Coming out for Marijuana

“Many people can smoke marijuana every day without ill effects, advocates say, just as many casually drink wine in the evening.” New York Times, July 19, 2009

When was the last time you talked about pot the way you talk about alcohol? With friends and family? Your doctor? Openly and honestly. The closet has a strange effect on information and as queer people we know this extremely well. We know that stigma around certain practices has the ability to cut us off from life saving information and support.

I had been working at a grassroots lesbian cancer organization for less than a week when I got a phone call from a cancer patient looking for marijuana. Full disclosure here, I thought my job would be mostly fundraising and public policy but as someone who has enjoyed marijuana for over 20 years I was thrilled at the idea of two of my worlds coming together.

I had known of the medical benefits of marijuana first hand with HIV positive friends who used it as an appetite stimulant. But truthfully, most of my friends with HIV were already recreational pot smokers, so they already knew of its benefits. Such has been the case with friends battling cancer. Many were already pot smokers so using it to battle the effects of chemo was a no brainer (and in some cases, a good excuse). This caller wasn't a pot smoker.

She felt she couldn't talk to her doctor about it and was more willing to make an anonymous phone call to us versus ask any of her friends or doctors for help. I introduced her to another lesbian with chronic illness who helped folks procure marijuana, recommended she use a vaporizer and no, didn't add this to my funder report.

But this isn't a blog about medical marijuana, racism and drug laws, or if marijuana is addictive. Three seriously important issues I could easily wax on about (especially when high).  It's hard to talk about any of those because of the stigma attached to discussing our own marijuana use.

How many of us have worked up the courage to talk to our doctors about our sexuality and gender identity but not that we smoke pot? Sure, I fear the ramifications from it being included in my medical records but I used to feel that way about my sexuality too.

Links:
NYC Has the Most Marijuana Arrests in the World (But Don’t Worry, White People, It Won’t Be You)
Marijuana Policy Project
NYTimes: Marijuana Is Gateway Drug for Two Debates
If Marijuana Is Legal, Will Addiction Rise?
Vaporization
Why Do People With HIV Use Marijuana?
American Cancer Society and Marijuana