Cannabis for Seniors: Gentle Approaches to Find Relief

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Marcia: You know, like it was through neuropathy. I had an accident, and I had a pinched nerve. I used cannabis as a way to take away the pain so that I could continue to work out. I always liked to work out and take my walks and everything. When I was really at the beginning of my neuropathy and starting to deal with it, I would use a little cannabis to take away the pain.

I’d get my walking sticks, and I would walk around my path with my walking sticks, and the cannabis helped so much because it took away the pain. It made me feel energetic, you know, it made me feel happy. It just took me to another level so that I could heal myself.

Emily: Oh, that is so beautiful. Now, tell me about the first time you tried cannabis. Were you afraid of cannabis? Had you had experience with it in the past? How did you decide that this was the right path to try?

Marcia: You know, Emily, that’s a great question because, you know, I used it, as we can say nowadays, recreationally, as a younger person. As I got older, and I know this goes into one of your questions down the line, I straight used it as a teenager, and I learned that it would take away my pains with my cramps, my menstrual cramps, not realizing that it was medicine at that time. You know what I mean?

So that was like really cool. And then as time went on and I started to age and started to get like little arthritis here and there and things like that, I found that when I used cannabis, it made it better. As I educate myself more and more about this plant, our body lights up from the cannabinoids. Our body loves cannabis, so my ambition is to let people know about my story, hear my story, and hopefully, they’ll take that journey as well.

Emily: Absolutely. I do feel like anybody who’s experienced the benefits of cannabis is now like, I need to go and turn around and grab someone else’s hand and bring them through and show them that they can get this level of relief as well. I’m so glad that you were sharing that here with us. Now, through your experience, did you dabble with pharmaceutical medications, or was it straight to cannabis first?

Marcia: Well, you know, it’s funny because when I was in rehab for my pinched nerve, that’s what they were pushing, and they were pushing the opioids, and I was like, “Oh, no, no, no, no, don’t want to get addicted. I don’t want anything to do with that.” And that’s when, wonderfully, the dispensaries opened up at the same time. Yay.

Emily: Perfect. Oh, perfect.

Marcia: Then I was able to research and see what would work best for me. Would it be a Sativa, Indica, or hybrid? What? And start learning about the different strains and what would work best for me. That’s what I want to do; I want to let people know about it. There are so many avenues. You have tinctures; you don’t have to smoke it, you don’t have to vape it. You can use salves and balms and all kinds of ways. I don’t think everybody, you know, especially the senior population, I don’t think they realize that.

Emily: A hundred percent. There is a misconception that smoking is the only way to consume cannabis. I do feel like once people get over that hump and realize that there are so many different ways to consume cannabis, just like you said, you get so excited about the education that you just want to learn more, and you’re like, “I didn’t even realize this was an option, but it’s so exciting that it is.”

Marcia: Yes. And you know, I believe in the past, and I’m talking more about the senior population, that movie “Reefer Madness” just sent them over the top. They’re like, “Oh no, I don’t want anything to do with it.” But it’s medicine. It’s safe for us.

Emily: Absolutely. Absolutely. Now, have you struggled with any type of stigma or stereotypes, or have you come out of the closet publicly? How has that been for you?

Marcia: Well, this is; I’m coming out right today.

Emily: Thank you so much. You’re trusting me; that is so wonderful. You are so brave because I know that that is very hard to do, so congratulations.

Marcia: Yes, yeah, yep. I haven’t had any astigmatism, and I haven’t been judged by anyone like family or anything like that. They just want me to be well and have a quality life.

Emily: Ah, that is such a good way to say it. I always tell people, especially people who are against it, like, if it was your mom, wouldn’t you just want her to feel better? And that’s what it comes down to is an improved quality of life. And I’m so glad that you are experiencing that right now. Let’s talk a little bit about your medical marijuana card. Did you go through the process? How did that look for you?

Marcia: You know, I went through the process. I went through a pain management doctor with spine and back pain management. In the beginning, it was such an interesting process because I would go into the office and sit down with him, and he would ask about how I’m feeling and all. Then he would just write down a little note and all, and before I knew it, I had my card.

Emily: It is much simpler than people, I think, think it is. I’m glad you said that.

Marcia: Yes. Then just going on the public health website, the Department of Public Health, and going through their process was very easy, making the payment. And lo and behold, within a month, I had a card at my door. It was just a wonderful thing to be able to have that card and to be able to take care of myself.

