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Mental Health Conditions

Many patients with mental health challenges find relief from medical cannabis. Patients report improvement in depression, anxiety, bipolar, PTSD, ADD/ADHD, Tourette’s syndrome, Alzheimer’s dementia, and other psychiatric conditions.

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PTSD

Post-traumatic stress can show up in various ways in a person’s life.  Some people re-experience the traumatic event, through flashbacks, nightmares, recurrence of physical pain, or persistent thinking about the event or its consequences.  Other may have hyper-arousal symptoms, such as trouble sleeping, startling easily, difficulty concentrating, and trouble opening up emotionally.

Cannabis is excellent at reducing the many symptoms of PTSD.  It works in a part of the brain that controls emotional memory, and literally helps patients experience life in the present moment.  They are able to release their anxiety, smile, and pay attention to something beautiful that’s happening right now around them.  Cannabis decreases the physical pain, prevents flashbacks and nightmares, and is an excellent treatment for insomnia.

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Hepatitis C

Many patients with Hepatitis C experience nausea, pain, and other symptoms that are relieved by medical cannabis. Research shows us that cannabis could both help and harm the liver in people with hepatitis C, depending how it’s used.

High doses of THC have been associated with increased scarring in the liver (fibrosis) in patients with Hepatitis C who have active inflammation and scarring already present.  This effect has not been shown in Hep C patients without active inflammation and scarring. The current status of the liver can be determined by a non-invasive blood test.

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In contrast to THC, CBD has been shown to prevent liver scarring and inflammation in hepatitis C.3

The take-home message for patients with hepatitis C is to seek strains of cannabis that are CBD-dominant and always use the minimal effective dosage of cannabis by keeping their cannabinoid system sensitized.  

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Relief From Cancer Symptoms and Treatment Side Effects

Medical cannabis offers many benefits for patients facing cancer.

When used properly, medical marijuana can be a safe and effective treatment for nausea and vomiting caused by chemotherapy, chronic pain, and insomnia.  

Patients can often achieve significant improvements in quality of life with minimal side effects using very low doses of cannabinoids.   For patients with terminal cancer, cannabis offers numerous benefits in palliative care at the end of life.

Recent research even suggest cannabis may also have properties that will help fight cancer outright. Cannabinoids, one of the main components of the cannabis plant, have shown promise in helping to reduce the spread of tumors.

Neurology

Peripheral Neuropathy

Peripheral neuropathy occurs when the central nervous system is damaged. Your nerves make up an extremely sophisticated network of communications, sending signals back and forth between the brain and other areas of the body.

People who have peripheral neuropathy can experience symptoms ranging from rather mild to very severe. These include:

• Numbness

• Tingling

• Weakness

• Extreme pain

• Paralysis

In severe cases, a patient can find it difficult to easily digest food, breathe or even move. Some forms of the condition disappear rapidly, while others gradually worsen over time. The most common cause of peripheral neuropathy is physical trauma, but it can also be inherited genetically.

Conventional treatment usually involves first identifying the underlying cause, such as a herniated disc that’s putting pressure on a nerve. Steroid injections are usually prescribed, as well as other medications designed to reduce pain. These include opioids, anti-depressants, anti-seizure medications and others.

Peripheral neuropathy is just one of many conditions that show the benefits of marijuana as medicine. It is a safe, effective alternative to dangerous combinations of medications and surgeries.

 

 

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)

Often called Lou Gehrig’s disease, ALS is a progressive illness that damages nerve cells found in the spinal cord and the brain. Over time, patients encounter a gradual loss of muscle control. They eventually find it incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to speak, swallow or even breathe. Paralysis is common in the later stages of the disease, which is always ultimately fatal.

Medical cannabis has shown to be effective in alleviating pain and many other ALS symptoms. Research also suggests that the psychoactive compound in marijuana, THC, could possibly slow the progress of the disease and potentially even help extend the lives of patients.

 

Crohn's Disease

Crohn’s disease is a chronic autoimmune inflammatory bowel disease that affects digestion, causes severe pain, and in rare cases, is life-threatening. An estimated 500,000 Americans suffer from Crohn’s disease, though the number is probably much higher due to undiagnosed or misdiagnosed cases.  

