By Amanda Ashley
Published by Weed Speek
Get Lit with Mental Health
When beginning a business in the Cannabis industry as a licensed mental health practitioner, I was asked…so you just get people high and talk about their problems? I laughed and politely let him know with all of my intelligence that if you think therapy is just talking about your problems, then absolutely. I take a strength-based resilient approach to therapy and in life itself. We focus on where you hope to be and what obstacles need to be overcome to reach your highest functioning.
I began my journey in 2012 to help people learn the tools to heal themselves. During my graduate studies in Mental Health, I took a special interest in telemedicine and the medicinal use of Cannabis (both were still very ethically controversial at this time). I was empowered by the idea that self-discovery, awareness, and accountability could help develop a healthy and balanced perspective while promoting an elevated quality of life. Abraham Maslow’s ascension into rainbows and butterflies may seem simple. But it has been a long journey- breaking stigmas and removing the barriers that have propelled us full speed into 2022. Lit Session, LLC is dedicated to Cannabis Herbalism and Holistic Intuitive Medicine. We help others learn to think for themselves and take ownership of their health.
The Patient
Psychopharmacology is the study of how medicines affect the human mind and, ultimately, our behavior. Which in turn affects our quality of life. The introduction of psychotropic medications was intended to stabilize dysfunction as part of an interdisciplinary treatment process. This traditionally includes a prescribing physician and a mental health professional to treat mental health conditions and identify coping strategies for more severe illnesses. Current trends are leaning heavily toward medication management. So, talk therapy is often seen as an optional upgrade- leaving lots of people clueless as to where to begin and when it is actually helping. I don’t believe in simply masking symptoms. I believe in being accountable for our health and allowing symptoms to guide us toward more natural and sustainable treatment outcomes.
When a physician traditionally prescribes a medication to a patient, it typically comes with careful dosing instructions, written side effects, and warnings. A follow-up is scheduled, and the patient is encouraged to reach out to their prescribing physician with any side effect concerns or medication questions. This is not commonly the case with Cannabis.
The Pharmacist or “The Bud Tender”
Imagine walking into your pharmacy and the pharmacist asking you what you need, expecting you to know what will help your ailments. Once you choose one of the strains that sound like abstract artwork or a cover title, you are expected to know how to dose yourself and when. What’s really happening? If you’re lucky, you’ve done some research or had some prior experience. If not, you may get lost in the sea of edibles vs. orals vs. topicals vs. vapes vs. flower or indica vs. hybrid vs. sativa… What’s not really happening? There is still a lack of interdisciplinary treatment teams of professionals knowledgeable in Cannabis as medicine. Lit Session is not only dedicated to educating our patients about the holistic properties of Cannabis herbalism. We offer courses to educate professionals on how to accommodate their patients who use THC to treat or stabilize their ailments.
My Take: A Proud Patient
Depending on your perspective and, often, personal experience with Cannabis, your lens toward Mary Jane may be regarded with beauty and clarity or jaded and tinged with fear. There are lots of skewed research pieces negatively painting a different version of Reefer Madness in the media still today, when evidence proves quite the contrary. Our goal is to educate, elevate and empower the collective community on the miracles of Cannabis-infused wellness practices. Cannabis is not for everyone in its medicinal sense. If you do not need medicine. you may not need to use Cannabis for its therapeutic effects… Cannabis does continue to gain popularity for its recreational effect, too.
I do what feels right to me. I know my mind, body, spiritual beliefs, and Cannabis works for me. This isn’t just a great opportunity to all of those who aren’t benefiting from Cannabis yet, but a cheers to all those who do! It’s more than something I believe in, professionally, and that I build my career on- it’s something that I believe in for my own personal wellness journey. We are getting lit, healing with one another, and elevating our lifestyles. So while there may always be a “they” who has 2 cents to offer about the warnings of Cannabis, for whatever my take is worth, I think advocacy exists where real problems persist. Let the people just be free!
Lit Session, LLC at litsession.com was created by Mental Health Equity expert and Cannabis advocate Amanda Ashley to bridge gaps with resilient solutions for holistic, intuitive medicine.
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