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1855076 tn?1337115303

Pot warning ... extremely long post

I'm writing this in the hopes it may help someone &  they can avoid going through what we've gone through.  My 17-y/o son smokes pot.  It's something I was very upset by & had argued about. My son is he is very honest & respectful.  If I ask him something, he will answer honestly.  And when he answered yes to my question of "Were you smoking?"  he would answer yes despite knowing there would be some consequence.

In late July he got a sinus infection & had a bit of nausea. The doc gave him amoxicillin & the sinuses cleared up but still wasn't feeling great.  Often nauseas & had a diminished appetite, though he was eating, drinking & still going to the gym & to the muay thai class he takes.

We went to the Cape for a long weekend, in part to see his girlfriend (who was his first love and unfortunately she broke up with him last week & he is so brokenhearted in addition to what's going on with him physically.) While at the Cape, he went off with her to do some things in town.  He called me & said he was feeling really sick to his stomach & it was getting bad.  I asked him if it was bad enough to see a doctor or should we wait until we got home, & he said he didn't want to home but there was an urgent care in town &we went there.

The doctor thought the nausea was related to the antibiotic, though I told her it had started before taking it.  She told my son the pot probably was helping so don't stop that. (I'm like, "Really?  Did you really just say that?" She suggested an OTC antacid, which we tried & it helped a little.

We get home & he's no better. The appetite is gone & he's not going out much. He's spending less time at the gym & the mixed martial arts class.  We head back to the doctor a few days later & she suggests a change in the antacid & thinks the nausea is due to a combination of likely a stomach bug that was aggravated by the antibiotic. Through all this there wasn't much vomiting but the nausea was pretty much 24/7.

Now he's getting weaker & not eating much. He's still drinking fluids but is definitely looking unwell.  Back to the pediatrician who now decides this is going on too long. She orders blood & stool samples & adds culturelle.  That was last Thursday. By this point he's not eating but was still drinking fluids.

Friday morning things were worse; he couldn't even tolerate drinks. Took him to the ER.  Within a 1/2 hour the doc admitted him. Blood & urine samples taken & nothing by mouth to give his stomach/bowels a rest & will get GI  consult.  Also had bad adominal pain.  Was given Zofran IV for the nausea, though it didn't help as much. GI ordered a CT scan & endoscopy. I asked about something for  pain but it seemed like no one wanted to prescribe anything.  The pediatrician & GI agreed that Toradol was not an option due to possible stomach bleed.  They felt a narcotic was no good due to bowel complaints.  I was sort of aggravated because he was in a lot of pain & he's not a kid who complains.  (As an aside, he told me he was planning to quit smoking pot on 9/4, the first day of school.  I asked why wait &  he said he wanted to enjoy the summer, etc.  I did believe he wanted to stop on that date & he's always been a kid who when he says he's going to do something, he does it & he gives it his all.)

Saturday morning more IV Zofran & also gave him IV Ativan as he was increasingly nauseas, the pain was worse & he was definitely anxious. Ativan seemed to help the Zofran w/the nausea & for a few hours felt slightly better. The pain was bad & the doctor ordered a small dose of morphine. That helped a lot. The morphine wore off & now they're trying to get him to do the drink for the CT scan & the vomiting starts. The pain & nausea are back full force. The doc  comes in with/the nurse. She's quite smug & had an attitude. She sits down & I ask what her plan was & was told again about the scan & endoscopy.  I told her he was having trouble getting the drink down for the scan but he said he'd do his best.  I asked what they would give him in the meantime for pain until we knew what was going on & was told she was not inclined to give any pain meds. I asked why & she very smugly told me he tested positive for marijuana. I told her I wasn't surprised & he had stated that in the ER. I was very clear that I had never approved of his smoking.  I told her despite the positive pot screen, I felt he still needed a workup & help for the pain.  She's still copping an attitude with me. I am worried, frustrated, and exhausted.  She changed the Zofran to a stronger antacid & said he could have a dose of IV Ativan & melatonin to help him sleep.  She stated the cause of all this was pot.

I was very surprised. I told her, in a nice way, I had never heard of that & I was under the impression, like a lot of people I think, that pot often helped nausea.  She told me this is a very common thing, marijuana use causing the stomach trouble & in fact, they had four people inpatient for it this month.

A different doc saw him Sunday & he confirmed this illness was due to pot & it's getting more & more common.  He felt the endoscopy would be the test that would tell us what was going on.  He decided to let my son have some juice and could try some bland food and he was able to get a small amount of food down.  The GI doctor came back & concurred this was likely due to pot use. By now I've done some research & though there's not a ton of info(that I could see that was current & there were different opinions about it but at this point I am convinced this is very real.  My son was still doubting that he could become that ill due to pot use.)