Since there is no cure for Crohn’s disease, the goals of treatment are to ease the symptoms, control inflammation and improve the patient’s nutrition. Treatment options for Crohn’s disease may include a combination of nutritional supplements, surgery and drugs such as anti-inflammation, steroids, cortisone, immune system suppressors, Remicade, antibiotics, anti-diarrheal and fluid replacements. However, many of these medications cause additional side effects for patients to deal with, and many patients prefer medical marijuana as an alternative medicine.

There are numerous studies that indicate cannabis is an effective way to alleviate the symptoms of Crohn’s disease. For example, O'Shaughnessy's, a scientific journal, published a study "Cannabis Alleviates Symptoms of Crohn's Disease," that reported that patients saw significant improvements with the use of cannabis.  And the Journal of Clinical Investigation published a study titled "The Endogenous Cannabinoid System Protects Against Colonic Inflammation," which reports that medical marijuana is a powerful anti-inflammatory that “represents a promising therapeutic target for the treatment of intestinal disease conditions characterized by excessive inflammatory responses." 

 

Medical Cannabis for Pain vs. Opioids

Chronic pain can be so debilitating that sufferers often turn to powerful opioid narcotics in order to find relief. But these drugs are not only addictive, they’re also notoriously toxic. Nearly 30,000 died from opioid overdoses in 2014 alone.

Medical cannabis for chronic pain has been shown to be an extremely effective treatment, and much safer than opioids. Patients suffering from pain related to the nervous system have found particularly strong improvement in symptoms, whether they smoke cannabis, eat it or use it in an oral spray. With an alarmingly high number of people dying due to an epidemic of opioid overdoses, cannabis is becoming a much more popular alternative for many who suffer from pain on a daily basis.

In many instances, cannabis has been shown to not only decrease the side effects that result from taking opioids and other medications, but also improve the quality of life for many patients. It’s very important to note, however, that you should never change your treatment regimen unless you are closely supervised by a physician. And drastic changes could have potentially damaging effects. Have a long, detailed discussion with your doctor to make sure he or she agrees that you would benefit from using medical cannabis for pain.

Medical Marijuana is an affordable, natural alternative that lacks the side effects found in the medicines traditionally used to treat chronic pain. In 1975, researchers found that THC was an effective pain reliever for cancer patients and found that it lacked the significant or toxic side effects found in traditional medicines. Since then, countless other studies have shown that marijuana safely and effectively treats various types of chronic pain with little to no side effects or risk of dependency.

 

Scientific research tells the same story.  A review article published in Life Sciences (2004) concludes, “The administration of low doses THC in conjunction with low doses of morphine seems to be an alternative regimen that reduces the need to escalate opioid dose while increasing opioid potency.”  An animal study found that adding a small amount of THC increased the effectiveness of morphine by four to twelve times.

And while cannabinoids, like THC, can work together with opioids to increase potency in the pain centers of the brain, there isn’t a significant effect on the brainstem, the area responsible for decreased heart rate, slower breathing, and ultimately death in the case of an opiate overdose.  This means that using cannabis with opioids is safer than using opioids alone.

Patients are starting to figure this out.  A study published in the Harm Reduction Journal (2009) looked at 350 medical cannabis users, and found that 65% of them were using cannabis as a substitute for prescription drugs, 40% were using it as a substitute for alcohol, and 26% were using it as a substitute for illicit drugs.  Three of the subjects used cannabis to help them quit smoking tobacco.  The most common reasons for the substitution were less adverse side effects, better symptom management, and less withdrawal.

So while we all were told that cannabis is dangerous because it is a “gateway drug,” scientists are now calling it an, “exit drug” within the framework of harm reduction.  The goal is to substitute a safer drug for one that’s more dangerous in patients who are unable to achieve total abstinence.

And cannabis is certainly safer than most of our current options for treating chronic pain.  In 1999, the Institute of Medicine published a report that stated, “Except for the harms associated with smoking, the adverse effects of cannabis use are within the range tolerated for other medications,” and “there is no conclusive evidence that marijuana causes cancer in humans.”

Unlike opiate medications, cannabis can remain effective at a low dose for years or decades.  While opiates can numb the pain and disconnect the mind from the body, increasing risk for inappropriate activity and re-injury, cannabis often does the opposite.  Patients report that after using cannabis, the pain is still there but is less intense, less bothersome, and they no longer have to dwell on it.  They often feel more connected to their bodies because they no longer have to retreat from the pain.  Patients feel able to reclaim their lives from the constant focus on pain.

