Does Cannabis Treat or Assist PTSD?
June 06, 2022
Cannabis has long been in use by veterans to relieve the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). But does cannabis treat PTSD or assist in dealing with the symptoms? There is evidence that it reduces nightmares and re-living traumatic situations for combat vets.
While useful, the side effects are deemed harmful with long-term use, and PTSD is a long-term affliction. Long-term cannabis use can result in addiction and diminish its effectiveness, increasing its usefulness. Additionally, Veterans Affairs (VA) cannot provide or recommend cannabis, as the federal government bans the use of cannabis. It does not matter if a state has legalized the use of medical marijuana.
Cannabis is popular PTSD treatment among vets, but side effects can be harmful. Some medications that may be more effective are currently under development. The newer class of drugs would help increase the brain’s existing cannabinoid chemistry.
PTSD develops in response to experiencing or seeing a horrific event. It then develops over time, manifesting nightmares, severe anxiety, flashbacks, and intrusive thoughts relating to the trigger event. This can haunt a veteran for years and displays symptoms such as:
- Hypertension
- Inability to Concentrate
- Impaired Memory
- Depression
- Digestive Issues
- Difficulty Sleeping
- Headaches
- Hyperarousal
Stress Is a Many-Tentacled Thing
When danger occurs, the amygdala feels threatened and signals a fight-or-flight response. This marshals maximum blood flow and muscle energy, shutting down unnecessary functions like digestion. What happens here is that the amygdala activates the sympathetic nervous system and releases a flood of stress hormones.
The heart beats faster, adrenal glands pump adrenalin into the bloodstream, and secrete cortisol that hikes blood sugar to provide maximal energy and promote healing in the event of injuries. Typically, a self-limiting response in sudden fear situations, like forgetting to file your taxes, stress responses to intense and ongoing, frightening situations found on the battlefield, overrides the body’s usual self-limiting influence.
This is when PTSD develops, and the complete fight-or-flight stress response continues in reaction to reminders of the original trauma. This means the amygdala remains hyperactive. Cannabis suppresses neural activity and provides PTSD sufferers relief.
What Controls a Person’s Memories
Interestingly, research shows that the brain’s natural cannabinoid chemistry oversees the process of forgetting frightening memories. Our chemistry reduces the reaction to the reminder of painful events, turning them into memories, and preventing them from being re-run continuously. This is why cannabis works well.
Although it does work well, if addiction develops and the user reduces or stops using cannabis, the amygdala returns to normal for a short time, increasing PTSD symptoms. If a cannabis user has been using the drug for a long time, its effectiveness is reduced – a Catch-22 situation.
However, ways are being developed to deal with a hyperactive amygdala without using cannabis. There are drugs in development that have shown they reduce the breakdown of our natural cannabinoid chemistry, thus reducing activity in the amygdala without the side effects of cannabis, including addiction.
What does the future hold? It’s hard to predict without a crystal ball, but there appears to be hope for alternative therapies to deal with PTSD.