Meet a Stoner Mom Round-Up

This past weekend I found myself going through my blog’s archives and revisiting some very lovely and inspiring women. In my Meet a Stoner Mom series I asked readers to share some details about their stoner-mom lifestyle. I wanted to know why they use cannabis, how open about cannabis they were, and what their standard stoner schedule looks like, especially as parents.

Some readers were generous enough to share their stoner stories, and as their words did then, they inspire me now, and so today we are going to visit with these lovely women again.

In this post, I have pulled together answers from all of the women who shared their answers with me. You can read their individual feature by clicking their names.

Because I find it so comforting to hear from stoner parents everywhere, I am reopening submissions with a new questionnaire. You can find it and submit your entry at the end of this post.

Now, let’s see what these lovely moms have to say about cannabis in their lives.

Why do you use cannabis?

“I use Cannabis in addition to my SSRI’s to keep myself level-headed, mindful, appreciative and gentle. After a bunch of personal research and through trial and error, I have figured out the right amounts and strains of cannabis to effectively treat my depressive disorder and anxiety. Cannabis has changed my mental well-being, my outlook on life, and the way I handle the ongoing daily stresses of motherhood.” – Kathryn (The Stoner Mom)

“I suffered a spinal injury while working as a hospice nurse. Despite lengthy treatment – surgery and everything else under the sun – I never recovered. Life was bleak. I suffer from constant pain. It got to the point that I was taking Valium and opiates around the clock and they weren’t even eliminating the pain. The worst were the side effects of the medications. I just couldn’t tolerate them. A friend and my mom convinced me to try medical marijuana. MMJ has been a Godsend.” – Jessie www.flusteredmom.com

“I use cannabis for the pain involved with Interstitial Cystitis. I was diagnosed 25 years ago and just started using medical marijuana weeks ago. It helps to relieve my neuro pain as well as loosen all the tension in my spine, pelvis, and ligaments to make physical therapies way more effective. It also helps relax my muscles at night and helps me to sleep deeper than I have in 20 years.

I gave up opiates 3 months ago, then sleeping pills 2 months ago. Then I became a brand new pot smoker – the first time I used MJ, I laughed, then cried because I was so happy. I was finally, truly out of pain. Then I cried deeply as I grieved all the time I’ve lost not knowing that pot could help my condition. And many others I believe. I’ll be an advocate from now on.” – Jamie

“I use marijuana for many reasons. I am a very busy lady. I run my husband business, homeschool three kids, make everything from scratch, (if I can, we are trying to eliminate artificial chemicals and trying to become self-reliant with gardening and soon livestock), managing my mother’s finances, volunteering to manage our church’s pantry finances, volunteering throughout the year at a Christian camp. I use marijuana to help control anxiety, to help extend my patience, to improve my interaction with the kids, improve my sex life, to be more in tune with my body, improve or produce creativity, improve productivity, create interesting conversation and occasionally with managing menstruation pains. My husband uses it daily for his ulcerative colitis has managed it now for 3 years successfully.” – Becky

“I have used cannabis for over 10 years now. Seeing that I’m already a firecracker and full of energy I find it helps stabilize my mood and brings down my anxiety.” – Kim

“I started using it a couple years ago to combat anxiety. I have found it helps me be more productive, especially when I get home from work before the kids get home from school. Most people think this is strange what with the perception that pot makes you lazy, but instead, it makes my marathon cleaning of the house fantastic and fun.” – Gena

How open are you about cannabis with your kids?