This does not mean that cannabis is a great medicine for everyone.  It has been shown to cause addiction and withdrawal symptoms, such as craving for cannabis, decreased appetite, sleep difficulty, weight loss, and irritability.  A study published in the Archives of General Psychiatry found cannabis withdrawal symptoms to be, “similar in type and magnitude to those observed in studies of nicotine withdrawal.”

Cannabis does not have to be smoked, as many patients are using tinctures (liquid extracts) and vaporizers (smoke-free inhalation).  Certified patients are able to grow their own or purchase the medicine from caregivers or dispensaries.

Pain is a necessary part of life, helping us to know when to avoid danger, change, rest, or ask for help.  Unfortunately, sometimes the pain continues after the threat is gone.  Patients in chronic pain are often stressed-out, sleep-deprived, and hopeless.  These people need our compassion, understanding, and a safe treatment.

 

Parkinson's Disease​

Parkinson’s Disease is a neurodegenerative disease of the brain. Because Parkinson’s is a progressive disease, Parkinson’s tends to slowly worsen over time. In a healthy brain, brain cells produce a chemical called dopamine. Dopamine is responsible for relaying messages within the brain that control movement in the human body. When these cells are damaged, the signs of Parkinson’s Disease begin to show.

Typically, the signs of Parkinson’s appear slowly, as a subtle tremor in just one hand, for example. Although most people associate Parkinson’s Disease with jerking or shaking movements, the disease can also produce a freezing of parts of the body. For instance, a person suffering from Parkinson’s may appear to have no facial expression or may appear to have an abnormally stiff gait when he walks. Noticeable symptoms of the disease general do not appear until around the age of 50, or later. Along with shaking, tremors or “freezing” symptoms, a person suffering from Parkinson’s Disease may also suffer from other symptoms including constipation, difficulty swallowing, blinking, drooling and muscle aches and pains. 

 

How Medical Marijuana Can Help Treat Parkinson’s Disease

Marijuana may be an excellent alternative to, or addition to, the medication regime of someone suffering from Parkinson’s Disease. Unfortunately, many of the conventional medications prescribed for a Parkinson’s patient also come with significant, negative side effects that are not present in medical marijuana. Medical marijuana offers a combination of anti-anxiety, anti-oxidant and pain relief all in one medication.

Medical Marijuana and Parkinson‘s Disease: Clinical Evidence

Among the many studies and academic papers relating to the benefits of medical marijuana for Parkinson’s Disease sufferers, Sevcik J, Masek K, of the Institute of Pharmacology,Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague had this to say “Cannabinoids might alleviate some parkinsonian symptoms by their remarkable receptor-mediated modulatory action in the basal ganglia output nuclei. Moreover, it was recently observed that some cannabinoids are potent antioxidants that can protect neurons from death even without cannabinoid receptor activation. It seems that cannabinoids could delay or even stop progressive degeneration of brain dopaminergic systems, a process for which there is presently no prevention. In combination with currently used drugs, cannabinoids might represent, qualitatively, a new approach to the treatment of PD, making it more effective.”

A recent study, looked at the potential benefits of medical marijuana for those suffering from Huntington’s Disease, a disease that produces symptoms similar to those found in a patient with Parkinson’s Disease. In this animal study, a mutant strain of hamsters that exhibited the symptoms of dystonia, a sub-group of disorders that share similar characteristics to Huntington’s Disease, were given a synthetic cannabinoid that activates the same cellular receptors as THC. The hamsters showed symptoms of dystonia that included rapid jerky movements or slow, repetitive movements, similar to Huntington’s Disease sufferers. The hamsters showed a marked reduction of symptoms when under the influence of the synthetic cannabinoid, indicating that medical marijuana may be beneficial to those with Huntington’s Disease. Because the symptoms of the two diseases are similar, Parkinson’s sufferers may also benefit from the use of medical marijuana.

Finally, numerous studies have also supported the long held belief that medical marijuana can reduce anxiety and stress levels in some patients. Although some patients actually report an increase in anxiety when under the influence of marijuana, many report a marked decrease. The reason for the disparity in results may be the result of individual body chemistry.

