As someone who was recently diagnosed with a serious medical condition, I did a lot of research. Instead of opting for a lifestyle of serious pain killers and muscle spasm pills, I decided that medical cannabis is the proper way for me to treat my ailment. The first step was finding out the benefits of using medical grade cannabis to treat my disease. Through this research I discovered that marijuana could help with my spasticity, cramps, and also help with those dreaded back spasms that I have been experiencing on a daily basis.

After coming to the conclusion that marijuana was the right solution, I needed to find out what the laws are in my state. I am fortunate enough to live in Michigan, a state whose voters effectively passed a law in 2008 that legalized the use of medical marijuana by qualified patients. With the sticky situation of being legal on a state level, but not on a federal level, I needed to make sure that I had my bases covered. Reading through your state’s laws is something that I feel is one of the most important steps when it comes to getting your medical marijuana certification. Make sure you know what you are getting yourself into; it is not just fun and games. Medical marijuana is a way to treat serious diseases, and using and possessing it is a great responsibility. Abusing and breaking these laws makes the entire medical cannabis community look bad.

Try to think of it in these terms: Your foolishness could end up causing those of us who need this medicine to lose that right. Do you really want that? Now that I was armed with the knowledge I needed, my next step was to make an appointment with a doctor. I chose a highly regarded doctor in my region who specializes in medical cannabis. I read reviews and studied his website to figure out everything that I needed to have in order to be prepared for my appointment.

Most medical marijuana doctors will require you to have medical records to support your claims. I had mine ready for my appointment, and was given a thorough examination by the good doctor. He tested my flexibility, verified my hyper reflexes, and asked me to show him where my cramps and spasms occurred. After the examination and reading my medical records, the doctor agreed that he felt medical marijuana would help my condition. I paid $100 for the appointment, with an extra $25 to have the office help me file the paperwork. An extra $100 for the application fee later, I walked out with a temporary card and the ability to visit a caregiver who got me my first dosage of medical marijuana.

I would say that the process was very straightforward, and having all of my bases covered made everything go very easy. If considering medical marijuana, I once again will stress that you need to do your homework and follow the laws precisely. Learn these lessons and then go forward. Your body will thank you for it.