Should Marijuana Be Legal for Chronic Pain Patients?

I am one of your constituents. I voted for you. My name is Krystine Hoffman. I am writing to you about your stance on decriminalizing Marijuana in the state of Idaho. Five years ago, I thought legalizing Marijuana would lead to Armageddon. I don’t even drink. Then I got sick. I was living in Las Vegas when my disease started to get more serious.

I have Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS). My symptoms include extreme neuropathic pain and itching, inability to control temperature, vomiting, gastrointestinal issues, thick green/yellow phlegm in the back of my throat, making my other symptoms such as pain a LOT worse. In 2019 I broke my shoulder and my symptoms spread from my neck to my left shoulder and the excruciating heat was so bad I was eating ice, EVEN AT WORK! I am resilient, so I joked about it every day through my suffering.

Then, Marijuana became legal for recreational use in Nevada. I was suffering. No doctor would give me anything that would touch the pain. In 2019, I saw a GP, a pain specialist, a psychiatrist, a counselor, and a neurologist. My GP AND pain specialist suggested Marijuana. Opiates don’t treat pain. They make you so loopy that you don’t care about the pain as much. In 2020, just before the pandemic, I tearfully told my husband how violent my pain and other neuropathic symptoms had gotten. I had to quit my job. So, we prayed…and prayed…and prayed.

God didn’t come down and give me instructions, but I became comfortable with TRYING marijuana edibles. IT WORKED! I did not even need to get high. CBD (cannabidiol) is great for minor pain, such as fibromyalgia. My disease, CRPS, as well as so many other diseases, from arthritis to cancer, Marijuana lifts pain temporarily. It is more effective than CBD because of the complexity of CRPS. There are mental health benefits as well. It helps my anxiety, depression, and PTSD.

It was a miracle. The pain lifted enough that I could work again, even walk, eventually jog, and ride a bike. I have never been happier. I never once got high, but it went from a 10 to an 8. Since I’ve been in pain for so long, I can lead a happy life at an 8. I can be productive at 8.

Nobody should have to experience how bad my disease can get. When we moved to Idaho, I guess I forgot how much the Marijuana helped when I lived in Las Vegas. The pain came back to an unbearable level by the time we even made it to Idaho. Since I can barely move. I was taking 12 Percocet pills prescribed by my GP, and still, it did nothing. I went off the pain pills and tried low-dose naltrexone and ketamine. The moral of this story is that I moved to a beautiful state with my amazing husband and fur babies, but I’m miserable because nothing works. Imagine chronic shingles along with lava running through your veins and pain more intense than giving birth all at once…all day…every day. Again, nobody should go through this when there is help available. For those with hearts of stone, you could even focus on the unimaginable revenue that the state will make from the sale of marijuana and dispensary financial agreements. People such as I who are on disability would be more productive members of society. It is your duty to respect the wishes of your constituents. I implore you, however, to imagine yourself in my shoes because the next letter you will get from me will be to ask you to consider a bill to legalize “death with dignity” for chronic pain patients with the same severity as mine. I can’t live another year in this body. Please help people like me. I appreciate your consideration in this matter.