Monday had endoscopy. That department confirms they're seeing more of this, mostly in males in the upper teen years to around age 30. Endoscopy showed substantial damage to esophagus & stomach. Was given a script for Prilosec &discharged. We get home & talk & he is still not convinced pot is the cause of. He's feeling better though still has some pain and slight nausea.  He went out w/a friend & he felt really sick when he came home, nearly as bad as when he was admitted. Being a teen who knows everything, he had to test things out & he smoked a bit of pot while he was out.  Now he has had a huge turnaround.  He is convinced this illness was was at the very least exacerbated by the pot and most likely was the cause of it.  He has told some of his friends (who of course don't believe it.)  He told them he hopes none of them get sick like this and it is so not worth it.

Despite his pot smoking, he was a kid who was very anti-drug.  He didn't consider pot to be a drug. My son drew a big distinction between pot & other drugs. Now he does believe that pot is dangerous & says if he had known, he never would have tried it. He has a long way to get his health back. This has scared him & I'm concerned for him as well.
He has to make big changes in his life. I wrote this because I'm sure lots of people don't know about it & even a lot of doctors are unaware of it.  But it really did some serious damage to him.  The GI doctor who did the endoscopy said he had severe esophagitis and severe gastritis and the damage she saw on endoscopy was consistent with what she has seen in other patients with this.  (I think it's actually called cannabinoid vomiting syndrome.)

I hope anyone reading this understands how serious this can be.  Smoking pot isn't as innocent as it seems.  It has a lot more dangers than a lot of people thought.

29 Responses
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Avatar universal
Vicki, you say there's all kinds of poison crap in Pot?? Really? Well, I'll give you the tar. But other than that, it sure seems that it has MUCH more beneficial compounds in it than any that are harmful, otherwise, as rubber duck said, Willie Nelson would be dead as a door nail . The guy has been toking all his life, is now in his 80's, and still toking daily.
The only poisons that I know if in pot are the pesticides some growers use and the chemicals that are used by interdiction forces in Mexico. But who in their right mind wants Mexican brick weed anyway, when there are so many connoisseur-grade strains around these days.
Dane, I think a lot of people have some issues with "Kush" because it's an Indica dominant strain that gives a 'heavy' stone and can cause paranoia in people that are anxious to begin with. Sativa dominant strains give a clearer, more energetic 'happy' high that is much better for most people. Both work very good against pain though. The only problem is the uncontrollable giggles. Makes people upset because no one is supposed to be in that good a mood.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
"Kush" is thé most potent weed/pot out there as  far as i am aware of, and i know that many people have had lots of problems with this type.  Its the most expensive, very popular at dispensaries of course, and also widely available in Chicago, Boston, NY area.  Its not recommend for sure to use this type of strand.  

I wish you and your son the best
Helpful - 0
1855076 tn?1337115303
Thanks, all (and double thanks to my friend Vicki!  I appreciate your help.)  Summer wasn't bad but was very humid.  It's settled down a bit.  I feel like we're going to fall right into winter with no Indian summer.

I agree this sound crazy but I think it's true.  We are following up with a Boston doctor mid-month and I'll see what he thinks.  He is improving.  I think it was due to something in the pot that caused this.  Maybe it wouldn't have in another person but who knows.
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Avatar universal
There's all kinds of poison crap found in pot; to think otherwise is naive...

We're checking out of few things, Mary, and I'll let you know. I'm trying to get a name of someone as well...

Hope your holiday weekend is good...Is it still miserably hot?
Helpful - 0
480448 tn?1426948538
All very interesting info!!!!
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4810126 tn?1503942735
I know!! I was trying to research it online, too but I am familiar with the varied & horrible effects that pesticides & fungus  & variant strains (even with relatively brief use) can have.

I hope further info is forthcoming & you & your son figure this out. A lot of times physicians just don't want to admit they don't know something. Always a red flag in my book. My heartfelt wishes go out to you both for a speedier & full recovery!
Helpful - 0
1855076 tn?1337115303
It seems like it's found in heavy pot smokers (which he was.)  There doesn't seem to be an overabundance of information on this topic.  But he fits the criteria and they ruled out every other possible thing it could be.  My guess is it won't happen to most people but it is a real syndrome.  It could be a number of things that come together for it to get to the point he was at, genetics, type of weed, how big a smoker, etc.

I voted for legalization in MA, and I'm still all for that.  I just wished that if this really was a real syndrome, why no one has ever spoken about it before.  Last year his pediatrician had a very long talk about smoking pot and not once did this come up.  I'm sure he'll be mentioning it from hereon in.