Medical Marijuana and Parkinson’s Disease

Marijuana may be an excellent alternative to, or addition to, the medication regime of someone suffering from Parkinson’s Disease. Unfortunately, many of the conventional medications prescribed for a Parkinson’s patient also come with significant, negative side effects that are not present in medical marijuana. Medical marijuana offers a combination of anti-anxiety, anti-oxidant and pain relief all in one medication.

Medical Marijuana and Parkinson‘s Disease: Clinical Evidence

Among the many studies and academic papers relating to the benefits of medical marijuana for Parkinson’s Disease sufferers, Sevcik J, Masek K, of the Institute of Pharmacology,Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague had this to say “Cannabinoids might alleviate some parkinsonian symptoms by their remarkable receptor-mediated modulatory action in the basal ganglia output nuclei. Moreover, it was recently observed that some cannabinoids are potent antioxidants that can protect neurons from death even without cannabinoid receptor activation. It seems that cannabinoids could delay or even stop progressive degeneration of brain dopaminergic systems, a process for which there is presently no prevention. In combination with currently used drugs, cannabinoids might represent, qualitatively, a new approach to the treatment of PD, making it more effective.”

A recent study, looked at the potential benefits of medical marijuana for those suffering from Huntington’s Disease, a disease that produces symptoms similar to those found in a patient with Parkinson’s Disease. In this animal study, a mutant strain of hamsters that exhibited the symptoms of dystonia, a sub-group of disorders that share similar characteristics to Huntington’s Disease, were given a synthetic cannabinoid that activates the same cellular receptors as THC. The hamsters showed symptoms of dystonia that included rapid jerky movements or slow, repetitive movements, similar to Huntington’s Disease sufferers. The hamsters showed a marked reduction of symptoms when under the influence of the synthetic cannabinoid, indicating that medical marijuana may be beneficial to those with Huntington’s Disease. Because the symptoms of the two diseases are similar, Parkinson’s sufferers may also benefit from the use of medical marijuana.
Finally, numerous studies have also supported the long held belief that medical marijuana can reduce anxiety and stress levels in some patients. Although some patients actually report an increase in anxiety when under the influence of marijuana, many report a marked decrease. The reason for the disparity in results may be the result of individual body chemistry.

 

Medical Marijuana and Glaucoma

 

A disease of the eye characterized by increased intraocular pressure, excavation, and atrophy of the optic nerve; produces defects in the field of vision and eventual blindness. Symptoms include gradual loss of peripheral vision, tunnel vision in the advanced stages, severe eye pain, nausea and vomiting, sudden onset of visual disturbance, blurred vision, halos around lights and reddening of the eye.

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It is estimated that more than 3 million Americans suffer from glaucoma, a disease of the major nerve of vision called the optic nerve. Without diagnosis and treatment, glaucoma can progress to loss of central vision and blindness. Worldwide, glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness.

Effective treatment for glaucoma involves the use of drugs or surgical procedures that prevent progressive optic nerve damage. The only method of accomplishing this is by lowering intraocular pressure (IOP).

Though research findings on the effectiveness of marijuana for glaucoma have been mixed, medical cannabis (often referred to as medical weed or medical pot) may help alleviate IOP and in turn lessen effects of the disease. Studies supported by the National Eye Institute in the 1970s showed that medical marijuana (or its components), when taken orally or via inhalation, can lower intraocular pressure.  And in 2003, the American Academy of Ophthalmology released a position statement which said that "some derivatives of marijuana did result in lowering of IOP when administered orally, intravenously, or by smoking, but not when topically applied to the eye."

Because the possibility exists that marijuana may be useful in treating glaucoma, the American Academy of Ophthalmology Committee on Drugs maintains that a long-term clinical study is needed to test safety and effectiveness of marijuana. However, countless patients have found relief from glaucoma symptoms with cannabis, and many marijuana states have approved marijuana use for the treatment of glaucoma.

 

Medical Marijuana and HIV/AIDS​

AIDS is a chronic, life-threatening condition caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

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According to the World Health Organization, over 500,000 Americans have died from HIV/AIDS and over one million US citizens are living with the disease. It is a chronic, life-threatening condition that is one of the most commonly cited reasons cannabis patients get medical marijuana. In fact, each medical marijuana state includes HIV/AIDS as a qualifying medical condition.

