I use to be an avid smoker.........it's honestly embarrassing for me to admit that. I actually quit when I got RA because I was having a lot of lung issues from the RA and the pot was making it worse. I had been wanting to quit but it was around me and I consistently gave in. I'm sure other people might say it helps, but here are my reasons why I think it's a bad idea:

1. The munchies---weight gain adds more strain to your joints.
2. Smoke exposure to lungs-----RA can damage the lungs
3. More toxins in the body
4. Brain fog----in addition to the brain fog RA already causes
5. Lethargy---in addition to the tiredness of RA

The reason why pot gives you the munchies is because it lowers your blood sugar. This kind of sudden drop simply isn't good for you. It's one thing if you're healthy, but I think it just adds extra problems in addition to all the ones you're already dealing with. I understand the desire to want an escape from your RA, and in that case, well, it would do that, but I highly recommend exercising instead for that "high".
Of course, this is all just my opinion! I wish you well!

I haven't smoked since college and I am 58 now. Have I thought about it? Yes. Would I do it? No, for all the reasons Sarah gives.

Lynne

I pretty much agree with Sarah. I smoked a lot when I was younger, but only sporadically for years. I have tried it with RA, but it's really rough on my lungs, and I've had enough problems without that. The medical reason most people cite for marijuana use is that it takes away pain. I didn't find that. For me, it helped me forget about my pain.

BTW, the three people who replied all live in CA, where it's legal, sort of.

Dangerous from police with marjuana. I watch ou from marjuana and maybe you too. Aisf.

i mean Asif.

I am not for marijuana at all but you don't have to smoke it. It does come in pill form. My MIL was given medical marijuana in pill form for cancer and took it once. It did nothing for her. My husband thinks I should ask my doctor about it but I am so against it I won't even ask.

This is an important topic to which I wish the medical commiunity would pay more attention! I have used marijuana since my diagnosis (never before that) because my rheumy refuses to give any patient narcotics under any circumstance. So I've had no pain medicine at ALL (other than Tylenol), and I have a severe case of erosive RA. I was bed-bound for 2 months and have used a walker for about 5 months now. My pain has run the scale from being mild to being so severe for so long I was in very serious danger of committing suicide. That's the background info...

Now your answer...yes it works, but it's not a miracle. I would say if your pain is mild to moderate marijuana works very well (I smoked it---I didn't take the pill or eat it in food). If your pain is more severe than that it doesn't take it your pain away, but does help you forget about it and make you sleepy. It is also a miralce in treating the nausea that comes from methotrexate use---just a tiny bit (no need to get mentally impaired) and your nausea will be gone.

The downsides: like everyone said, it is TOUGH on the lungs. I personally do not care for the "high"---it feels annoying to me instead of good, and I'd prefer to have my mind sharp (however you'll not have a sharp mind if you use narcotic pain killers either). Then there is a problem that it's illegal in some states---it makes law abiding citizens criminals, which I think is a tragedy.

I hope you find something to help you---RA is an ungodly disease that can cause terrible pain, and for some reason many docs to do not concern themselves with this aspect. I personally do not understand how addiction can be considered any worse than suicide...

Now I'll get off my soap box. :)

Just as after thought...

I don't smoke marijuana, primarily for lung reasons, and when I injested it, it didn't take away pain, although it helped me forget it. Putting my use in the context that MsRM just mentioned, when I did that, I was in severe pain.

However, beyond the discussion of medical marijuana, I am in agreement with MsRM, and I am strongly opposed to the criminalization of marijuana. I think it's perfectly valid to have "stoner" laws, the same way you have drunk driving laws, but for alcohol, one of the most corrosive substances, along with tobacco, to be legal while marijuana users live in the shadows, is a travesty of justice.

I live in WA (another state where it's quasi-legal) and I have used marijuana to help me deal with both arthritis pain and unrelated nerve pain. I use a little machine called a vaporizer that makes it a bit easier on my lungs. My experience has been that it makes me sleepy, which on many nights has been a godsend. It also makes me less anxious about the pain, which is also helpful. To deal with the munchies, I try to smoke before a planned meal so I don't end up eating junk food.

That's true, vaporizers work great.

I do agree that marijuana should not be illegal!!!

First and foremost I believe that marijuana should be LEGAL. I live in WA too, where medical marijuana is sort of legal, however I know no one who uses it. Personally I need to be on my game, my roles as a mother and student require that I am mentally sharp. I use pain meds and they don't seem to effect my mental clarity. I worry that marijuana would make me foggy and sleepy. If it were widely available and completely legal I might try it.

I find it odd that this has come up because I am new to this damn thing and had stopped using a while back because it would just about take my breath away. I felt like my lungs had just closed right up, but, BUT, it made me feel better. I could get to sleep & it took my mind off of the beast. It had been many years since I had any, like high school, and one day a friend had told me he does just before bed and sleeps great. Hence the starting again, I was about a year or year and a half before I was diag'd. It is the lung deal for me, it is scary at times, not being able to breath. I think i am going to try it again, but only at night. As for it being illegal that is crap. The biggest reason for so many people against it is because they have been told it is so evil. It grows naturally, it is not altered by human and has been on the planet since the beginning of time. That is a rant all of it's own.

I'm a stoner. A criminal too I suppose because its illegal in MA. (but its on the ballot in November to decriminalize!)

I told my rheumy. He seemed surprised that I mentioned it. When he asked if it helped, I told him I dont know if its physically or psychologically, but it helps with the pain and the nausea. And he said that he's heard that before. I also told my acupunturist, who also heard that it helped.

It helps me a lot. Helps me sleep, helped me get through horrible nausea, helps in meditation, helps me move through the pain; my swims are even better. Takes my mind off it and I'm a lot less stressed. I hate pills, my stomach hates pills.

It's not for everyone. A lot of people don't like the feeling of being high. I enjoy it much more than drinking. I feel healthier smoking than drinking, it's relaxing. I've done stupid things when I've been drunk, when I'm high, I'm fully aware of what I'm doing, and am usually just very relaxed. It only lasts a couple of hours usually. The quality of the weed gives different highs, from what I hear, the medical marijuana is very good, so you wouldn't have to smoke that much. (I imagine it is very different than the weed people smoked decades ago)

Solutions if you're concerned about your lungs: vaporizers are great, a little expensive; better quality weed, so you can take one hit and be high; you can cook and eat it anything that uses butter; and pills, but I don't have experience with that.

It should be legal.

It really irritates me that pain killers that are more dangerous than pot are legal, and that alcohol is legal and it is more dangerous. I think that at different stages in this disease different things work and we should be allowed to explore all options without the govt interfering. It is crazy outdated laws that keep it illegal! I live in GA and the chances of medical use becoming legal here are slim.

Thanks for your help and for listening ...maybe some day smoking will not get people thrown into jail.....lol