I know this sounds crazy but do you think medical marijuana should be discussed with a doctor to help an elderly person get an appetite and deal with depression?

Medical marijuana can absolutely help and she doesn't have to smoke. There are oils that can be put in teas, and edibles that come in the form of candy and even nasal sprays. There are different strains for different ailments. If you want to give your Mom an appetite I suggest an "Indica". Also, look for something higher in CBD, rather than THC. This might help her be hungry without getting her "high". Good Luck

There is nothing crazy in trying MJ in this instance. Israeli doctors commonly prescribe it for people in nursing homes and assisted living facilities to help them with pain, increase appetite and improve mood.. What's crazy is all the years of MJ suppression in the USA.

As for "I'd always rather take a pill," that's what the pharmacology industry likes to hear but it seems silly to me to spend a lot of money imitating nature instead of growing something equally or more effective for next to nothing in my own backyard. BTW, most medical MJ is ingested in pastry, candy and and liquid form nowadays, rather than being smoked.

As for asking your doctor, most MD's are ill-informed about marijuana and many are irrationally prejudiced against it. Thanks to many decades of irrational suppression (supported by the law enforcement, correctional and pharmacology industries) most of us (including MD's) have little hard information about it but what little evidence we have strongly indicates that it is at worst, nearly harmless. That is more than we can say for the many marginally tested designer drugs big pharma pushes at us day and night.

I haven't personally needed medical MJ and haven't used MJ for recreation for maybe 30 years. But have seen it help many friends and neighbors with pain , nausea and sleep difficulties without negative side effects and at relatively little expense.

Zyprexa may cause heart failure, sudden death, or pneumonia in older adults with dementia-related conditions

ZYPREXA. If you need help to increase appetite, this stuff works! If you don't need help with it, look out! It'll give it to you anyway. I know--It was prescribed for me for a different problem before they finally figured that out, and I gained 100 pounds on the stuff! Not good for me, and I finally got it all back off with a lot of work AFTER I quite taking the stuff. It was prescribed for me again later, on a temporary basis, again for something else. Same thing happened to my appetite, only this time I knew what was going on and we stopped it as soon as it was clear that it was the Zyprexa.

Oh, dear. I'm so sorry to hear about your mom. My condolences.

Before my mom died of cancer we talked to her doctor about Marinol the marijuana pill and he had absolutely NO problem with giving her anything that would help with the nausea and also improve her appetite. Turned out mom died before we could try the pill for more then a day or two, so we'll never know whether it would have helped her.

Medical Marijuana, or Canabis, is a very effective drug for the control of pain. It has other effects also, such as increased appetitie, elevated mood, and other good side effects for the human condition. Hopefully, it will be legalized in all fifty states in my lifetime. In order to control abuse, it should be handled like any other controlled substance. It should be prescribed, taxed and distributed with a prescription by a medical doctor or an NP.

I'm not sure why it sounds crazy...appetite stimulation is one of the prime uses of medical marijuana, and in proper doses, it's safe for any age. Funny how someone said they'd always rather take a pill, since most FDA drugs have pretty serious side effects. One of the biggest "side effects" of marijuana is "the munchies", which is exactly what you want!

Oh, and it cured my depression too.

It depends on what state you're living in. If it's legal where you are, of course you should try it.

my Mom what little she does eat is not good food. We are all very conscious about the food we eat but she likes junk and tons of carbs but her diet mainly these days seems to consist of soup soup and more soup which doesn't sit right with me because its all low cal and high in salt, not real food by any means. I just took her out today and got her to eat a giant cheeseburger and fries and believe me that was a struggle but she did it. Its odd because if the food is put in front of her she will eat it, she might complain a bit but she will eat it, but left on her own, she is either forgetting to eat or choosing not to. The ensure drinks she drinks doesnt help matters because I dont care what the labels say,t hey are not real food and I think she kind of uses them as an excuse not to have to eat. She is just not understanding that the nasea she is feeling is probably due to her not eating because after she eats the nasea goes away in most cases. Its getting her to consistantly eat that is a challenge for us. She cannot afford to lose any more weight.

