I know I promised that my next post to be about the dangerous conditions and illness’ that may be caused by Mycotoxins, but I had something good happen to me this week so I need to share it.
I went and got a new tattoo. This was only my second tattoo in 15 years, but this time things went a little differently. Yes, it hurt just as bad as I remembered, but the healing is going much better than can be expected by anyone, never mind someone with RA and Fibomyalsia, and here’s why I think this is happening.
I take my THC canna caps every evening to help with my general health and sleeping. I take THCa canna caps as needed in place of NSAIDs and painkillers, and supplement with occasional smoking to chase pain and soreness. For the most part this works well for me unless there’s a really nasty change in barometric pressure. Last Friday was pretty awful as far as weather goes. Stormy, cold, rain, sleet and wind meant a crappy pain day, but none the less I got it in my mind to go get a tattoo and I would not be dissuaded.
On my way to Tinta Cantina I questioned my decision to battle the ART project on Central Ave, but that became a passing thought as I pondered whether or not taking some THCa to battle any inflammation, (that would surely result from scratching my skin raw with needles and ink), would be beneficial or not. “It can’t hurt”, is what I decided. My mind wanders.
I took one canna cap that was about 30-40 mg THCa concentrated cannabis oil (CCO) suspended in coconut oil as I waited for the artist, Chris Partain, to finish up with his previous client and the room to be cleaned. It took about an hour before they were ready for me, and I’m sure that the canna cap had kicked in because I felt pretty damn good despite the bad weather. I’m also pretty sure that the capsule had NO effect on the pain I experienced because I was about crawling off the table by the time Chris finished, but there was a difference in the way my skin felt and looked when it was all over.
There was some redness and irritation as the ink and needle did its work, especially after the initial thick black likes were applied, but by the time it was finished even that inflammation was subsiding. By the time I got home there was even less redness and swelling, and by the time I went to bed that night it really looked pretty good. In the morning there was no redness or inflammation at all, so I took another THCa cap and will continue until this Friday, one week since the tattoo. I did everything else as advised by the artist – washed 3 or so times a day with antibacterial soap, patted with paper bowl and air-dried, used A&D Ointment for 4 days, (sorry, Chris…I couldn’t find my Aquaphor but A&D was the old school stuff anyway), and then added another treatment in place of moisturizing lotion. I used a CBD warming balm made with hemp seed oil, coconut oil, shea butter, vitamin E and essential oils. WOW.
Why do I think the THCa caps and CBD oil made a difference for this tattoo? Well, for a couple of reasons. THCa is a powerful anti-inflammatory substance second only to steroids for reducing inflammation and the pain it causes, in my experience. It works better than THC and CBD for inflammation because it targets the inflammation itself, not the just the pain, as is the case with opioids. My canna caps are made from CCO, and CCO being a whole plant extract, CCO also contains powerful anti-inflammatory terpenes that are antibiotic, antiseptic, anti-fungal, anti-microbial and analgesic. I’m also convinced that the healing properties of the CBD balm helped to keep out any harmful bacteria and promoted quick healing as well as pain relief. Think of this the next time you get new ink. Why suffer? Do as much as you can to heal as quickly as possible. What’s in YOUR medicine?