Emily: The card does provide such a level of safety and security as well; I don’t know if you felt that, but when I got mine, I was like, oh, I am legal. I’m not doing anything wrong. Like, no one can say anything to me. It was really comforting, in a way.

Marcia: Yes, I agree. Yeah. And then, the next thing that happened down the road was the caregiver program where, you know, people need, I don’t know if everybody knows about it.

Emily: Please talk about it, yes.

Marcia: Yes, the caregiver program; you don’t even have to go to the dispensary to purchase your medicine. Someone can deliver it to you. You would just call, touch base with your dispensary, tell them what you want, and that caregiver goes and picks it up from the dispensary and brings it right to your door.

Emily: Especially when you talk about the senior population, or you think about the folks who are using cannabis who are suffering from anxiety, depression, chronic pain, who don’t want to leave their house, the fact that they can have that medicine delivered to them is nothing short of a miracle in this day and age.

Now, walk us through what was the first time visiting a dispensary like. Were you nervous? Do you have advice for anybody who has never visited the dispensary but is maybe ready to?

Marcia: You know, it was a great experience, and I’m a dispensary hopper, as you could say. Wherever the best deals are, I’m at that dispensary. Of course, I have my favorites, you know. You know, some places give you a warm yum.

But it’s always a great experience. Sometimes they’re called health and wellness associates or your budtender. They’re pretty much informed, and they can help you, you know, pick and choose what would work best for what ails you.

Emily: I’m so glad you said that because I know a lot of people are really nervous about visiting a dispensary for the first time. But the people who work there, at least in my experience, have always been so kind, knowledgeable, and helpful. I do agree with you, I’ve been to two different dispensaries where I live, and one gave me those warm, friendly, sunny vibes, and the other one was like a prison. If anybody goes to a dispensary and doesn’t get quite the right vibe that they’re looking for, visit another one because they are not all the same.

Marcia: That’s right, so true. And you don’t have to worry. You’re always safe because there’s always security.

Emily: Yes, absolutely. Now you even dabbled in working in a dispensary; is that correct? Tell me about that.

Marcia: As soon as Pennsylvania was awarded to open up the dispensaries, I got a job at a dispensary. I got the flu when I was supposed to start. I was able to get back in, get there, and do my job. And boy, was that a lot. People were lined up around the building.

Emily: Really? Oh my gosh.

Marcia: We were trying to get them registered and everything; it was just getting started. It was a really good experience. It was short-lived because it wasn’t for me; it’s very retail.

Emily: Customer service, yeah.

Marcia: I did that when I was in school, you know, right out of school; I’m like, “Ah, no, thank you for this.” I’m more of a consultant type of person and an educator.

Emily: I can totally see that. But it probably was, I mean, so you have such a unique perspective because you’ve been on both sides. You’ve been a person visiting a dispensary, and you’ve been someone working at a dispensary behind the counter. You really have like the best insights to guide people moving forward.

Marcia: Yes, I do, Emily, I do.

Emily: So now, you’ve got this amazing, you feel good. What does life look like today for you?

Marcia: Life looks like today, like, I want to share my journey with cannabis, with other people, and I just, I just feel like it’s just one of those medicines where you don’t have to worry about side effects. I’m not dealing with side effects and having to take something else to take care of that side effect. I feel like I’m just living a wonderful, living in wonderful time.

Emily: Ah, that is so beautiful. Now, let’s talk a little bit because I keep getting this common theme that cannabis really is a special tool in the tool belt of health and wellness. You mentioned that you like to exercise. Do you find the same where cannabis helps improve your overall health and wellness?

Marcia: Yes, it does, it does. You know, even with people that are having problems with, they have cancer, and they’ve been through chemotherapy, and they don’t have an appetite, you can find a strain that’ll give you an appetite so that you can eat and nourish your body.

Emily: Yes, absolutely. I feel like everyone deserves that relief. Nobody should have to live a life of pain or nausea, especially when there is a natural plant growing in the ground, just waiting to be trialed.

Marcia: Emily, you’re like me; I have that nutrition background. When I was out there educating on a regular basis, I always kept saying to everyone, eat close to the earth. Let’s heal close to the earth.

Emily: Oh, that is so beautiful. It really just echoes. I’ve done a lot of other interviews for this podcast, and everybody just comes back and we all keep echoing this same sentiment. It’s natural; it’s healing; it improves the quality of your life. Once we get the bug, it’s time to turn around and share that with others. So how are you doing that today? How are you sharing your love of the plant?