You do not sound "crazy". You have a legitimate concern, and I would suggest the following. Regarding appetitie, do not forget that the elderly do not get hungry! Just feed them what they will eat. Don't worry about the volume of food, just the quality of food. It has to be good. Now for the alleged depression: Are you sure that it truly is depression? If so, I would have a Dr. or an NP prescribe Elevil , an old medication, a pill, not strong, used for the treatment of mild depression. See what happens. The dosage can be increased if needed.
Medical marijuana is a consideration but isn't is used for PAIN? I'm all for the alleviation of pain. I don't know if marijuana is in pill form or not.

it is legal and I too after reading up on marinol don't think we want her taking it, especially since it can exacerbate depression and dementia, which we are not certain that she has, we just know she is depressed and needs an appetite enhancer and i think the natural route is the way to go, it is legal in our state but you have to grow your own plants, and since we don't want mom having a marijuana garden we would love to find it elsewhere such as in drinks or even cakes if there is such a thing. We will bring it up to the dr on Monday and see what they say.

Just to let you all know there are different ways to use medical marijuana you can also make butter with it and tea. As for this pill not sure if I would won't someone I Love to use it after reading up on it. Marijuana is not man made! I would check the state I live in to see if you can get it. And if you can find out what you can make with it for your mother. If I lived in a state where I could use it for my mother I would!! Pills are too much for her now adding another would just be too darn hard on her. She takes twenty a day and some twice a day. She rather not take another one. So find a different way to use the marijuana to help her. If it is legal in your state use it to help her. Good Luck

After an illness (cdiff) that landed my mom in the hosp. & lots of weight loss....they put her on a pill to increase her appetite. It worked great! Doc should know which med it is.
In the meantime you could give her ensure as a suppliment.
The depression is another thing which can be treated with meds.....zoloft, valium, etc.

YES and more YES..... If the senior is already forgetful then whats the difference -and from personal experience Marijana is a very freindly drug, It puts ME in a very thoughtul mood and and makes my life seem more real.

I'd rather take pot in a brownie myself... It's like a twofer, chocolate and mary jane.

she doesn't need hospice as she is not dying or terminal or anything like that. My mom had a stroke two years ago and thank God while it was major, she recovered nicely but she did age as a result and now she is always nauseaus and has no appetite and frankly I just think she is depressed, we were thinking that medical marijuana in a pill or drink form ( we definately do not want to see her smoking it if at all possible) might make her feel "happy" and as a result get her appetite back. We are at a total loss as to what to do for her all she seems to want to do is sleep and just lay around the house. Thats not a life and we refuse to sit by idly and let her just wait around to die, cruel as that sounds, but its true. We are going to the dr on Monday and we have a page full of suggestions and questions that we plan on presenting to the dr. We are thinking my mom might be starting dementia but we are not quite sure as it could all be just forgetfullness or even nutritionally related, she is not eating enough and what little she is eating is not nutritionally sound or balanced and we are very concerned.

Ask and see. My mom was complaining about the loss of appetite and what could she take to make her hungry. Well to my surprise the Doc said well I don't think you would like how medical marijuana would make you feel if you didn't use it when you were younger which she hadn't. I was shocked at his answer but he didn't even blink. So go ahead and give it a try, if it makes her feel better, I hope you can get the help she needs.

I would ask her doc about it and you could call the compamy that makes the pills-they might give them to you or let you get them at a lower cost a friend of mine had cancer and her husband lost his job and the company supplied her chemo at no cost to you-it never hurts to ask and how great if would be for her to feel better-have you asked about hospice for her everyone who uses hospice are very happy with what they are able to do to help the pt. and family.

If your Mom will smoke pot to get an appetite, then get it for her! God made marijuana, man made alcohol, who do you trust?

Can't hurt to ask, but they may not be interested...look into what ever might help.

O.k.. I think it was called marinol that he was prescribed.I think it had THC in it.I beleive his insurance covered it.Pretty sure thats what it was called MARINOL. Jeff said it was not like the real thing he had a rough time during chemo with appetite and weight. I'm a firm beleiver in the benifits of medical marijuana,some states believe in it some states don't.

My mate had some marijuana pills when he was taken chemo for brain cancer he didn't seem to think they worked the name of those pills escaped me.

thank you so much for the replies. I am going to bring it up with the dr on Monday and see what he thinks.

I believe it would be crazy not to try everything you can to help your mother. I suggest you ask her/your doctor's opinion and make certain that anything you try is legal. I'll repeat what I posted here some time ago that a small amount of bio identical progesterone cream applied daily has helped my wife's demeanor and stabilized her weight.

I would definitely ask the doctor.

I would also be interested in the pills for my Mom who keeps losing weight no matter what we or her Dr and Nurses do, say, offer,etc. She is not depressed but has no appetite. Are these the same meds for AIDS and cancer patients? They are expensive and may not be covered for those not having those conditions.

do you by any chance know what the name of those pills are so I can ask her dr?

I heard they have pills that have the same ingredients as pot does. Personally, I would always rather take a pill.