Lisa L. 59 years young from Sioux Lookout, ON

Living with Osteoarthritis of the hands for 10 years, of constant, throbbing pain between the affected joints and loss of comfortable motion frustrated me as I play many sports that involve the use of my hands primarily.

Before I started taking a combination of CBD, CBDA and CBG daily

I tried many options to both decrease the pain and increase the mobility in my fingers and hands. I tried the pharmaceutical route initially. Although Aleve did alleviate the pain most times, I prefer not to take synthetic drugs into my body when there are natural alternatives out there.

To this end, I tried many topical creams over those years, some working better than others, including a pain salve with THC. The difficulty with topicals and hands is that they need to be reapplied each time you wash your hands. Given this day and age, that was happening often. Depending on the topical, you also need to be careful with transference, especially the eyes. Many topicals meant for arthritis and inflammation include capsaicin, a hot pepper extract that definitely burns the eyes!

I've also used (and continue to use) a series of stretches and strengthening exercises that have had some success in improving mobility, but these are much easier to complete now that I am pain-free.

I didn't know a lot about CBD, virtually nothing really

When my friend shared her knowledge with me about the benefits, I figured it was worth a try.
Initially, a friend I play tennis with suggested that I get the pain salve with THC from her daughter, Michelle Diston (also a friend) as it had worked wonders on many of her friends. I did and while on my hands, it did relieve the pain. Sadly, I was dealing with the same issue as with all the topicals I tried - wash hands, reapply, repeat endlessly.

Michelle, who is a Cannabis Health Coach, had a booth at a local market. She asked how the cream was working and I shared my issue of it working great, but the need for reapplication constantly was frustrating. She suggested I try the CBD drops as unlike the topical, it builds up in your system over time. She asked for specifics on my pain and said she would create an oil for me to use that had a combination of CBD, CBDA and CBG. She went on to explain the "ins and outs" and the benefits of use - my brain, at that point, just hoped it would make a difference!

Not knowing much at all about Cannabis, I was definitely hesitant!

I was born in the sixties, so I grew up watching many of the older teenagers in my neighbourhood experiment with a lot of illegal drugs, including Cannabis. I'm not interested in taking any form of smoke into my body, but knowing that this was drops and that it did not contain THC made it much easier to just go for it. I'm very glad I did as the results have been awesome.

I take a 1/2 tsp dose of CBD/CBDA/CBG each morning, added to my coffee

CBD 5.5 mg/mL, CBDA 1.3 mg/mL, CBG 1.5 mg/mL I tried taking the drops sublingually, but I found that I often forgot or that I felt I wasn't able to hold it under my tongue for long enough. I've adjusted to the taste change in my coffee (I now really like it) and I never forget. Who could forget coffee in the morning?

With the use of Cannabis daily I can at least play the sports I enjoy without physical pain

I dealt with hand pain throughout the day/night and it sometimes took the enjoyment out of the many sports activities I participated in, especially on particularly bad days. I even gave away my beautiful bowling ball as I needed a lighter ball if I wanted to continue to bowl.

I rarely have any pain or stiffness in my hands. Cannabis doesn't address the physical changes in my hands, including loss of grip strength, immobility, and joint deformities. I needed to find modifications using sticky or larger grips on racquets, tacky gloves, and lighter-weight equipment, but with the use of Cannabis daily, I can at least play the sports I enjoy without physical pain.

I hope that in the future, these natural options will become the norm and will be covered by insurance

This means that our governments need to see beyond the big business (and bucks) of the pharmaceutical industry and expand their support of more natural remedies for those who prefer to go that route.

I truly hope that anyone living with anything that is crippling them physically, mentally or emotionally has the opportunity to learn about and experience how Cannabis can have a positive impact on their lives.

This is Lisa’s personal story and not meant to be medical advice. It is for informational purposes.

To work with a medical Cannabis professional, please visit our directory of coaches, educators, and medical professionals. Everyone's Endocannabinoid System (ECS) is different; good results start with the right approach. You don't have to figure it out on your own.

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