Bones & Buds:

It’s March 2018 and I’m waking up in the recovery room. There’s a doctor asking for my pharmacy information. Groggy from anesthesia, I scoffed and said, “I use cannabis not chemicals!”

They chuckled. “That’s nice, but we did saw through bone and put in metal screws, so here’s your prescription for Oxy.”

OK, maybe they were right. I mean, they had used the words saw and screws. However, picking up the medication gave me a reality check: they had also prescribed NARCAN just in case I had a narcotic overdose.

My mom looked at me in shock. “There are enough overdoses they have to send out those prescriptions together? Isn’t cannabis safer?” Indeed it is.

When we got home, my gut instinct told me to put the opioids to the side and wait. After all, the numbing agent from the surgery was still working and I wasn’t in a rush to pop them anyway.

About an hour after settling in, I felt some discomfort but still wasn’t mentally ready for Oxy. Instead of the narcotics, I reached for my 1:1 tincture (half THC, half CBD). About 15 minutes later, I felt like my foot was wrapped in bubble wrap and my eyelids began to droop. A few hours passed by and I woke up to my mom watching TV. “You snored,” she said smiling. “Eat some food.” I happily complied.

But then the pain started to really hit and I couldn’t deny it any longer: it was time to pop the dreaded pill. I took the prescribed dose and waited in agony. And waited. And waited. Finally after 40 minutes, I started to feel some relief. Or was it?

Itchy Blood?

I could not stop scratching. Everything felt itchy, yet no rash. It’s hard to describe, but it felt like my blood was itchy. Was this relief or just a horrible way to distract my brain? Three hours went by and the pain came back worse than before. I started to cry. I wasn’t allowed to take another pill for another four hours and the memory of the NARCAN prescription stopped me from even considering another pill. Three hours of itchy “relief” every eight hours? Was this my life for the next six weeks?

Would cannabis help?

I had only used CBD topicals for pain management, but I had just bought a full-spectrum cartridge from my friends at Rooted Heart Remedies. I pulled it out and took a puff. I still recall the instant relief spreading through my body down to my toes. I decided to double the tincture dose and use the full-spectrum cartridge as needed.

Midnight madness

As bedtime loomed and we prepped my bed to elevate my foot, I started to question whether cannabis would be enough to get me through the night. What if I rolled over on it wrong or my cat jumped on it? I didn’t want to take the risk, so I opted for Oxy.

What a mistake! I woke up about four hours later in SO MUCH PAIN. I couldn’t think, much less do math to figure out if it was too early to take another dose. Do I take another pill despite it only being four hours since I last took it? Plus wait 30-40 minutes while it kicks in? Or do I just puff on the CBD I left on my nightstand? The pain was so intense, I was willing to risk an overdose.

My initial plan had been to puff on the CBD so I could get to the kitchen & eat something before popping a pill. I reached for my CBD cartridge and took two long drags. Like balloons slowly deflating, the inflammation started to go down and the pain went away. Within *seconds* I felt relief and was able to fall back asleep.

The End Result

For the rest of my recovery, I strictly used cannabis to alleviate pain and reduce inflammation. When I went for my checkup, the orthopedist couldn’t believe how quickly the bone had recovered. I smiled and said, “It was the CBG in my full-spectrum tincture.” I could tell they didn’t quite believe me but that look of, “Hmmm, maybe” is one that I’ve seen often. It’s just a matter of time before their curiosity will show them cannabis’ countless benefits.

There was no doubt in my mind, though. The full-spectrum tinctures and vape pens worked better and functioned faster to reduce the pain & inflammation than any nasty bottle of liver-destroying pills ever could.

I knew that going forward, I would never resort to narcotics.

Hey Lucy, why did you use vape pens and tinctures?

When smoked or vaped from a concentrate, the cannabinoids enter my bloodstream instantly but don’t stay as long. On the other hand, edibles take a little longer to kick in, but their effects will last 6-8 hrs. By using a combination of both methods, I’m able to receive both instant and long-lasting relief.

Where can I get that full-spectrum cartridge?

Click on the link below and it will take directly to Rooted Heart Remedies’ shopping page. At checkout, enter code lucys15 to receive 15% off your purchase. As an affiliate, I get a small percentage at no cost to you. As you know, I only work with companies that I personally have used and loved, so you know my recommendations are genuine.