Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1488734
6 cannabis patient care | vol. 3 no. 4 cannapatientcare.com from the editor c a n n a b i s patient c a r e ® | n o v e m b e r /d e c e m b e r 2 0 2 2 | v o l 3 • n o 4 Megan L'Heureux Group Editorial Director How to Become an Advocate WE HAVE A VERY engaged and thoughtful edito- rial advisor y board that helps shape the content for Cannabis Patient Care throughout the year. We meet regularly and discuss topics that are impor- tant to them and the medical cannabis space in general. Earlier this year, one of our board mem- bers suggested that we focus our annual veterans' issue on how to become an advocate and empha- size that anyone can get involved—and ever y lit- tle bit helps! So, welcome to the final 2022 issue of Cannabis Patient Care which is focused on vet- erans and their advocacy efforts to gain access to medical cannabis for PTSD and other ailments. Throughout these pages you will hear about the latest research, advocacy, legislation, and patient testimonials. Hopefully, you will be encouraged and inspired to act yourself and join the fight to help the veteran community after all they have so bravely given to our countr y. We start this issue off with a terrific and in-depth piece by Dr. Dustin Sulak on the current state of cannabis use for anxiety and PTSD. Dr. Sulak dis- cusses the endocannabinoid system as well as the current research efforts related to cannabis. He also shares his unique insight as a medical can- nabis provider and his first-hand experiences with patients seeking treatment for PTSD and anxiety. In our next medical-focused article, we hear from Katherine Golden, RN, with additional information and facts about medical cannabis for PTSD. Our research article highlights some on-going studies being conducted by iCount for Veterans, which is a research platform that connects veter- ans with cannabis research studies led by the Can- nabis Center of Excellence, the University of Mas- sachusetts Dartmouth, and Patriots Helping Vets. There are several current studies that are still open for participants. In the article, the authors share some of the early findings and trends that they have seen so far and provide information for veterans that are interested in joining. Patients often become advocates themselves after experiencing success with medical cannabis and that is certainly the case in this issue with Ste- ve Ellmore. In our patient-focused article, Ellmore shares his journey as a medical cannabis patient and advocate, which began with his award-win- ning 2020 film Unprescribed. The film documents the stories of veterans, cannabis advocacy, and the fight to end veteran suicide—it's a ver y mov- ing piece that is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video. In addition, we will be screening Un- prescribed at the Cannabis Science Conference Spring on April 20th along with a panel discussion with Ellmore himself. Rounding out this issue, we have a piece fo- cused on current legislation in the US govern- ment. We speak with Congressman Earl Blumenau- er about the bills he has worked on through the Congressional Cannabis Caucus. In our final ar- ticle, we highlight the amazing 20-year efforts of Americans for Safe Access (ASA) to push medical cannabis legalization and acceptance around the countr y and teach people how to become advo- cates themselves. We hope you enjoy this issue! Please consid- er joining us in person at our upcoming Cannabis Science Conference Spring in Portland, Oregon: https://www.cannabisscienceconference.com/