When I google it, it doesn't have a lot of information about it, and I wasn't able to find current information at all.
Helpful - 0
4810126 tn?1503942735
Possible culprits: peticides, fungus & GMO strains.

Kudos: Ric, Weaver & Ben.
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Avatar universal
I agree! My husband has Huntingtons Disease, an inherited untreatable  genetic disease. He has been prescribed marijuana, he hasn't filled it yet due to lack of place to do so. I do not smoke marijuana but this could be the answer for him, as of right now he is on a lot of meds, zanax,ativan, vistril for naseau and anxiety, just to name a few, this pot could wipe out up to 5 of his meds. What you are saying is right because I am positive the pharmaceutical companies will stand to lose a lot when he does make the switch, but I don't care because it will improve his health, the meds he is on have a lot of side effects, they cause organ damage as well as make him lethargic and sometimes unable to function. These docs that tole her this are selfish and don't have her sons best interest at heart only the dollar factor and that is inhumane and sad. I hope she listens and gets a second opinion from a doc that cares.
Helpful - 0
4578886 tn?1387132109
Willie Nelson should of been doomed 40 years ago!
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Avatar universal
I'm confused. You say that Marijuana is not as 'benign' as people think, and you came to that conclusion from some research you have done. I wonder, did these Doctors help you with that 'research' ? Remember this- many Doctors and PHARMA companies stand to lose A LOT of money if/when Marijuana is Legalized, since it has so many healing properties it's beyond belief. I'm talking they are facing losses of BILLIONS of dollars-so you think they aren't going to twist the truth in an effort to hold onto their Empire? Think.
Then , after mentioning the research you've done, you talk about how this Doctor told you that smoking Cocaine tears up the lining of the digestive system.
Which is it ?? Marijuana or Cocaine??! Because that's like comparing a BB gun to a Tomahawk Missle.
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1855076 tn?1337115303
Thanks, Vicki!  (and others)  I would love to hear what your brother thinks.  Some doctors were very kind to both of us.  Some treated both of us as druggies.  I told one at one point that regardless of the positive tox screen, we stil have to go through everything to find out what's wrong and it is appropriate for pain meds considering the pain he's in.  They took a giant leap from him being a pot smoker to him being a giant druggie.  Vicki, I took him to our town hospital.  I'm sure you can guess what the care there is like.  There were some doctors who were excellent and also got their point across without shaming him.  

As far as he is concerned, he's all done, never to pick it up again.  I believe it likely has something to do with all the modifications of pot.  It's not as benign as many think.  (I got a bit of an education here.  Over the days we were in, one GI doc said when people smoke cocaine, it affects the bowel and everything it can do to your nose, it can do the howe a well. Really interesting.

I am still thinking this is a blessing.  My son will be fine and will remain healthy as long as he doesn't smoke.  Hopefully he won't go back to it.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
this is a load of bulls--t. You may be clouded by the aspects of getting a potfree kid. It  almost seems like this is the answer you wanted. Blame the pot. I do not smoke pot, I haven't in many years but I much rather see the young people of today do that then drink and drive. Moderation is key. Your son is probably not suffering from puke-the-pot disease. There is something going on please find out the real culprit. The area your in is so anti-drug they force patients to suffer in extreme pain, which can be even more dangerous. They labeled you a drug supportive mom, that is plain crazy. Go to another area and get a second and third opinion. Don't even mention this cockamamie diagnosis. I am positive you will get another answer. One that isn't so off the wall. Best of luck.
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Avatar universal
Oh Mary...this is a nightmare...

First of all, having lived and worked in your area for many years, I'm not surprised by his treatment and the biases of the medical staff. It's wrong and it's unbelievable that all those provincial attitudes still exist..it's shameful.

Seriously consider taking him into Boston for an evaluation. The minds are more open in the city...If its alright with you, I'm going to call my brother and ask him what he thinks and what he's seen recently. He's now at Beth Israel and not much gets past him in this area...

I do agree with the possibility of pot being the culprit here. No question about it and for various reasons which Ben and Rick touched on.  We've all seen many untoward reactions over the years...and I have to admit, although I never liked pot myself, I've been a strong advocate of legalization for this reason: better control and purity of the product. Oh happy days! If only the rotten crap was "weeded" out ... there's a lot of poison out there...

