The Anonymous Widower

Prescription Pot Luck

There was a trailer and interview about this BBC documentary, which is available on this page of their web site.

This is the BBC’s description of the programme.

Since it was legalised five years ago hardly any patients in the UK have been prescribed medical cannabis. Used to treat a number of medical conditions, the Government has been accused of misleading the public over its availability on the NHS. Campaigners say an exception has been made for a few patients but others are being forcing to fund it themselves, go without or turn to the black market.

I am in two minds about cannabis.

• On the one hand, I wouldn’t take it myself.
• But on the other, it did contribute to making my son; George’s slow death from pancreatic cancer, a little more bearable for him.

George also had a device whereby he could control the level of morphine he was getting and that probably had a more beneficial effect.

I am lucky, when it comes to pain. My late wife used to mock me because I would never take pain killers, if say I had a tooth out.

I always remember taking our middle son; Henry to the A & E at Barts Hospital, when he was about two or three. He’d tripped over a seat-belt getting out of the car and cut his lip badly, when he fell.

Henry was ushered through immediately by a tall black doctor with a shaven head and laid down to be treated. The doctor skillfully stitched him up and Henry didn’t make a sound during the procedure. The odd thing, was that I could see beads of sweat on the doctor’s head.

When he’d finished the doctor picked Henry up and stood him on his feet, saying something like “Off you go!”. Which, Henry duly did!

The doctor then turned to me and said. “Are you alright, Sir?”

I replied that I was and he then said something like. “I’m not! I wasn’t getting any reaction. He put himself into a trance!” He then added. “I’ve seen it with African kids in Nigeria, but not in a white child!” So that explained the beads of sweat!

I feel that episode may have convinced me, that my mind can control pain and several times since, I have been able to avoid taking any drugs.

A few years ago, I had a difficult tooth taken out at the Royal London, which needed the Senior Tutor and two students to extract it. I wrote about it in Taking The Plunge. I’m sure, I got through that by following Henry’s example.

Since then, I met a GP on a dating site. But she wasn’t an ordinary GP. she was also a licensed hypnotist and used hypnotism in her work. Her view was that it is not used enough in medical practice.

I’m also fairly sure, I hypnotised myself to a certain extend, when I had my gallstones out by endoscopy, as I wrote about in Goodbye To My Gallstones.

Perhaps some of us have minds, that can avoid the need for drugs; legal or otherwise?

I shall add to this post, when I’ve watched the BBC documentary.

September 13, 2023 - Posted by AnonW | Health | Barts Hospital, Cannabis, Death, Hypnotism, Pain, Pancreatic Cancer, Pharmaceuticals