Published by Programme B
Medical marijuana is a big issue nowadays.
In fact, it often seems like everyone is talking about it.
More and more states are making it legal, and more and more people are taking it more seriously than ever before.
There are literally ‘weed shops’ and ‘dispensaries’ popping up everywhere.
In many cities, you can literally go downtown and buy marijuana, as long as you have the applicable paperwork (for example, a medical marijuana card).
But all of this ‘increased legality’ doesn’t necessarily make it easy to talk to friends and family about it.
Many people, especially people in the baby boomer generation, have certain ideas about marijuana that are based on how the plant (and its use) has been viewed by them generationally.
If you’re a millennial, odds are good that your parents grew up in a time when marijuana use was pretty much synonymous with being a lazy stoner who didn’t do anything all day.
Or even worse, they associated it with other ‘drug use,’ and saw it as something that only lawless criminals and ‘low life’ took part in.
This is obviously problematic for people in the current generation who wish to enjoy the benefits of medical marijuana acquired through a Texas marijuana prescription without the ‘stigma’ that used to haunt it in the past.
So today, you’re going to learn 5 tips for how to talk about medical marijuana with your parents.
These tips may not necessarily make it ‘easy’ to talk about the subject with your family. But at least they’ll give you the starting point for a strategy that you can use as you seek to communicate effectively on the topic.
1. Understand The Generational Gap
Sometimes it’s difficult for people who come from different generations to understand each other.
And nowhere is this made more evident than when discussing ‘controversial’ topics like medical marijuana.
Here’s the thing:
You may understand the benefits.
You’ve likely done the research work needed to overcome the stigma and make up your own mind about it.
But it’s highly likely that your parents haven’t done that.
It’s also highly unlikely that they ever will.
It’s important to understand this. The odds are good that your parents may never actually agree with you on this topic.
But that’s OK. In fact, coming to this understanding can actually set you up to be maximally successful in communicating about it moving forward.
2. Be Empathetic
It can be tempting to get angry at our parents when they don’t agree with the things we agree with.
This can be especially frustrating if they continue to believe ‘false truths’ about the thing you’ve researched and understand better.
But not everyone knows about everything.
And your parents likely simply don’t understand your point of view, nor the evidence that caused you to hold that particular point of view.
Therefore, it can be extremely helpful to extend a bit of grace to your parents, to forgive them for not understanding the facts, and to be understanding of their position.
They’ve lived for years being taught to think a certain way about marijuana. And those years of education are not so easily undone by a few facts—even if the facts are verified, and even if they’re readily available and understood to be true.
3. Get ‘Emotionally Tough’
Here’s the hard part.
Your parents probably aren’t going to agree with you.
I hate to break it to you. But it’s just probably not going to happen.
Plus, going even deeper in this line of reasoning, it’s actually not fair for you to ‘need’ them to agree with you anyway.
Therefore, you either have two choices. You can either:
- Stop discussing medical marijuana with them, or
- Cultivate enough ‘emotional toughness’ that you don’t care if they disapprove or not
Becoming emotionally tough, to the point where you cease to be offended by their opinions, can actually be really healthy for your relationship.
It can give your parents room to say what they want to say without getting ‘in your feelings’ about it and potentially lashing out in anger or frustration.
It can also help you to keep a level head if your parents end up being the ones to lash out emotionally.
4. Move Past The Need For Your Parents To Approve Of You
Keeping with the theme of tip #3, it’s a very helpful practice to learn to move beyond ‘needing your parent’s approval’ to live the way you want.
Remember:
Their approval mattered when you were young. But now that you’re an adult, they’re your peers; not your guardians.
5. If You DO Need To Discuss It, Talk About The Facts
If you do wish to discuss medical marijuana with your parents, talk about the facts.
For example, explain how science has shown that cannabis and marijuana can be used for things like Lyme Disease.
It’s also being studied to be used to treat conditions like Alzheimer’s, cancer, Chrohn’s disease, epilepsy, and more.
Conclusion
There you have it.
Photo by Daria Kruchkova from Pexels