Patients living with HIV typically take antiretroviral drugs to prolong the onset of AIDS. But side effects of antiretroviral therapy—which include nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite and severe pain in the nerve endings (polyneuropathies)—are often unbearable. Other side effects of HIV/AIDS include wasting syndrome or cachexia and intractable pain. Many patients use medical marijuana to help manage their symptoms. According to 2005 study published in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes[1], more than 60% of HIV patients use cannabis as a medicine.

Medical Marijuana is widely recognized as an effective treatment for symptoms of HIV/AIDS as well as the side effects related to the antiretroviral therapies that constitute the first line of treatment for HIV/AIDS. Its value as an anti-emetic (stops vomiting) and analgesic (relieves pain) has been proven in numerous studies and has been recognized by several government-sponsored reviews.

For example, according to the Institute of Medicine (IOM)[2],"For patients such as those with AIDS or who are undergoing chemotherapy and who suffer simultaneously from severe pain, nausea, and appetite loss, cannabinoid drugs might offer broad-spectrum relief not found in any other single medication."

Columbia University published clinical trial data in 2007[3] reporting that HIV/AIDS patients who inhaled cannabis four times daily experienced "substantial ... increases in food intake ... with little evidence of discomfort and no impairment of cognitive performance." They concluded, "Smoked marijuana ... has a clear medical benefit in HIV-positive [subjects]."

In 2008, researchers at the University of California at San Diego[4] concluded that cannabis “significantly reduced neuropathic pain intensity in HIV-associated … polyneuropathy compared to placebo, when added to stable concomitant analgesics. … Mood disturbance, physical disability, and quality of life all improved significantly during study treatment.  … Our findings suggest that cannabinoid therapy may be an effective option for pain relief in patients with medically intractable pain due to HIV.”

 

Multiple Sclerosis (MS)

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MS is an autoimmune disease, whereby the body's own immune system, which normally targets and destroys substances foreign to the body such as bacteria, mistakenly attacks normal tissues such as the brain and spinal cord (the central nervous system). Symptoms include: tingling, numbness, loss of balance, weakness in one or more limbs, blurred or double vision, slurred speech, sudden onset of paralysis, lack of coordination, and problems with thinking and processing information.

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Multiple sclerosis (MS), a debilitating and sometimes fatal disorder of the central nervous system, is the most common debilitating neurologic disease of young people. More than two million people worldwide suffer from the disease, with two hundred new cases diagnosed in the United States every week.

There is no cure for multiple sclerosis (MS), so researchers and scientists aim to slow the disease's progression and create better treatments. Current medications for MS may have negative side effects such as flu-like symptoms (such as fever, chills, fatigue, and muscle aches), allergic reactions, headaches, tiredness and joint pain. Others can even damage your heart or cause a serious and life-threatening disease called PML. Some, like corticosteroids, will debilitate the immune response, leaving MS patients vulnerable to infection.

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Medical cannabis (often referred to as medical weed or medical pot) is an effective drug that can help MS patients lessen the effects of the disease. Countless case studies, anecdotal reports, scientific studies, surveys and double-blind studies have reported improvement in MS patients treated with medical cannabis and/or cannabinoids for symptoms such as spasticity, muscle spasms, chronic pain, tremor, sexual dysfunction, bowel and bladder dysfunctions, vision dimness, dysfunctions of walking and balance (ataxia) and memory loss.

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Many marijuana states have approved marijuana use for the treatment of multiple sclerosis. Medical cannabis is an affordable, natural alternative medicine that has helped thousands of multiple sclerosis patients. If you or someone you love is suffering from MS and you’d like to find out if medical marijuana is the right treatment, MarijuanaDoctors.com can help. We can connect you with hundreds of quality marijuana doctors across the country in all legal marijuana states and ensure you are in compliance with your state laws. Book an appointment today and let us help improve your quality of life!

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How Marijuana can help treat Multiple Sclerosis

            While having a strong immune system is important to staying healthy, having an overactive immune system can be just as harmful as having a compromised immune system.  Multiple Sclerosis, or MS, is a debilitating autoimmune disease that ravages millions of people around the world.  An autoimmune disease (approximately 80 known) is one where the individual’s own immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue instead of only damaged or tumorous cells. The immune system attacks the myelin sheath of the victim’s brain and spinal cord by stripping the nerve axons of their insulation.  Due to the variety of symptoms of this disease, many drugs would have to be used to alleviate these symptoms.  Nevertheless, smoking of medical cannabis can assuage many of the ailments associated with multiple sclerosis.

