Pubdate: Sun, 05 Jan 2014
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2014 The Denver Post Corp
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122
Authors: Colleen O'Connor and John Ingold

CURIOUS ABOUT CANNABIS

Some Have Never Smoked Marijuana. Others Partook Before They Had Jobs 
and Kids. Now That It's Legal, They Want to Give It a Try. for 
Others, Though, Its Legal Status Doesn't Change Their Attitude.

As the new year approached, Courtney smoked marijuana for the first 
time, after a lifetime of being against it.

"I never smoked before," said Courtney, a young mother who wants to 
be identified by first name only. "I always said, 'I'm a good kid, 
I'm not going to do that because it's illegal.' "

But she was around marijuana a lot because her husband has smoked it 
almost daily for 14 years. And she began to wonder whether it could 
help with her persistent health issues, including chronic pain and 
loss of appetite. So she decided to try what she had long avoided.

"I cannot eat otherwise," Courtney said.

The rapid changes in Colorado's marijuana laws have caused many 
people across the state to re-evaluate their relationship with cannabis.

Those who are curious about marijuana and plan to try it include 
people who have never used it, as well as those who smoked decades 
ago, before marriage and kids. They say they now plan to buy some 
marijuana because it's easy, convenient and legal.

But the continuing stigma surrounding marijuana use - not to mention 
the very real risks to their jobs - keeps many cannabis newcomers 
from stepping fully into the light. A 52-year-old man who plans to 
try pot for the first time didn't want any part of his name published.

"My hesitation comes from 50 years of negativity associated with drug 
use and concern about my name being in a news report," he wrote in an e-mail.

Peter Adler, a professor at the University of Denver who has studied 
the sociology of drugs, said Colorado's legalization of adult use and 
purchase of marijuana will probably lessen the stigma.

"Some of that still exists," he said. "It's a very political issue, 
and people don't understand exactly the effects of marijuana. But I 
don't think there's any question that the passage of the law in 
Colorado is a sign of things to come for the destigmatization."

Even marijuana advocates warn that there can still be serious 
consequences for cannabis use in Colorado. Employers can fire 
employees for off-the-job use, and landlords can evict tenants. 
Marijuana use can impact a person's government benefits or a 
child-custody case.

"It's going to take time to work it out," said Brian Vicente, one of 
the architects of Colorado's marijuana-legalization law. "But we've 
taken a significant step toward mainstreaming marijuana."

Health concerns may deter some of the curious, and many doctors and 
drug-treatment professionals worry that enthusiasm over Colorado's 
new laws will lead to a public health disaster for the state. In 
addition to the negative effects that smoking marijuana can have on 
users' lungs, treatment experts say there is a risk for adults to 
become dependent on pot.

Ben Cort, who runs the Colorado Center for Dependency, Addiction and 
Rehabilitation, said his center has seen an increase in admissions of 
adults seeking treatment for marijuana use as the state's laws on 
marijuana have loosened. Cort said pot use may even lead to psychosis 
in some people.

"It seems like marijuana is almost always on the list of substances 
that adults are seeking treatment for," he said.

But there's another reason why Colorado won't completely go to pot. 
Not everybody is interested in marijuana, even with the new laws.

"I am 60 years old and have never tried any street drugs of any 
kind," said Fred Rish. "I don't understand what the hoopla is about this drug."

There's also a gender difference. More women than men said they would 
be bothered by people around them using marijuana, according to the 
poll: 57 percent said they would feel uncomfortable around people 
using marijuana, compared with 44 percent of men.

A Gallup poll late last year found, for the first time, that a 
majority of Americans support the legalization of marijuana.

The changing attitudes have pricked the ears of Dan Morris, who works 
in the construction industry and is a passionate trombone player in 
his free time.

"I've always been curious about it," he said.

At 33, Morris has never smoked marijuana even though lots of his 
friends do. He knows it was an integral aspect of the jazz culture in 
20th-century America.

"I don't think I'm going to suddenly sound like Miles Davis," he 
said, "but it might give me insight into those players, because 
that's what they were using when they were being creative."

If he decides to experiment, he'd rather use edibles because he 
believes smoking would harm his lungs, which he wants in good shape 
for trombone playing.

Curiosity is a common theme among those who say Colorado's new laws 
might cause them to experiment with marijuana.

Amy, a married mother of three kids, will soon visit one of the new 
recreational pot shops but isn't sure whether she'll consume on a 
regular basis. For now, the idea is intriguing.

As a teenager, she smoked pot about a dozen times, and she knew that 
a hit or two was her limit. Since then, she has smoked and ingested 
only a few times.

"I'm not against weed used in a responsible way - and it might be 
something, now that I'm in my 40s, that I might partake (in) from 
time to time, more the way I do alcohol," she said.

Amy, who has two kids in high school and the third in middle school, 
feels that a trip to a pot store will be educational.

"Raising kids in Denver, you have to be aware of it and be familiar 
with it, and know what the laws and rules are," she said. "It's a big 
topic of conversation with us. This is the world they live in: 'What 
does that mean? What's it like?' Kids are curious, and they want to know."

Ric Weiler, who bought a quarter-ounce and some edibles at BotanaCare 
on New Year's Day, works in information technology and knows lots of 
people who are curious.

"One guy is the only person I know who has no desire to try it, but 
others haven't used it in 10 years, and they plan on swinging by once 
the excitement dies down," said Weiler, 60. "One told me he quit when 
his son was in fifth grade and started going to the DARE (Drug Abuse 
Resistance Education) program. But now he's in college working on his Ph.D."

Derek, a working dad, had a similar experience. For years, he smoked 
pot daily and swore he'd never stop because it helped him chill out. 
Then, 11 years ago, his son was born, and "it just didn't seem as 
cool or as important as he was."

A decade and a divorce later, he plans to visit a recreational pot store.

"When I don't have my kids, I think it will be fun to kick it old 
school," he said. "I'm not going to be puffing down, but I'm really 
excited to get some edibles."

Courtney, too, wanted to go slow in her first experiences. She said 
she had no idea how it would feel and didn't want to become too 
stoned. Her husband offered her advice.

"He said, 'Take one hit, then see how your body reacts,' " she said.

Courtney liked it so much that she plans to use it on a regular 
basis. "I was just really relaxed," she said, "and I couldn't stop laughing."
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