Written by Wounded Physically In A Brutal War & Fighting A System That Refuses To Properly Help P.T.S.D., Cannabis Is His Medicine To Set His Mind At Ease:
In the roller coaster of changing times in the 1960s, at the young age of 14, Chris Chambers enlisted into the Civil Air Patrol – an auxiliary to the U.S. Air Force. Only a few years later he became one of many brave young men that ended up in the midst of the Vietnam War. In the lengthy conflict that cost an abundance of lives, with even more seriously injured both physically and mentally, Chris found himself injured and shell-shocked. He was far from alone. Others came back with severe exposure to chemical agents that took years to attempt to treat before taking their lives. Of course, most are informed of the devastating number that perished in the war itself, but many are unaware of how many Veterans are lost annually to P.T.S.D. and other mental side effects of being in the midst of unnerving combat.
When I asked Chris, a very familiar face on social media, why he joined up to go to war in an era in which it was so controversial his answer was swift and with passion. “I responded to J.F.K., “My fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” It was that quote that gave him the courage to do for his country what so few wanted to do at that time. Little did he know what was in store for him, and knowing the tough guy that continues to battle through surgery after surgery at the V.A. hospital. The ongoing delays, bureaucratic policy, and more led him to the Cannabis plant in 1982 when he told me “I just started growing it for all of those reasons!”
In 1983, Congress requested that VA conduct a study on the prevalence of P.T.S.D. and other postwar psychological problems among Vietnam Veterans. This was the first study to evaluate the prevalence and became known as the National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study (NVVRS) which, in its initial examination found that over 15% of those that returned from duty, active or not, were suffering from extreme variations of it.
More recently, Congress requested that VA conduct a follow-up study among the participants of the NVVRS, known as the National Vietnam Veterans Longitudinal Study (NVVLS). The NVVLS was completed in December 2013 and was the first study to measure the long-term health and mental health of Vietnam Veterans. The findings are not only controversial but nonsensical “We confirm that the majority of Vietnam theater Veterans are both mentally and physically healthy, but a significant number are still suffering from P.T.S.D. symptoms and other chronic health issues related to their service. So which is it? In the world of Cannabis as Medicine, there’s one strong voice to be heard – Veterans. By far they don’t ring the same bell as the V.A. does regarding the proper treatment of P.T.S.D. by the Administration nor any fairness at all in the allowance for medicinal cannabis “Which seemed like it took a war to get all in itself” a veteran once told me.
Many that know Chris Chambers online and off will tell you one thing. The man is a legend. A warrior that brings smiles to many faces while he talks it up about Cannabis and the rights for everyone, and generally with a pleasant smile to share! I asked him a few point-blank questions:
Q: 'Chris, How does Cannabis Specifically help you?'
A: “Two words – Combat PTSD”. I also broke my neck so it alleviates pain from that. It stabilizes my outbreaks due to the Combat Stress and it has also helped my pain. It regenerated my C2 and C3 in my neck, I have new bone marrow”
Q: 'What advice would you give to those that are waiting to use Cannabis as medicine. The crowd that's watching, a bit skeptical?'
A: “It helps to explain how it works to others and how less harmful marijuana is to your system than the alternatives, not to mention the countless physical and mental health benefits associated with it.”
Q: 'With Severe P.T.S.D and a Broken Neck did you find yourself on quite a few Prescription Drugs?' What type of difference did it make when you switched over to Cannabis?
A: I was on 19 different pharmaceutical medications from the VA, 4 of which were strong opiate pain killers. Due to so many Pharmaceuticals, the V. A. hospital had to remove 2′ 7″ of my lower intestines.
Q: 'What difference did it make after you found relief with the plant? You've told me that almost all ways of taking it from ingestion to vaporization have worked wonders, how's life now as far as those Prescription Medications?
A: “Cannabis is my only medicine. Other than that I take a Blood Pressure pill.”
Wow!!
Although Chris has been in a battle to get the surgery done with the V.A., he’s continued to spread a big smile around and the good word about the Cannabis plant. Below is a photo from a social media post where he was out for a walk staying healthy, in others he’s on a bicycle. Regardless of what obstacles he faces it seems that his good nature and the health he’s gained from the Cannabis plant have given him the fuel necessary to keep going.
When you stop and think about it, why were Veterans ever subject to a delay in the use of voter-approved medicinal Cannabis in their states? There is not one law on the books anywhere that says a doctor must prescribe Cannabis to allow it. The V.A. used that excuse for years, “Our doctors may not prescribe a schedule one drug, we must follow the federal law” blah blah blah we’ve read. The bottom line of it is that almost all of us with medicinal cannabis cards don’t get them from our Primary Care doctor! So what gives with the V.A. other than the obvious need for greed via Big Pharma?
As a society, we owe a debt to Veterans. It’s one I can never repay as I didn’t serve my country in that way. There’s nothing I could ever do but give the respect deserved. I found it an honor to discuss with Chris the details of his Cannabis use as a Veteran of the Vietnam War. He brings as much detailed information and insight to the table as he does laughter. But there’s so much more to his story. One interesting element was that in 1986 Chris shared that he wrote a Senate Bill that was supported to passage by Senator Robert Rowland Santa Clara County. On Oct. 2, 1986, SB 5346 was passed. “This was one of my most accomplishments to my Humanitarian Movement. To this day 14.5 million lives have been saved in the use of (PERS) and saving the State of California 1.3 billion and included in this bill was authorization for every taxpayer to donate into the funds. Now since 1987, it’s been on your Ca 540 form.”
Below in the hotel room waiting for the vote on the legislation that was crucial in protecting isolated senior citizens.
What an awesome story to wrap up. Chris Chambers left me with a feeling of so much more than “Marijuana is Medicine”. His actions, by far, have spoken louder than words. The personal history behind the man with a big grin and plenty to say about Veterans’ rights to use cannabis is long and intense. Many times I write about how people are using the plant and such, I’ve enjoyed writing this blog as I do most – it’s like I got to know Chris quite a bit better. I hope you have too.
The bottom line of it is it should not matter who you are or where you’re at. Everyone should have safe legal access to a plant that has for thousands of years been a medicine, food, and so much more. It’s only a matter of time before federal courts, the U.N., and other nations uncover the ugly lies of prohibition and end the suffering of millions. At some point in time, our nation’s leaders must face the music. Too many people die every day because the option of nature is denied. Too many people go through nasty addictions to drugs that destroy their bodies – literally rotting them from the inside out because governments are stuck on stupid when it comes to the Cannabis Plant or stuck on greed when it comes to the people in need.
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