Marcia: Well, you know, I talk about it with everyone that I, you know, that I meet and my family and friends, and you know, sometimes it’s a little hard out in the world because you don’t want anybody to judge you. That’s been a little hard, but this opportunity right now lets my voice be heard.

Emily: Oh, I’m so, so glad that you are brave enough to share because my goal is that someone listening on the other side of this, someone just like you who has suffered from chronic pain, can hear this and listen to your wisdom and say, “I tried this, and it worked, and I feel so good. Thank you so much for sharing that.” I want to be respectful of your time, I love listening to your story, but I ask all my guests the same four questions. Are you ready for them?

Marcia: Yes. And, I could say that was, that’s the first thing. The next thing is being a part of the nutrition, the EFNEP, the Extended Food and Nutrition Education Program through the government and teaching low-income people how to eat healthy and using, you know, I used to think about the food guide pyramid. Then it went to my plate and all of that.

Using that as the main ingredient of teaching nutrition and helping people all across Montgomery County and Philadelphia County on how to eat better, how to keep moving, keep moving, food is fuel, all of that input, and using all kinds of different tools to help them get healthy again. I was in the health centers and libraries and all kinds of places, you know, doing my spiel, and reaching people and having people thank me and saying, “Oh, there’s that cooking lady,” you know?

“She shows you how to cook healthy,” that kind of stuff. I’m proud of that, and I carry that with me throughout my cannabis journey because it almost goes hand in hand.

Emily: I’m so glad you said that. It’s so interesting to me, especially how many women I’ve interviewed have a background in health and nutrition. For most of us, it just makes perfect sense. It’s like a missing puzzle piece of, oh my gosh, like this whole lifestyle, healthy eating and sleeping well and exercising, cannabis compliments it all so well and just bring it together in such a beautiful way. I’m so glad you’re echoing that because there is a terrible stigma that if you use cannabis, you’re lazy, apathetic, and eating a bag of chips on the couch. I just am so glad every time somebody echoes that not to be true.

Marcia: Yes. And, you know, that’s part of my journey. If you do get the munchies, there are healthy snacks. You don’t have to, like you said, eat potato chips. You can have something that’s good for you. I’m a nuts fan; I love my nuts, you know, so I like to eat them if I have like a little munchie thing going on and not too many. I know what a handful is.

Emily: But just like anything, it’s all about being mindful and responsible and thoughtful and truly listening to what your body needs at the time. Being willing to adjust that as you go along. I think a lot of people, when they come to cannabis and tell me if this has been their experience as well, but when they first start, they think, “Just tell me what to take, just give me,” they almost want it in pill form to swallow it and not think about it. But cannabis is such a journey, and there are so many nuances and different ways to change things, and it changes with our lifestyle and our cycle of life as well. And so, it’s just like a lifelong journey. I don’t know if you echo that as well.

Marcia: Mm-hmm, it is a life; it’s a lifestyle change for as long as you’re living. I’m one of those people who believe in homeopathic and holistic measures of healing yourself. That works for me. I want to share that with everyone else. I want to show that; let me take your hand and show you the way.

Emily: Absolutely. I feel like I’m so glad you said that because that is what this podcast is about. I hope anybody listening, whether they have never used cannabis before or thinking about using it for a loved one or thinking about using it for themselves, can just listen to your words and realize that it’s such a beautiful gift that we even get the chance to try and then carry on with us. I mean, we are so lucky to have this plant.

Marcia: You are right. So right.

Emily: Next question. If you could sit down with yourself 10, 20, or 30 years ago and give yourself a little piece of cannabis advice for the future, what would it be?

Marcia: You know, Emily, that’s a good question. I’m going to go back to 30 years ago when I was just trying that plant and not realizing what it could do and what it was doing for my body. I was just using it recreationally, as we call it now. Into 20 years, and I’m going through, in your forties, and your body’s changing. All kinds of things are going on in the womanly part of your body, and using cannabis to balance it because cannabis balances, it does, it balances your insides.

Emily: Yeah. A hundred percent. I mean, science has proved it. That is what the endocannabinoid system is for anybody who’s never heard that word before. All human bodies contain an endocannabinoid system that interacts with cannabinoids in the cannabis plant. That’s the actual literal reason it works. So, just throwing that out there in case anyone didn’t realize that, but it is, and as it was mentioned before, it’s the true center of the mind-body connection, which is why it helps with both mental and physical ailments as well.

