Can you imagine using a“drug” that gives you inspiration or a boost of energy, but feeling ashamed that you do?
Well that’s me! Cannabis, Marijuana, weed or whichever name you prefer using, is a drug as we all know! Some of us partake in using this drug and hide it from the public for obvious reasons. This is not a mistake. During the 1980’s the U.S government started the “War on Drugs”. Ronald Reagan called marijuana “probably the most dangerous drug in the United States today”1. It was during Reagan’s Presidency that Marijuana was classified as a schedule I drug.
“Schedule I drugs, substances, or chemicals are defined as drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. Some examples of Schedule I drugs are2:
- Heroin
- lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD)
- marijuana (cannabis)
- 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (ecstasy)
- Methaqualone
- Peyote
I thought to myself, how can a plant that has been used for thousands of years in most cultures of the world be considered as dangerous as heroin and not for medical use? As I read the list of Schedule I drugs, I couldn’t help but think how wrong it sounds for marijuana to be one of them. I have yet to know of anyone that has died from cannabis consumption, yet here it is listed alongside heroin.
I enjoy smoking marijuana and have felt this shame for such a long time because it isn’t as accepted as drinking alcohol. I began smoking marijuana as a teenager, ironically around the same time when I found my passion for writing poetry. Marijuana has helped me become my true creative self, and in difficult moments, has been the reason why I haven’t lost my mind.
Now that I am in my thirties I see the benefits more than ever! The stresses of life as a single mother that has now lived through a pandemic has not been an easy task. I have survived this difficult period thanks to marijuana. I know I am not alone in having this appreciation for marijuana, I welcome you to embrace your habit and step out of that closet with me!
Cheers to being on the greener side!
Citations
1 Gerber, Rudolph Joseph (2004), “Reagan’s legacy”, Legalizing Marijuana: Drug Policy Reform and Prohibition Politics, Greenwood, pp. 41–42, ISBN 9780275974480
2 Drug Enforcement Administration, U., & Department Of Justice, U. (n.d.). Drug scheduling. Retrieved April 06, 2021, from https://www.dea.gov/drug-scheduling
