University of St. La Salle College of Nursing Substance Study Name of Student: Jordanne T.

Etis BSN4D REACH 6-2 shift August 2, 2011

Name of substance Cannabis History Cannabis use has been found to have occurred as long ago as the 3rd millennium BC. In modern times, the drug has been used for recreational, religious or spiritual, and medicinal purposes. The UN estimated that in 2004 about 4% of the world's adult population (162 million people) use cannabis annually, and about 0.6% (22.5 million) use it on a daily basis. The possession, use, or sale of cannabis preparations containing psychoactive cannabinoids became illegal in most parts of the world in the early 20th century. Cannabis is indigenous to Central and South AsiaEvidence of the inhalation of cannabis smoke can be found in the 3rd millennium BC, as indicated by charred cannabis seeds found in a ritual brazier at an ancient burial site in present day Romania. In 2003, a leather basket filled with cannabis leaf fragments and seeds was found next to a 2,500- to 2,800-yearold mummified shaman in the northwestern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China. Cannabis is also known to have been used by the ancient Hindus and Nihang Sikhs of India and Nepal thousands of years ago. The herb was called ganjika in Sanskrit). The ancient drug soma, mentioned in the Vedas, was sometimes associated with cannabis. Description Cannabis, also known as marijuana (sometimes spelled "marihuana") among many other names, refers to any number of preparations of the Cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug or for medicinal purposes. The word marijuana comes from the Mexican Spanish word marihuana. Cannabis is an annual, dioecious, flowering herb. The leaves are palmately compound or digitate, with serrate leaflets. The first pair of leaves usually have a single leaflet, the number gradually increasing up to a maximum of about thirteen leaflets per leaf (usually seven or nine), depending on variety and growing conditions. At the top of a flowering plant, this number again diminishes to a single leaflet per leaf. The lower leaf pairs usually occur in an opposite leaf arrangement and the upper leaf pairs in an alternate arrangement on the main stem of a mature plant.

Street names Mary jane, joint, grass, weed, pot, hash, weed Symptoms of overdose #1 sign RED EYES (irritated conjunctiva), Fatigue, Conjunctival congestion, increase appetite, euphoria relaxed inhibition, dilated pupils, psychosis

Symptoms of use Common reactions to marijuana use include: - changed visual perceptions combined witht the inability to judge distances accurately. This is oen reason why marijuana users are at increased of car crashes. - loss of an accurate sense of time -impaired coordination -feelings of well-being, power, or importance. - dry mouth and throat. Cannabis has psychoactive and physiological effects when consumed. The minimum amount of THC required to have a perceptible psychoactive effect is about 10 micrograms per kilogram of body weight.[ Aside from a subjective change in perception and, most notably, mood, the most common shortterm physical and neurological effects include increased heart rate, lowered blood pressure, impairment of short-term and working memory, psychomotor coordination, and concentration. Long-term effects are less clear. Therapeutic use Cannabis used medically does have several well-documented beneficial effects. Among these are: the amelioration of nausea and vomiting, stimulation of hunger in chemotherapy and AIDS patients, lowered intraocular eye pressure (shown to be effective for treating glaucoma), as well as general analgesic effects (pain reliever).

Nursing management 1. Provide support for decision to stop substance use. 2. Strengthen individual coping skills. 3. Facilitate learning of new ways to reduce anxiety. 4. Promote family involvement in rehabilitation program. 5. Facilitate family growth/development. 6. Provide information about condition, prognosis, and treatment needs.