Banned, but Bountiful: Marijuana Coveted by NFL Players as Invaluable Painkiller

[NY8123]

Damn good write-up about pot in the NFL with respect to why so many players use the drug. There are many other reasons than just recreation for using pot, goes to show that this is not just as cut and dry as "it's harmful to use". I for one wish they would legalize pot across the board. Medical pain killers and so called "legal" drugs kill far more people than pot ever will.

Banned, but Bountiful: Marijuana Coveted by NFL Players as Invaluable Painkiller

Jamal Anderson was a talented NFL running back with a bruising style who rushed for over 5,000 yards while playing for the Atlanta Falcons. It was a more physical league during Anderson's time, and he retired in 2001 after an eight-year playing career. It was nastier. More punishing. More measures taken by players to ease the pain of playing in the sport.

Anderson remembers the prevalent use of marijuana when he was in the game. It was used for enjoyment but also as treatment for the aches and bruises caused by professional football.

"When I played, 40 to 50 percent of the league used it," Anderson said recently.

Anderson stays in regular contact with players now, and he believes the number of NFL players who use marijuana has grown significantly since he was a Falcon. He's not alone. Current players say marijuana use in the sport is extensive, with many using the drug to deal with the ramifications of head trauma. One player said in an interview he believes smoking marijuana helped prevent him from attempting suicide.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...om&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=editorial

 

[Fins1971]

Totally agree with you on this one. The big pharmacutical companies will fight it to the bitter end though. They want to to charge you 2 to 10 times more than what you can get the same natural pain killer for. And some of those legal pain killers don't do **** for nerve pain. MJ does. Believe me, I know about both.

 

[Sons Of Shula]

NFL Players' Need For Non-Opiate Painkillers Puts Cannabis In Spotlight

By Leigh Steinberg

Steinberg has represented many of the most successful athletes and coaches in football, basketball, baseball, hockey, boxing and golf, including the first overall pick in the NFL draft an unprecedented eight times, among more than 60 first-round selections. His clients have included Hall of Fame quarterbacks Steve Young, Troy Aikman and Warren Moon, and he served as the inspiration for the movie "Jerry Maguire."

There has been longstanding debate on whether marijuana should be allowed as a form of pain relief in the NFL. Historically, the league has suspended players for their recreational and medicinal use of the drug. With it now legal in 28 states for medical use and legal in seven states for recreational use, the push for permitting use of marijuana as a pain reliever is getting stronger.

Per league and players' union sources, the most commonly used marijuana related substance among players is Cannabidiol ("CBD"). CBD is a compound that is extracted from the marijuana plant. CBD has so little of a psychoactive effect that federal law does not qualify it as marijuana. CBD oil has been used to treat many diseases from acne to diabetes, post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia and insomnia.

. . .

The argument against marijuana use by professional athletes has primarily centered around preventing the lifestyle that tends to follow smoking "weed" ("dope," "grass," or whatever you care to call it), risk of addiction; and, of course, the concern that marijuana is a gateway drug to other more addictive drugs. In recent years, thoughts that marijuana is less addictive than alcohol, which is obviously legal in all 50 states and prevalent in professional sports, and that CBD is an alternate form of treating chronic pain have countered the historical stance on marijuana.

Current NFL player Seantrel Henderson has been one of the proponents for CBD use among professional athletes. After being diagnosed with Crohn's disease, which involves inflammation of the bowel, Henderson says that he began using CBD to treat the pain that he suffered from the disease. In a series of interviews, he noted that doctors recommended CBD because painkillers would have been harmful to his intestines and recovery.

Following doctors' orders, he started using CBD to treat the disease and was suspended twice by the NFL. Henderson's suspension for using a doctor proscribed medicine to treat a disease has been a core component of the argument of CBD advocates for modification of the NFL's drug policy.

One of the biggest advocates for the use of CBD is former NFL quarterback Jake Plummer, a client during his playing days. Throughout his career, he suffered a number of injuries and has stated that he has turned to CBD oil for pain relief. Plummer credits CBD in helping him with the repercussions of NFL-related injuries and avoiding the addictive nature of painkillers. Golden State Warriors head coach, Steve Kerr, recently articulated similar thoughts on the use of cannabis for chronic pain relief and encouraged the NBA to look at removing cannabis from its banned substance list.

. . .