Marcia: Yes. So true, so true. Thinking 10 years ago, maybe even going through menopause and my body just going berserk, as you could say, and hot flashes and mood changes and all of that. I believe that cannabis supported me through that as well.

Emily: I haven’t experienced it yet, but my mom has. To have something that could offer relief during that time makes me so happy for you.

Marcia: Yeah. Yep, and so who would’ve ever thunked it that at this time, I can take a card and go shopping in a dispensary and pick out whatever I want?

Emily: Ah, it is a beautiful time to be alive, isn’t it? Even earlier in your lifetime, you might have assumed that that would never actually be a reality. I’m so glad that it is. Truly, it is amazing, and you know, hopefully, it’s just full steam ahead from here, and it just gets easier and more accessible for people. I still feel so bad for people who live in states where they don’t have that access. It really makes me sad.

Marcia: Yes, I agree. You know, Emily, that takes me back to, at the beginning when before our dispensaries and grow houses were awarded and how women were taking the risk because they had children that had seizures, and they would fly out to a state where it was legal, purchase it, and then take that risk to bring it back home to heal and make their children well. So yeah, 10, 20, 30 years has been wow.

Emily: It’s been a ride, that’s for sure. Thank God it’s going the way that it’s going, and we can only hope for a federal legalization moving forward in that. You know, everybody deserves the right to feel better, just like you have.

Marcia: Mm-hmm, I agree.

Emily: We can only hope that for other people moving forward. I guess that brings me to; I have something I wanted to talk to you about. We can lump in the last question, but you said you’re very interested in working with the senior population, and I want to talk a little bit more about that just in case we have seniors listening here.

I feel like they need the most help, guidance, and support. So if you have any kind of advice or something to say, if somebody is listening in the senior population, what would that be?

Marcia: Senior, you know, I would say to the senior population, open up your mind and don’t hold onto those stigmatisms of this plant. Research it, and ask questions. If you can, go on websites and gather information. Don’t be closed-minded to this. And you know, Emily, I’m going to fall back on my nutrition education and teaching seniors about eating healthy. It was a little tough because they’re kind of stuck in their ways and they believe in pharma. That was part of my struggle, was like “more fruits and vegetables,” and they were like, “Oh, TV dinners are fine.” And I’m like, “No, the sodium,” you know, all of that.

Emily: Oh, so much, yeah.

Marcia: It’s all about reaching out and educating them, and you know, and I’ve been thinking about this more and more. I think it’s going to have to go back to the old-school way of teaching them. They’re very intimidated, and I am at times with all of this technology. Then they shut down, and they don’t want to be bothered. So we need to hit the ground running. I mean literally walking, hitting the ground, and making pit stops in places and letting them know what’s going on, and doing it hands-on. Hands-on is the way.

Emily: Ah, that’s beautiful advice. I hope anybody just listens to the words that you have, the encouragement that you’re sharing. Our very last question before we wrap up today. If you could be remembered for one thing in the cannabis space, what would that be?

Marcia: I would love to be remembered as a catalyst for let people know how wonderful this plant is and how it can heal you, from the mind, body, and soul. It’s all around. You can’t go wrong when you’re using gifts from the earth. That’s fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, spices and herbs, and cannabis.

Emily: That is so beautiful. It’s just music to my ears. I thank you so much for sharing that with us, for sharing your experience, sharing your wisdom. I hope that this podcast is a catalyst for you, for getting your voice out there, for helping seniors. I hope anybody listening if they’re not quite sure, I hope they feel uplifted by what you’ve shared, your openness, and your honesty. Thank you so much for being here today.

Marcia: Oh, you’re welcome, Emily. Thank you so much for having me and letting my voice be heard.

Emily: It needs to be heard. I’m excited for it to be heard. Do you have any last words for our listeners today?

Marcia: You know, can I give them a website that they could contact?

Emily: A hundred percent, absolutely. There are going to be people listening who absolutely need to connect with you. Please share.

Marcia: They can reach me at marsunstar@gmail.com, right now, I have a website I’m working on at the moment, but for now, it’s marsunstar@gmail.com.

Emily: Perfect. I will put a link in our show notes so that anybody who wants to reach out to you can do so. Thank you for being so generous, and I hope if anybody is listening, feels connected and drawn to you, that they reach out and get the support and guidance that they need.

Marcia: Oh, Emily, thank you so much, and best wishes to you on your journey as well.

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