Weed is a recipe for happy motherhood: women in the USA created a movement for 'parental' marijuana

More and more moms are using recreational cannabis to cope with parenting. By sharing their experiences, they hope to remove the stigma from medical marijuana use. BBC.

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A few years after California legalized medical cannabis for adults, Danielle Simone Brand decided to try it.

Danielle, then 42 and working as a journalist in the northwestern United States, found that marijuana made her “feel better and made her happier, both physically and mentally.”

Using legal cannabis has become a way of healing and relaxation for her. But the woman soon noticed that this practice also helped her in raising her two children, who are now 8 and 11 years old.

“Cannabis helps me transition from work, with all the struggles and frustrations I've had during the day, to homework, like helping the kids with homework or making dinner with my daughter,” she says.

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Subsequently, Brenda wrote a book about how cannabis helps her fulfill maternal responsibilities. She says her use of marijuana allowed her to slow down and find time to spend with her children.

Before, she was always in a hurry to put them to bed on time and carve out some time for herself.

But then the woman realized that she was missing important moments when children seek her attention and can talk about school and friends.

The brand notes that cannamoms are not a new phenomenon. She knows many women who have used cannabis to become better mothers to their children. But stigma in society did not allow them to come out of the shadows.

In her book, the woman tries to break the stereotype and claims that “you can be responsible parents and use cannabis at the same time.”

The legalization of marijuana at the state level in the US and nationwide in Canada has made it available to many adults.

While it is difficult to quantify exactly how many female mothers consume cannabis, the popularity of such online communities indicates that the practice is spreading.

"How others drink wine"

Researcher Heather McIlwain-Newsad first became aware of the 2018 Kanamam movement after the group of that name appeared on Facebook.

An Anthropology professor who studies the cultural impact of cannabis notes that today there are more than two dozen such groups on Facebook with thousands of members.

According to the researcher, the movement showed something that was not previously discussed: women and mothers use marijuana in their daily lives, in particular sodas, food, tinctures and other foods with cannabidiol (CBD), a substance found in marijuana, but not having narcotic properties. ...

American Latrez Thomas, 40, says she combines cannabis and raising her three children “the same way other people drink wine.”

“After a long day with three kids, especially during the pandemic, I would put them to bed and give myself a bath with cannabis salts and vape cannabis,” Thomas says.

Thomas says that amid racist social unrest, marijuana helped “her, as a mother of black children, cope with her anxiety.”

“This is not for getting high.”

Thomas, Brand and other Kanamas use micro-doses of cannabis, a plant extract in very small doses.

“People think we use marijuana to get high,” laughs Thomas, who runs a small medical cannabis dispensary, Releaf Health, in Portland, Oregon.

"This is wrong. I am a mother. I am responsible for many things. I run a business. I take the kids to and from school and attend practices.”

Brand agrees. “For me, a small dose is enough for it to change my perception of the world a little. Thoughts, to-do lists, and everything that usually fills a mom's brain slow down. And I can be present in the moment, more patient, more creative with my children.”

Latrez Thomas says cannabis helps her cope with maternal stress in the same way that wine helps others.

Micro-dose cannabis use has little or no risk, she said.

Scientific research on the benefits and risks of micro-dose cannabis is still inconclusive. There is still a lack of data to draw clear conclusions about the effects of cannabis on mental and physical health.

Currently, according to research, the most obvious risk is the injury and accidents that can happen to a person under the influence of marijuana. Like any psychotropic substance, cannabis affects the ability to make decisions and the speed of reaction, which increases the risk of getting into a car accident.

The paucity of data means that even microdose consumption has a caveat.

Adults who haven’t tried marijuana before may inadvertently take a larger dose than planned. And as the market drives demand for stronger products that can exceed individual tolerance, the risk of cannabis abuse increases for all users.

"Mom needs a microdose"

Moms who have openly declared their use of cannabis hear a lot of negativity in their address.

Brand herself has not encountered this, but she has read many comments under the messages of other kanams, in which they wrote “you are a bad mother”, “you set a bad example for your children”, “you glorify drug use”, “you need to get high to do your parenting” responsibilities” and even “you need to take your child away.”

Some mothers also experienced such bullying, their children were not invited to play or were forbidden to be friends with them.

Thomas, a black woman from the suburbs, says that she doesn't tell everyone that she uses cannabis, although she considers those who condemn it to be hypocritical.

“Moms come to a party with their children and calmly drink wine in their presence. But just try to say “let’s smoke,” and everyone will begin to be indignant - “there are children in the house!”, she says.

McIlvaine-Newsad adds: "Saying mommy needs a glass of wine is perfectly acceptable, but no one is saying mommy needs a microdose."

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The researcher adds that while little is known about the long-term effects of cannabis on women's health, the negative public perception of it is an obvious relic of cannabis banning in the past.

“As long as society and politicians continue to cling to the belief that cannabis is bad, science is not asking the right questions, such as 'Could cannabis help treat postpartum depression?'” she says.

"They don't hide it anymore"

In countries where the use of marijuana has been legalized and is actively researching its effects on health, public attitudes are gradually changing.

“More and more women are open about their marijuana use,” Brand notes.

Thomas believes that her skeptical neighbors will have to get used to the fact that many around them, of very different social status and age, use marijuana.

“People would be shocked at how many people of all ages, races and backgrounds do this,” the woman says from her experience as the owner of a cannabis dispensary.

“And among them there are also a lot of stay-at-home moms, and that’s normal,” she adds.

“I look forward to the time when we can openly host Kanamam nights. Let the older kids look after the younger ones and we can relax and have a good time,” says Thomas.

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