I'm proud of you and your due diligence. Keep it up and check into some dietary measures or better yet contact a nutritionist. But I would sure continue this saga in Boston...   I'll be in touch.    Much love-
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1629441 tn?1299632921
Genetics and the amount used are more or as important as the experiences we have with the substance.
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5621112 tn?1371375561
just want to add as others already have,  that you SMOKE MJ. AND MOST SMOKE IT IN A ROLLED PAPER WHICH DOESN'T HAVE A FILTER SO THIS IS VERY HARSH ON THE BODY.  People freely disapprove pf cigarette smoking, but MJ smoking is much much harder on the lungs and body. Just sayin...
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Avatar universal
I'm sorry that your son went through this, but I have to call BS on the Doctor blaming Pot for a digestive problem. They obviously have no proof and are just guessing. Pot is not perfect and some people hate it when they try it, but it's the most benign drug known to man.
It sounds as if there are a few Doctors out there that are anti-marijuana, and see that the public is finally coming out of the ether of "Reefer Madness", and are doing all they can to continue demonizing the weed.
Perhaps if your son was smoking out of a water-bong that had dirty water in it, and some of that water got in his mouth while the water was "bubbling" while taking a hit-maybe that dirty water had some bacteria in it that got into him and caused that problem. Could explain that he got to feeling better after some anti-biotics. Other than that, I don't know. Maybe he was smoking some Mexican brick-weed that had been sprayed with pesticides by either the growers or Police forces, and that caused the problem.
It is not the Marijuana. I have smoked for 30 years (only occasionally these days, since I got addicted to opiates) and have NEVER heard of ANYONE having these problems. I think it's a case of unscrupulous Doctors attempting to create any negativity they can about Marijuana, since the good herb has had a pretty good track record the last 4,000 years.
Glad that your son is doing better!!
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Avatar universal
Aspergillus, not aspegillosis. Spell check had a bad diagnosis, automated responses can change the whole outcome.
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Avatar universal
Aspergillosis is a fungus that grows on curing marijuana, it is common in the compressed form of Mexican Sativa. This fungus can effect the nervous system and cause many seemingly unrelated symptoms. I think a stomach imbalance or other reaction is playing a role in combination with the damage marijuana may have caused. I live in pot grower Capitol of the world and have not seen that level of reaction due to marijuana alone. Without ruling out  pot, I would get another opinion on his condition. A more open minded doctor may have a totally deferent explanation.
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1827057 tn?1397520277
I sure hope this is a lesson learned for him and I hope He has a great senior year too Mary !   best wishes ;)
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1855076 tn?1337115303
He's been tested for everything and everything was ruled out.  I don't think this is an overly common thing that happens but I bet we'll see more of it.  This has been a blessing, really.  He says he will never touch it again.  And I believe him.  At one point in the hospital he couldn't even get from the bed to the bathroom and I had to bring him a urinal.  It was very humbling for him to see how fast he could go from being incredibly strong to so incredibly weak.  The GI doctor said it could be up to 3 months for it to heal.  I hate that this happened to him but I am glad this came to light before it got worse.  I wish the schools or doctors would let kids know this is a possibility.  The GI doc felt it was more about weed be modified and additives, etc.  Essentially it's not the same pot that was around when I was a kid.

Now the key is to  get him into something positive.  Right now it's easy for him to say no because he's still not a hundred percent better (far from it.)  But sometimes when we have pain, once it goes away we tend to forget about it.  I want to keep him busy!!  (He was dumped by his GF the day before he was admitted to the hospital.  It was totally unexpected and he's heartbroken.  I think he could easily get depressed and I am hoping he will have a really good senior year.
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1827057 tn?1397520277
He could also be having an adverse reaction or be sort of allergic to the weed.
I have been from "Sir we are going to help you" to "get the F out" in an instant by doctors following a dirty tox screen but I would be inclined to listen to the doctors in this case.
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4522800 tn?1470325834
I agree with the Above. One thing that stands out to me is the "Smoking" Just like cigarettes can cause this kind of damage too. I would check further into this. I sure wish him some peace. I am so sorry he has to live in so much pain. THAT is not right!!!
Bless
Helpful - 0
1827057 tn?1397520277
I just wanted to put my two cents in here as a former pot smoker and with more than a few friends with heavy pot habits. While pot does tend to settle the stomach it also definitely alters the way the digestive system works. When I would smoke pot my stomach would always feel good when the high hit me. After an hour or so though I definitely had some reflux and other issues. All of the friends I had who were much heavier smokers than I was all seemed to have complaints of ulcers, and stomach issues. I remember one who would always describe it as his "gut reeling" .  When a medication or substance provides an effect there is always an opposite rebound effect. Even constantly using visine can cause rebound redness after using it too frequently.  There are also many modified strains of weed out there these days. As said above too,it could be a batch or strain of tainted weed causing this. I just would not be so quick to rule out any harmful effects strictly on the grounds that it is "just weed"  
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