{"id":49686,"date":"2021-08-30T04:51:55","date_gmt":"2021-08-30T12:51:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2021\/08\/30\/medical-marijuana-saved-former-nfl-player-from-downward-spiral-he-tells-louisiana-lawmakers\/"},"modified":"2021-08-30T13:45:51","modified_gmt":"2021-08-30T21:45:51","slug":"medical-marijuana-saved-former-nfl-player-from-downward-spiral-he-tells-louisiana-lawmakers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2021\/08\/30\/medical-marijuana-saved-former-nfl-player-from-downward-spiral-he-tells-louisiana-lawmakers\/","title":{"rendered":"Medical Marijuana Saved Former NFL Player From \u2018Downward Spiral,\u2019 He Tells Louisiana Lawmakers"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt it was worth the risk of committing a crime\u2026 I felt good physically and my head was much clearer. I felt free\u2014free from the downward spiral.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

By Wesley Muller, Louisiana Illuminator<\/strong><\/p>\n

Former New Orleans Saints player Steve Gleason said Friday that medical marijuana saved him from a \u201cdownward spiral\u201d after his ALS diagnosis. Friday marked the first time Gleason has ever spoken publicly about his use of the drug. He was testifying before the Medical Marijuana Commission set up by Louisiana Legislature.<\/p>\n

A former special teams standout, Gleason was diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig\u2019s disease) in 2011 and entered the meeting room at the State Capitol in his motorized wheelchair\u2014a result of the neuromuscular disease taking away his use of all muscle functions.<\/p>\n

Speaking through a computer that tracks his eye movements, Gleason drew laughter when he began his testimony by pointing out how he came dressed in a \u201ctuxedo,\u201d which was actually just a tuxedo T-shirt. He cracked similar jokes throughout his speech but captivated the entire room when describing a dark point in his life in 2013. Doctors had recommended that he put a hospital bed in his home to sleep in and prescribed him medications for the pain and anxiety that accompanies the disease.<\/p>\n

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This summary of my testimony at the Medical Marijuana Committee meeting today may get interrupted if we end up evacuating for the hurricane.
For now, I continue\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/lG56eEl5Nc<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Steve Gleason \u2013 “Live Impossible” (@SteveGleason) August 27, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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He described how the hospital bed had bars on the sides that are designed to keep a patient from rolling off.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe irony was here I was staring at the ceiling without any ability to move,\u201d Gleason said. \u201cI was angry and resentful\u2026 This was something of a downward spiral.\u201d<\/p>\n

The side effects of the prescription medication only made things worse, he said. He tried different types and dosages but nothing seemed to work. The physical discomfort brought an \u201coverwhelming fear\u201d to his mind, he said.<\/p>\n

One day he told his wife, \u201cI have got to get out of this. There must be a better way.\u201d<\/p>\n

A friend recommended medical marijuana. Gleason had only tried marijuana a few times prior to that point\u2014smoking it recreationally, but his friend was recommending something different\u2014a cannabis tincture, which is a pharmaceutical grade liquid extract. The drug was still illegal in Louisiana at that time.<\/p>\n

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Looking like the Gleason family is “sheltering in place”, at this point. <\/p>\n

My search for a solution to break out of the downward spiral of pharmaceuticals in a state where medical Marijuana is not available, requires some risk\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/sDPtuglP3Y<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Steve Gleason \u2013 “Live Impossible” (@SteveGleason) August 28, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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\u201cI felt it was worth the risk of committing a crime, but just for safe measure, I did bring our attorney,\u201d Gleason said, drawing another round of laughter.<\/p>\n

For the first time in a while, he said he was able to function, had more energy and was more productive.<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt good physically and my head was much clearer,\u201d he said. \u201cI felt free\u2014free from the downward spiral.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Gleason said medical marijuana gave him the ability to find new purpose in life. He went back to sleeping in his king-size bed alongside his wife and worked on growing his ALS advocacy foundation, Team Gleason<\/a>, which has since given $18 million in adventure, technology, equipment and care services to over 20,000 people living with ALS.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not saying it all happened because of the help of medical marijuana, but I can say with 100 percent confidence that those accomplishments, the inspiration, nor the tens of thousands of people that we serve\u2014none of it happens if I were still on those prescription pills,\u201d Gleason said before exchanging parting words with the lawmakers and closing with his famous motto: \u201cNo White Flags.\u201d<\/p>\n

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I fully understand the fragile nature of my life. Not so different than any of you.
I’m healthier than I have been in the past decade. I’m energized. I’m flourishing. I’m free. pic.twitter.com\/Zi1Cz6aQgx<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Steve Gleason \u2013 “Live Impossible” (@SteveGleason) August 28, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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The Medical Marijuana Commission is on a \u201cfact-finding mission\u201d to explore options for improving the state\u2019s medical marijuana law, Chairman Rep. Joe Marino (I-Gretna) said.<\/p>\n

Lawmakers first cracked Louisiana\u2019s doors to the drug in 2015 with legislation that has allowed a very limited market to open. Marino said the law was designed to allow Louisiana to \u201ccrawl before we walk.\u201d Since then,\u00a0state laws surrounding marijuana<\/a>\u00a0have slowly progressed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is 2021,\u201d Marino said. \u201cWe\u2019re six years passed that. I think we\u2019re finished crawling. I think we need to do something other than crawling, and I think that this commission is going to help us achieve that goal of getting medicine to patients.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Thanks for invitation @RepJoeMarino<\/a> & great pictures!! https:\/\/t.co\/9lkiPm1nPv<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Steve Gleason \u2013 “Live Impossible” (@SteveGleason) August 28, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Among other members of the public who testified<\/a> was Katelyn Castleberry, who said she purchases medical cannabis as a treatment for her son\u2019s epilepsy. However, because of Louisiana\u2019s limited market, the drug costs her about $900 per month, she said.<\/p>\n

Castleberry\u2019s testimony struck a chord with several lawmakers who said they\u2019d like to see insurance companies begin covering the costs of the drug. Another issue is the lack of drug testing exemptions for medical marijuana.<\/p>\n

Rep. Jack McFarland (R) said he has constituents who have lost their jobs and even professional licenses, such as those for truck drivers, due to outdated drug screening regulations.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we move forward, I\u2019d like us to consider at least those two things,\u201d McFarland said.<\/p>\n

This story was first published by Louisiana Illuminator.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

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Colorado Governor Urges Senators To Pass Marijuana Banking And Tax Reform Before Tackling Legalization<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Image element courtesy of Marco Verch<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

The post Medical Marijuana Saved Former NFL Player From \u2018Downward Spiral,\u2019 He Tells Louisiana Lawmakers<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n


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\u201cI felt it was worth the risk of committing a crime\u2026 I felt good physically and my head was much clearer. I felt free\u2014free from the downward spiral.\u201d By Wesley Muller, Louisiana Illuminator Former New Orleans Saints player Steve Gleason said Friday that medical marijuana saved him from a \u201cdownwardContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":457,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[99,18,81,126],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49686"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/457"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49686"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49686\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49687,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49686\/revisions\/49687"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49686"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49686"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49686"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}