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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 14, 2018)
Wednesday, February 14, 2018 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon Your Story MATTERS Audry Van Houweling, PMHNP Columnist Is marijuana harmless? Is marijuana harmless? No. But let’s get our pri- orities straight. I have lived most of my life “by the book.” I think I tried marijuana once…OK maybe twice. Curiosity, I suppose, mixed with a bit of peer pressure back in my younger years. Despite my anticipation of some wild trip, I think I just ended up eating more potato chips and falling asleep on the couch. Underwhelming, you could say. Years later, I am now a psychiatric nurse-prac- titioner. Having worked throughout the Northwest, you would have to be liv- ing under a rock to avoid the chatter marijuana has incited throughout our region. There has been both celebration and staunch opposition. I have been asked many times what side I stand on, and I generally give the same neutral answer: “Marijuana is not harmless. There are potential consequences and possible benefits. In most cases, there has not been enough research to allow for definitive answers. There are substances that have proven to be far more dangerous than marijuana.” At the end of the day, thinking about my clients using marijuana — quite frankly — does not haunt me. I am haunted by clients prescribed dangerous cock- tails of potentially addictive and dangerous medications. I am haunted by the ongo- ing laissez faire attitude still taken with alcohol and tobacco consumption — legal substances that kill far more people than all other illicit substances combined. I am haunted by the ease with which youth can pro- cure potentially lethal doses of opioids, methamphet- amines, cocaine, and alco- hol. I am haunted by parents who are desperate to save their child trapped by the opioid epidemic or worse yet, devastated by a recent loss. Conversely, I am haunted by the children struggling to understand their parent’s addiction. I am haunted by the weeks, months, or even years clients in crisis will have to wait to get access to mental health care or sub- stance abuse treatment. The marijuana debate has been widespread and somewhat consuming, but in my humble opinion, by exhausting so much time on the topic, we are neglecting priorities. Yes, marijuana can be associated with cognitive changes. Yes, there has been an increase in non- life-threatening marijuana related visits to emergency rooms nationwide. Yes, mar- ijuana (depending on some variables) may induce seri- ous psychiatric symptoms. Are these consequences serious? Potentially, yes. Do we need more research into potential implications and side effects? Absolutely. Have there been any recorded deaths directly related to a marijuana overdose? According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, the answer is no. None. 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In 2016 alone, more people died nationwide (64,070) from drug over- doses compared to total lives lost in the Vietnam War (58,200). Numbers do not lie. I am neither celebrating nor con- demning the legalization of marijuana. Ultimately, given priorities and our country’s hierarchy of needs, mari- juana is quite simply not scary enough compared to vastly more dangerous prob- lems currently impacting so many. My hope is that we can regroup, step down from our pedestals, and take a step back from what has become such a deeply politicized topic. We have plenty of work to do otherwise. 541-549-9280 | 207 W. Sisters Park Dr. | PonderosaForge.com 19 Pastor pleads guilty to trying to smuggle pot VANCOUVER, Wash. (AP) — A former church pas- tor in Vancouver has pleaded guilty to a federal drug charge for trying to smuggle more than 280 pounds of pot into the country from Mexico. The Columbian reports 54-year-old John Bishop, who led the Living Hope Church for nearly 20 years, pleaded guilty to unlawful importation of a controlled substance Thursday in U.S. District Court in Southern California. Bishop was arrested December 11 after he was stopped by U.S. Customs and Border Protection while re- entering the country at San Ysidro, California. A probable-cause affi- davit says an officer found packages hidden in a wheel well of Bishop’s car while conducting a routine inspec- tion. The affidavit says offi- cers who took apart the car found 105 packages weigh- ing 281.88 pounds that field- tested positive for marijuana. Bishop was released from federal custody January 9 after posting a $25,000 bond. Have a story idea for The Nugget? We’d love to hear it! 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