Today I want to touch on an important topic: using cannabis to treat senior patients.Cannabis can be useful as a pain management tool in geriatric care, but having a doctor’s medical guidance is essential for seniors to protect their own well-being.Modern medicinal cannabis is very different from the marijuana of past generations, and we must communicate these differences clearly to ensure our patients have a contemporary understanding of how to use it safely and effectively. This is powerful medicine that has evolved and advanced over the years, and we must use our scientific expertise to facilitate its proper use to achieve the desired result when treating a patient.Seniors and anyone hoping to benefit from medicinal cannabis should be sure to get guidance from a medical professional like myself. Please feel free to contact me any time with your questions on the subject.

I am excited and honored to have been chosen to present at this year's American Physical Therapy Association Missouri Spring Conference! APTA describes their philosophy and purpose as “building a community that advances the profession of physical therapy to improve the health of society,” and I could not be more pleased to contribute to that shared goal. I am passionate about educating the medical community through my presentations, workshops, webinars, and private coaching, so I look forward to exchanging knowledge, research, and best practices, and the opportunity to share wisdom from my 30 years experience as a physical therapist with this group of professionals and students. The APTA spring conference is April 14th-16th at St. Louis Community College in Forest Park, Missouri, and online registration is available through April 1st at www.mopt.org. My lecture is entitled “Introduction to Medical Cannabis and the Endocannabinoid System,” which is also the subject of my online course. I hope to see you at the conference! If you need an experienced Physical Therapist to speak at your next event, please fill out the Contact form on my site and I would be happy to consult with you.

Pain. Almost every one of the people who enter my office is experiencing pain of some sort. It may be post-surgical pain, musculoskeletal pain, neuropathic pain or pain from a chronic condition like fibromyalgia. My job is to try and bring the body: fascia, muscle, bone, etc., back into balance and remove any restrictions that may be contributing to pain. I also make it a goal for my clients to come off of or reduce their opioid medications. Lately, I discuss with them the benefits of using cannabis for pain management. Cannabis has been used for the management of pain for thousands of years. The question that arises is, will cannabis work to control pain without the psychotropic effects of THC? Is CBD enough? THC contains strong anti-inflammatory and pain relief properties which may account for its success in treating pain caused by inflammation, like arthritis1. It also relaxes the nervous system, which helps with spasms in people with MS, or other conditions that cause spasms1. Without getting too science geeky, THC receptors are connected to opioid receptors in the central nervous system which is responsible for many functions including the perception of pain. That is why when using ...

There are many factors that are taken into consideration when determining the dose of a drug; the age of patient, weight, sex, ethnicity, and liver and kidney function1. Other factors that are involved in achieving an optimal dose of a drug include metabolizing enzymes, interactions with other drugs or supplements, and variations in genetics2. The optimal dose of a drug is the amount that results in desired therapeutics effects with minimal side effects1. One of the most asked questions related to cannabis use as a medicine is "how much should I take?" Patients are accustomed to a doctor writing a prescription with very specific instructions; how much to take, how often, and for how long. With cannabis, these instructions are much more fluid. Doctors are not legally allowed to prescribe, rather they recommend, which leaves patients in a situation where they have to figure out what to do without medical guidance; they have to use trial and error and rely on a "budtender" for advice. Using cannabis can be scary for patients because they don't know what to expect and how much to take. They may be afraid of being "high" and, similar to the stigma attached to cannabis, ...