Multiple Sclerosis and Marijuana Effects

The myelin sheath contributes in a physiological process known as “saltatory conduction” to transmit electrical charges via an action potential, which is an instantaneous moment when the difference in voltage on different sides of a cellular membrane rises then falls rapidly.  This means that the electrical signals that travel through the cytoplasm (intercellular media) of the axons use the differences in dissolved ion concentrations of intercellular and extracellular spaces to propagate a charge.  Neurons function like electrical wiring, in that they require myelin to protect the integrity of the electrical signal, just as the rubber on a wire does.  Saltatory conduction ultimately allows the electrical signal to travel faster though the axon without having to increase the diameter of the axon down the length that the signal travels.  This process is the foundation of how electrical signals are transmitted throughout the brain, and if this process is altered, so are the essential processes of life. 

In addition to protecting the integrity of the electrical signal during conduction, the myelin sheath also increases the energy efficiency of signal transduction.  Energy is consumed to initiate an electrical signal because energy needs to be expended every time ions are moved across a membrane against the rules of diffusion, which states that ions move from an area of low high concentration to an area of low concentration.  But because the myelin prevents the number of ions needed to be transported to meet the threshold of activation, the energy required to create an action potential is decreased.  Damage of the myelin also results in connective scar tissue in the location of damage.  This is one of the main ways that the integrity of the electrical signal is lost because the electro-chemical signals do not conduct well though scar tissue.  The scar tissue that forms on the white matter of the brain becomes demyelinated and the scar tissue that replaces it is known as plaque.   Depends on where the plaques form in the central nervous system will dictate what the symptoms of the disease will be.  They include:

• Coordination issues, loss of dexterity

• Muscle spasms, muscle weakness

• Constipation, inconsistent urination

• Depression

• Eye discomfort or vision loss

• Facial pain or tingling sensations

• Slurred speech and difficulty eating

Multiple Sclerosis and Marijuana Brain Treatment

In MS the brain and spinal cord are affected, meaning that not only the higher functioning of the patient will eventually deteriorate, but so will the basic processes that keep the patient alive.  The cannabinoid receptors have been scientifically proven to alleviate many of the symptoms associated with multiple sclerosis.  Because the disease is usually diagnosed in patients between the ages of 20 and 40, many of the patients discover they have MS during their adulthood.  However, because many believe that multiple sclerosis is genetically transmitted, there is no known cure for the disease and many MS victims have minor symptoms at first but slowly and steadily decline to develop more severe cases as they age.

The cannabinoid 1 and cannabinoid 2 (CB1 and CB2) receptors are usually activated by the endogenous (created in our body) cannabinoids, also known as endocannabinoids.  However, in order to increase the effects of these receptors via activation, other chemicals (i.e. phytocannabinoids), can also activate these receptors.  The CB2 receptors are found on located on the cells of the immune system.  A 2003 study run by the Department of Microbiology-Immunology at the Northwestern University Medical School stated the following in their abstract titled “Therapeutic potential of cannabinoids in CNS disease”:

“Signaling is mostly inhibitory and suggests a role for cannabinoids as therapeutic agents in CNS disease where inhibition of neurotransmitter release would be beneficial. Anecdotal evidence suggests that patients with disorders such as multiple sclerosis smoke cannabis to relieve disease-related symptoms. Cannabinoids can alleviate tremor and spasticity in animal models of multiple sclerosis, and clinical trials of the use of these compounds for these symptoms are in progress.”

The anti-inflammatory effects of cannabinoids have much to do with its ability to be an immune suppressant.  This is characterized by the fact that when the cannabinoid receptor is activated, it has a stabilizing effect on the voltage-gated channels that influence the severity of inflammatory response.  In the case of autoimmune disorders, this can be beneficial in decreasing the progression of the patient’s condition.  Multiple Sclerosis can progress differently depending on the sevarity of the condition, but eventually the wiring of neurons that control essential bodily functions will deteriorate.  And it is important to understand that medical cannabis is not a cure for this disorder, and it is simply a treatment to alleviate the symptoms of the disease.