A Qualitative Investigation Into the Experiences of Medicinal Cannabis Use Among Chronic Pain and PTSD Patients in Israel
Or Gliksberg 1 2 3, Amany Hulaihel 4, Sharon R Sznitman 4 5, Silviu Brill 6, Ben H Amit 7 8, Shaul Lev-Ran 2 7 9, Talma Kushnir 1 10, Daniel Feingold 11
- 1Department of Psychology, Ariel University, Ariel, Israel.
- 2Israel Center for Addiction and Mental Health (ICAMH), Jerusalem, Israel.
- 3Department of Psychology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
- 4School of Public Health, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.
- 5Institute of Primary Health Care (BIHAM), University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
- 6Institute of Pain Medicine, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.
- 7Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
- 8Cannabis Clinic, Reuth Rehabilitation Center, Tel Aviv, Israel.
- 9Lev Hasharon Medical Center, Netanya, Israel.
- 10Adelson School of Medicine, Ariel University, Ariel, Israel.
- 11Department of Psychology, Achva Academic College, Achva, Israel.
Affiliationer
In the last two decades, the use of cannabis for medical purposes has become legal in many countries and its use is steadily increasing. One of the most frequently cited reasons for prescribing medicinal cannabis (MC) is management of chronic pain, and in recent years MC has also been used as a treatment of psychiatric conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, little is known about patients’ experiences of the long-term physiological and psycho-social effects of MC use. In this study, we focused on Israeli MC patients’ experiences in order to gain further understanding of the long-term effects of MC and explore narratives evolving from chronic pain and PTSD patients regarding their MC treatment. In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted among participants prescribed MC for chronic pain or PTSD (n = 25), predominantly men. Thematic analysis was applied to characterize content, semantics, experience, and narratives of participants regarding their MC use. Two main themes were developed: (1) Coping mechanisms related to the adverse effects of MC use, which included Concealment, Justification, Protective behavioral strategies, and Rejection of “pothead” identity; and (2) Utilization of MC’s positive effects, which included Forget/Disconnect, Helplessness/Despair, and Camaraderie against authorities. MC patients described coping strategies with experienced negative effects of MC use and utilization of MC treatment for various psychiatric, psychological, and social needs.
