What led you
to become an advocate for
using cannabis to help veterans?
The vision came to me while I was stationed at Camp Black Horse east of Kabul, Afghanistan in 2012. I was reading information about cannabis used as a medicine, and I thought it could really aid my fellow veterans if they were educated about its natural value and how it was used medicinally before it was made illegal. The motto of combat medics is “Conserve the Fighting Strength,” so I aspired to extend my hand and knowledge to preserve the fighting spirit of those in need, especially my fellow veterans.
How acute is the current need among veterans to find alternative medicines like cannabis? Did your time at the VA play into convincing you veterans need an outspoken cannabis advocate?
There is a critical need among veterans to find holistic alternatives to support them with their medical issues. Considering all of the demonstrations about cannabis use from veterans, you would think common sense would kick in at the VA and other federal agencies, but giving us access is not in their best interest because of the political and financial interest of big business. So advocates like myself aligned ourselves in truth and share up-to-date information so veterans can live longer and have a better quality of life.
I operated in various positions within the VA system when I became a Legal Administration Specialist and Minority Veteran Program Coordinator at the Los Angeles Regional Office. I noticed many veterans were coming in to see me full of reservation, miserable and uninformed about alternative treatments. I even had a female veteran suffering from PTSD and military sexual trauma come in with ten different types of drugs VA doctors had prescribed. She told me she desired to get off the drugs to find something else that could help her. At that instant, as a fellow disabled veteran, I had to do something to give her hope and I decided to become a serious advocate for medical cannabis use.
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