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The “change of life,” as menopause is sometimes referred to, can definitely impact the lives of women experiencing this natural process of aging.
Triggered by a decline in the body’s production of estrogen, progesterone and testosterone, the three hormones made by the ovaries, and the end of menstrual periods, the onset of menopause can usher in a number of disruptive symptoms as women pass through their 40s and 50s. Irritability, hot flashes, night sweats, anxiety, stress, insomnia, depression, body aches, weight gain, and pain during sex are some of the common physical discomforts that menopausal women cope with.
However, there is “a very wonderful plant that can do a lot of things to help” bring relief from those symptoms — cannabis, says Dr. Genester Wilson-King, a board-certified obstetrician and gynecologist who has been a qualified medical marijuana physician since 2017.
“Stress with menopause is huge, the stress of living with menopause is huge, and the stress of functioning with menopausal symptoms is huge. And cannabis can help, especially if you don't want to take hormones,” she says.
Menopause isn’t a qualifying condition for medical cannabis in Florida, but its symptoms are similar to those of treatable conditions like Crohn’s, PTSD, HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), and AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome). Women may still find relief under a qualified physician’s care. For a list of providers and details on obtaining a medical marijuana identification card, head to the Department of Health’s Office of Medical Marijuana Use website, at knowthefactsmmj.com.
Dr. Wilson-King says being treated with medical marijuana doesn’t necessarily mean patients will experience feeling “high,” a sensation caused by the psychoactive compound in the cannabis plant, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).
“There are ways to use cannabis so you don't have to feel impaired,” she says, adding that cannabidiol, or CBD, a naturally occurring non-psychoactive compound found in cannabis, also helps relieve menopausal symptoms. “You do not have to be miserable during menopause.”
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