Visit your primary care physician for anything other than a routine physical and you are likely to walk out with a prescription. Furthermore, that prescription is likely to be for a pill. But what about medical cannabis? If your doctor recommends it, is using it as easy as taking another pill? Yes and no.
Doctors Don’t Prescribe Medical Cannabis
Before we can go any further, it must be understood that doctors do not prescribe cannabis. Just two states have established prescription-like programs; the remaining states with legal medical cannabis utilize medical cannabis cards.
Without a traditional prescription, patients are not limited to just one form of medical cannabis. That is good because medical cannabis is sold in multiple forms. Different forms relate to different delivery methods. And different delivery methods impact timing, symptom relief, and more.
Cannabis Tablets and Capsules
Getting back to the main question, sometimes using medical cannabis is as simple as taking a pill. Medical cannabis comes in both tablet and capsule form. It is consumed the same way you would take any other capsule or tablet. Pop one or two in your mouth and swallow with a gulp of water. That’s it.
Of course, state regulations must allow medical cannabis in tablet and capsule form. Most do, including Utah. According to the operators of the Utahmarijuana.org website, tablets and capsules are just two of the options for orally administered medical cannabis. Other options include:
- Edible confections (gummies).
- Tinctures (concentrated oils placed under the tongue).
- Unprocessed plant material (can be added to recipes).
Consuming a gummy is as easy as taking a pill. Tinctures require a bit more effort, but not much. The most complicated way to consume medical cannabis orally is to use it as an ingredient in your recipes. You actually have to cook down the plant material before it can be added.
Other Means of Delivery
There are other means of consuming medical cannabis that do not involve oral delivery. The most popular is arguably vaping. Because most states with legal medical cannabis do not allow smoking, patients who would otherwise smoke choose to vape instead.
Vaping is not as easy as popping a pill. Yet it is not difficult, either. Likewise for heating dry plant material in a specialized device capable of releasing THC without actually burning the material. It is similar to vaping and smoking.
Finding What Works
The answer to the question proposed by this post doesn’t actually lie in the delivery method. It lies in finding what works for the individual. That is really the tricky part. There are so many delivery methods and dosage options that nailing down the best strategy can be a challenge.
New medical cannabis patients often need to try several different delivery methods before settling on the one they most prefer. But that’s just the beginning. They also need to try different dosages as well as frequencies for consumption.
The general rule is to start with the lowest possible dosage along with the least frequency. A patient gradually adjusts up until they find the optimal dose and frequency. It is trickier than it sounds. But patients can work with their doctors and pharmacists to figure it all out.
Not Particularly Difficult
In the end, using medical cannabis isn’t particularly difficult. It is different, no doubt. But with the help of a willing doctor and pharmacist, a new patient can work things out pretty quickly. Getting a system nailed down makes using medical cannabis almost as easy as taking a pill – unless a patient chooses actual capsules or tablets, of course.