The current NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement ("CBA"), which is the agreement between the players' union and management council that represents the owners, expires in 2020. Player compensation, benefits, health and safety are always key issues of a CBA negotiation. I expect that in the following three years leading up to the next CBA that arguments will amplify for removing CBD from the NFL's banned substance list. If it can be proven that CBD does not have addictive tendencies and does not have any gateway drug risk, we could even see the banned substance policy change before the next CBA.

It's safe to say that big changes are likely coming to the NFL in the form of cannabis being permitted as a non-opiate form of pain relief.

http://www.thepostgame.com/nfl-cann...witter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=echobox

 

[finomenal]

Brainwashing is very effective. Marijuana became illegal partly because of the propaganda of Mexicans and negros getting high and raping white women. Before that, it was completely acceptable. Fast forward generations later, and there are still people who are fully convinced that this wonderful drug is bad. Scientists have already uncovered many valuable uses for marijuana, and I'm sure there's more to come since we're in the beginning stages of clinical testing in this country.

 

[finomenal]

A little trip down memory lane...

 

[Daytona Fin]

Anderson remembers the prevalent use of marijuana when he was in the game. It was used for enjoyment but also as treatment for the aches and bruises caused by professional football.

I'm a big supporter of legalizing marijuana everywhere but I'm not buying what you're selling Jamal. No way these guys were treating "NFL" aches and bruises with weed as a pain killer.

 

[Aqua Shadow]

I think at the very least cbd oil should be removed from schedule one, which it recently was assigned due to extremely small (less than 0.1%) traces of thc.

This would make it a legal remedy and therefore would be fairly easy to include in the next cba. Also I am not sure that Seantrel Henderson was only using cbd if he was failing NFL urine tests. I believe the NFL allows very small amounts of thc in your system for their drug tests because too many people use the 'in a room where it was smoked' excuse. If he was only using Cbd and got suspended he deserves some kind of reparation. He was following doctors orders!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[gregorygrant83]

I'm a big supporter of legalizing marijuana everywhere but I'm not buying what you're selling Jamal. No way these guys were treating "NFL" aches and bruises with weed as a pain killer.

I think some may have, but the overall % is low. Most used it for recreational reasons.

 

[BobDole]

I'm a big supporter of legalizing marijuana everywhere but I'm not buying what you're selling Jamal. No way these guys were treating "NFL" aches and bruises with weed as a pain killer.

Why not? I'm supposed to be on like 7 different types for the past decade. 1 of which has recently been in the news, causing all sorts of fun terminal cancers. I couldn't think on a bunch of man made crap so I stopped completely after a few months. Was in a constant haze. I replaced every one with weed. Every. One. Pains dulled, nerve pain isn't debilitating, I can sleep, eat, walk ... it literally does the job of all those stupid pills ... I do still take osteo biflex for arthritis though.

What are you gonna trust? Something made in a lab by some guy working for some company trying to get your money or something that grows from the ground that you don't need to manipulate in any way? It's beyond bizarre there's so much evidence of how it helps and so much lazy propaganda vilifying it.

And trust me, NFL aches and bruises are laughable compared to what I went through. I buy what Jamal is selling.

Who the **** cares if they want to get stoned anyhow? It's not hurting them or anyone else. Meanwhile alcohol and cigarettes kill daily ... the latter being the only thing you can legally buy that causes harm when used as directed.

I want to be a weed lobbyist. Sign me up.

 

[Daytona Fin]

Why not? I'm supposed to be on like 7 different types for the past decade. 1 of which has recently been in the news, causing all sorts of fun terminal cancers. I couldn't think on a bunch of man made crap so I stopped completely after a few months. Was in a constant haze. I replaced every one with weed. Every. One. Pains dulled, nerve pain isn't debilitating, I can sleep, eat, walk ... it literally does the job of all those stupid pills ... I do still take osteo biflex for arthritis though.

What are you gonna trust? Something made in a lab by some guy working for some company trying to get your money or something that grows from the ground that you don't need to manipulate in any way? It's beyond bizarre there's so much evidence of how it helps and so much lazy propaganda vilifying it.

And trust me, NFL aches and bruises are laughable compared to what I went through. I buy what Jamal is selling.

Who the **** cares if they want to get stoned anyhow? It's not hurting them or anyone else. Meanwhile alcohol and cigarettes kill daily ... the latter being the only thing you can legally buy that causes harm when used as directed.

I want to be a weed lobbyist. Sign me up.

