Getting diagnosed with a problem is rarely seen as a good thing. In fact it is usually the opposite. When the diagnosis is physical that fact generally makes sense, but when it is a mental health diagnosis it actually can be good. What could I mean by that? A diagnosis implies illness and that is bad right? Not always and not completely. If you have the flu it would be difficult to see the positives. Maybe not having to go to work or school, but not much else. If you have been diagnosed with ADHD, OCD , or even depression there can be some positives. Essentially if you look at diagnosis as an illness then the negatives are the key, but if you see the diagnosis as an awareness of a person’s nature the positives are easier to explore. In the case of the ADHD individual they forget to get bread on the way home, but the hyper-focused at work in the Emergency Room and saved a life. Their ADHD actually made them better in the crisis. For OCD the need to triple check something saved the company thousands of dollars. If they hadn’t been OCD they might have missed it. Even the person with depression can be more empathetic to someone else’s feelings which can help both individuals. It is my belief that someone should learn how to use their natures to maximize their life satisfaction. If you understand your nature you are more likely to construct a life that works for you, not against. Society emphasizes how you don’t fit in the world. Instead let’s try to focus on creating a world that fits you.
Marijuana plus Alcohol can kill
Marijuana’s risks have been down played more and more over the last years, but one risk can be death if you mix it with Alcohol. Individuals who like the Marijuana for various reasons tend to minimize the negatives. Human nature does that. I like to eat cake so the calories aren’t that big of deal. I like to drive fast, but I am a good driver so it okay. Many examples could be given. But Marijuana and death is rarely considered. The problem as I see it relates to people forgetting one of the major “true” medical uses for Marijuana which is nausea control. When people go through chemotherapy a typical side effect is nausea and vomiting. Marijuana help with that which is great for them, but mix it with alcohol not so great. Simply put the reason people vomit when they have had too much to drink is that the body recognizes it is being poisoned and it gets rid of the poison by vomiting. Good job body. But people who use Marijuana and Alcohol together risk fatal poisoning. The brain may not be able to trigger the vomiting response that will save you. Alcohol essentially disrupts the brain’s ability to send signals. The more Alcohol the more disruption. At some point the signal to breath and to tell your heart to beat gets disrupted. This invariably will lead to death. So it is important for people to realize that any mind altering substance has some danger, but mixing Marijuana and Alcohol can be deadly.