Newswise — Toronto’s Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) recently released a report with a striking statistic: the rate of cannabis use among Ontario adults climbed to 14 percent last year from 8.7 percent in 1996. Researchers at CAMH say the steady increase in cannabis underscores the need for a public health approach to cannabis control.
Yet as it becomes legalized in the U.S. and Canada, marijuana usage seems to have somehow taken on the image of harmless indulgence. However, the debate as to whether marijuana is truly addictive has not been resolved. The Massachusetts General Hospital Center for Addiction Medicine published a recent study in which 84 percent of teenagers treated at an outpatient facility met criteria for marijuana dependence. About two-fifths of the 90 teens also experienced symptoms of withdrawal when they stopped using marijuana—a sign of drug dependence, according to the study authors.
Dr. Anita Teslak, C. Psych. is inspired by such findings to ask some probing questions—especially since she deals with those struggling with addiction and mental health issues on a daily basis. The Vice President of Operations of GreeneStone Healthcare Corporation, which operates a residential treatment center in Muskoka, Ontario, Teslak holds an M.A. in counseling psychology and doctorate in clinical psychology, and is a member of the College of Psychologists of Ontario, the Ontario Psychological Association and Canadian Psychological Association.
Teslak wonders how harmful—or harmless—marijuana is compared to other drugs, and whether it is getting a “free pass” with the advent of legalization, especially if it is a gateway to the use of more dangerous substances.
There might be a link between substance abuse and existing mental health issues that can lead to increased psychological ailments. We have to be mindful of the consequences if cannabis is getting a “free pass. We may be providing a playground that leads to increased risks and poorer functioning.
A separate recent survey finding from CAMH—namely, that 230,000 Ontario adults (amounting to 2.3 percent of the adult population) “seriously contemplated suicide” in 2013. CAMH further found a sharp increase in self-rated poor mental health, from 4.7 percent in 2003 to 7.1 percent in 2013. The findings were based on responses from 3,021 Ontario adults.
Teslak’s extensive experience has buttressed her expertise on these troubling but important trends.
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