Thankfully I've never had to deal with nerve pain other than pinched back nerve when I was younger nor do I know your ailments. I have had my share of sports injuries and other pains but I have never had pain relief from smoking weed and I smoked for about 30 years, don't anymore. It may have took my mind off the ailments while I was in a haze. Not sure why you are calling human made pharmaceuticals bad, without advancement we would still be using substances like cocaine and ether in the medical field. I'm not discounting weed at all and have stated may times here that it is ridiculous that it's illegal. I just don't believe players (maybe a tiny %) in the 70's - 90's were using weed to treat pain.

 

[BobDole]

Thankfully I've never had to deal with nerve pain other than pinched back nerve when I was younger nor do I know your ailments. I have had my share of sports injuries and other pains but I have never had pain relief from smoking weed and I smoked for about 30 years, don't anymore. It may have took my mind off the ailments while I was in a haze. Not sure why you are calling human made pharmaceuticals bad, without advancement we would still be using substances like cocaine and ether in the medical field. I'm not discounting weed at all and have stated may times here that it is ridiculous that it's illegal. I just don't believe players (maybe a tiny %) in the 70's - 90's were using weed to treat pain.

I read that back and it came off a little rantier than I meant it to. My bad.

It's not universal. Some things don't work for everybody. Caffeine, acetaminophen, and ibuprofen don't do anything for me. Luckily for me, I don't drink coffee or get headaches.

I can tell you one thing though, even after everything I went through I still had nerve pain to look forward to. It was so bad I could hardly do anyting. I'm talking like a bolt of lightning shooting up my spine then back down my leg. It was totally unmanageable. Smoking takes it away completely. And it just so happens the pill I was supposed to take for the last 10 years to combat it is the one killing people right now. Go figure.

And I'm not trying to say human stuff is all bad. There are things that weed doesn't touch that people couldn't live without. My point was between the two, which one do you trust to not kill you, provided they are serving the same function? I'd probably have tits, a tail, and some rare cancer they can't even treat if I went the man made route. Just sayin.

I know you're a supporter. I didn't mean it to come off like that. Why'd you stop by the way?

 

[Daytona Fin]

I know you're a supporter. I didn't mean it to come off like that. Why'd you stop by the way?

The side effects. Like you said every body reacts different. For me it was the grogginess in the mornings, breathing issues/shortness of breath, coughing and as I got older the paranoia worsened.

 

[Sons Of Shula]

The side effects. Like you said every body reacts different. For me it was the grogginess in the mornings, breathing issues/shortness of breath, coughing and as I got older the paranoia worsened.

The great benefits of the legalization of MJ is that you have the opportunity in selecting b/w the two very different species.

Indica is known for being physically sedating, good for aches & pains, it stimulates the appetite as well making this ideal for cancer patients and the like. This is you're stereotypical "stoner" weed.

Sativa is more invigorating and uplifting with cerebral effects that pair well with physical activity, social gatherings, and creative projects. My personnel favorite especially before heading out for a hike or a swim or sitting down in my music room full of guitars, amps and violin.

There are also hybrids b/w the two with varying ratios.

 

[BobDole]

The side effects. Like you said every body reacts different. For me it was the grogginess in the mornings, breathing issues/shortness of breath, coughing and as I got older the paranoia worsened.

I was expecting 'because I grew up and started doing coke like an adult.' Seems like a missed opportunity.

The grogginess is real. I'll take a few weeks off every couple months for detoxifying purposes and I notice how much easier it is for me to get up in the morning. Never got the breathing issues/coughing thing ... maybe I'm lucky there. I also never got the paranoia thing but 90% of my friends who quit cite that as the reason. Started having kids, had a good job, etc and once they knew they had something to lose it just wasn't the same. I smoked with 2 of my friends the very last time they ever burned and they were getting up and looking out the window every 5 minutes like the cops were coming or something. I think that's more of the stigma attached to it, but I totally get it.

You'll be back one day when you're retired and the kids are out of the house ... perspective has a way of changing. Let me know.

 

[cafinfan408]

I managed a medical dispensary for 5 years in San Jose. One of the owners also bred dogs and sold them to many 49er players and coaches and a few Raider players.
During this time I have personally helped at least 20 current players shop for their meds.
During the season the orders were really foccused on helping their bodies relax with a mixture of topicals, cbd and heavy indica usage. They would want cbd products they would want bath salts and massage creams.
During the offseason its all flowers. So i would say its a mixture of both..
They always want to get high but they also understand what really helps them recover