Paul Bregman was a successful radiologist when his bipolar disorder forced him to retire early at 45.
His depression and suicidal ideations didn't respond to the medication he was prescribed by his psychiatrist who was at a loss of what to try next.
Living in Colorado, cannabis was never far away, so Paul gave it a try having a few puffs in his garage. Just this small amount of cannabis was enough to lift his mood, enabling him to be with his wife and children without his usual irritability.
Paul's mental health improved sufficiently for him to practice as a medical cannabis doctor doing evaluations for patients wanting medical cannabis cards.
Paul loved his work and he was good at it. After all, he was a card carrying patient himself. However, when he disclosed to the Colorado Medical Board that his improvement was due to medical cannabis, he lost his license to practise. A three year battle costing $50,000 failed to overturn their decision.
The implication is that for the Colorado Medical Board at least, a doctor successfully managing their mental illness with cannabis is not fit to practise. Whereas a doctor unsuccessfully controlling their depression and suicidal ideations with prescription medications is.
Paul continues to be a passionate mental health and medical cannabis advocate as well as running his own medical cannabis concierge service cannabisresource.info