerous.  Sadly, while many veterans have similar testimonies, marijuana is still classified as a Schedule 1 drug and is federally illegal, which means most veterans will never be able to even try this drug as a treatment option.  

While several valid points against the drug exist, most are only relevant when discussing the recreational use of the drug, and not its medical uses.  Medically, marijuana actually shows immense promise as a treatment for PTSD, though the massive amount research needed to prove this is currently inhibited.  The fact that, for many veterans, marijuana works where no other drugs prescribed to them could, at the very least should spark research to better understand this drug.  

Today, around five-hundred-thousand soldiers from the Iraqi war alone suffer from PTSD, and many of those veterans will take their own lives just to escape the harsh reality of their mental illness.  While debates rage back and forth over marijuana and its benefits and consequences, time is running out for many veterans suffering from PTSD.  Due to this, marijuana desperately needs to be rescheduled from its current Schedule 1 drug rating, so that it can be fully researched, properly understood, and then possibly used for medical treatment for PTSD.  These suffering veterans have put their lives on the line for our country, and if scientists could be able to prove marijuana might be able to help these suffering heroes, it should be rescheduled so that veterans’ lives can finally be improved for the better.