“I’m extremely open with my kids and the world about my cannabis use. As a legal patient, it’s easier for me to speak up than it is for many others. My kids are better educated about marijuana than most adults. After seeing the way MMJ has improved our own lives, we’ve become a family of advocates. My son’s spoken out to his class about my medicinal use and I’ve shared my story on Good Housekeeping and other outlets. We’re working hard to change the stigma associated with marijuana. #Legalize” – Jessie

“Very. I used to use pharmaceuticals and my kids were very aware, despite my discretion. They would occasionally figure out that I had to see doctors on a regular basis and a pain doc monthly. That one of our regular errands was to stop at the pharmacy. They know that my meds were in my bedroom that was often locked and that meds were only to be taken by the person they were prescribed for. Cannabis is VERY similar. Locked containers in a Locked cabinet in a Locked room. It’s mine because of my illness, it helps me, it’s only for adults – over 18, and it’s not to be tampered with. I’m hopeful that if I have open dialogue with them, that they will with me.” – Jamie

“When it comes to how open I am, I guess I never gave it too much thought. I’ve been smoking cannabis since before they were born so it has always just been the norm. I definitely don’t smoke in front of the kids or allow them to sit in on a sesh but they are aware that mommy has a smoking room to go to relax. It has never been questioned so till the day comes it is what it is, and when the day does arrive I see no reason not to be honest.” – Kim

“We don’t talk about it with them yet. As the people in our lives have not yet been enlightened about the various benefits of marijuana, plus it’s only medically legal here. Even though my husband uses marijuana for medical reasons, ulcerative colitis is not on the approved list at this point in our state.

We plan to talk about it with them in the future once we moved to a place where marijuana is legal and they are at an age where they can comprehend the conversation. We plan to be open and honest about it with them. We plan to educate them about the truths of marijuana.” – Becky

“Presently we are only just easing the boys into this. Of course being that I live in California, it isn’t exactly as legal. Both my husband and I have medical cards, with him using it strictly for sleep. Over this past Christmas we were out of town so my husband brought his edibles with us and as we were sharing a room with the boys, my oldest, in particular, would be able to see him consuming edibles which look like sour gummies. My husband was awesome in explaining that it is sleep medicine for grownups only and pointing out that it is in candy form because it is like how his cough syrup tastes like cherry to make the medicine go down. My oldest is 10 going on 60 as he is incredibly insightful. It’s funny because my boys are very in tune with the idea that people drink and they understand drunk so in a few years I am sure that explaining high will be easy enough. But for now, the special chocolate is hidden and we are incredibly open about making sure they can talk to us about anything.” – Gena

What does a typical stoner day schedule look like for you? ie, what is your stoner schedule?

“My stoner schedule has lately been starting anytime after 2. It seems to allow me the perfect time to do some chores and not scream at homework and zones me out for some good sleep. It is truly the most perfect set up. On a weekend I might spend more of my evening a little more stoned what with my husband being around as my buffer if need be.” – Gena

“Because I share custody with my daughter’s dad, I have weekends 100% off kid duty. This allows me the luxury to get stoned all hours of the day during the weekends. So on those two days,I live in my bed and work hard on my business all while being stoned to the bone.

During the five days of the week when I have children, I usually wake and bake a couple of hours after dropping the kids off at school. I am careful about the strains I use during the day and always have a strong understanding of how cannabis is going to effect me. I choose high-energy sativa strains that motivate and inspire me, usually around 10 am. For the following couple hours, I am “high-functioning” stoned. Whether I am marathon cleaning or powering through work, cannabis is that instant motivator and mood boost that you don’t get with the regular anti-depressant regiment.” – Kathryn

Now it’s your Turn

I want to hear from you. Guys, girls, moms, dads, singles, married, divorced, remarried. I want to know how cannabis has changed your life and how you approach cannabis-use responsibly. And I know it’s called Meet a Stoner MOM, but the door is open to moms, dads, grandparents, parents of children using medical marijuana, and any adult using cannabis in a responsible way, whether or not they have children.

It’s important to share our stories and personal practices. Every time a responsible adult “comes out” of the cannabis closet, it makes it easier for the next one. Changing the stoner stigma can only happen if we make ourselves vulnerable and share our love for the plant.

I know that many people can’t “come out” publicly, and truly, that’s who this series is for. Fear of law can isolate us from one another, and no good comes from not having a support system. I want you to know that you are not alone. There is an army of responsible stoners out there, doing all the same boring stuff you do, including smoking weed.