Marla James – how medical marijuana helped her create a better quality of life

Marla James

Marla James discusses what it was like to be addicted to oxycontin and how medical marijuana helped her create a better quality of life.

Transcription:  My name is Marla James I am the president of Orange County ASA, Americans for Safe Access, and I am a medical marijuana patient. In the year 1999, December, I came down with necrotizing faciatis, which is flesh eating bacteria.

I got it from somebody who had the flu. It is that easy to get.

In order to get rid of it, they had to cut parts of me out. I lost my lower abdomen the abdominal regions and other parts. It was very painful. And when I got out of the hospital, the doctors put me on high doses of oxi contin, and all the hydrocodone I wanted in between. I eventually became addicted to oxicontin. I could not function in my life.

And I asked the doctor, the pain doctor, when I could get off the oxicontin, and he looked at me and said why would you want to be in pain the rest of your life.

I fired the pain doctor.

I went to another doctor who slowly got me off the oxi-contin; I used medical marijuana to help me. Because every day you would wake up, you’d be sick you would be withdrawing from the oxi contin. And the medical marijuana helped with the pain. And eventually I was totally off the oxi contin with the help of cannabis.

I do still take cannabis I am a type 1 diabetic, I have peripheral neuropathy, and it really really helps with the pain associated with peripheral neuropathy. I use cannabis now for the occasional pains I get. I don’t have to have it all the time, but when I do have pain, it really helps and I’m able to function, which is more important. I’m able to preside over Orange County ASA, I’m able to go to city council meetings, supervisor meetings, I’m able to be and advocate for medical marijuana.