Sylvia Hayes’ list of ailments is long and growing. Sciatica. A bulging disc. Pinched nerves. Knee pain.
Much of the 60-year-old Stone Mountain woman’s agony is the result of a car accident years ago that left her so severely injured that she now depends on a walker to get around. If she didn’t have enough to contend with, she underwent a double mastectomy after a breast cancer diagnosis in 2022. A case of frozen shoulder followed that surgery, adding to her misery.
Hayes watched and waited as state lawmakers wrangled for eight years over legislation that would allow qualified Georgians to gain access to medical marijuana to treat an array of conditions, including pain. She was eager to see if the drug could ease her suffering.
But, as the first of Georgia’s dispensaries were preparing to open in April, Hayes faced a new challenge.
Like many doctors in the state, her primary care physician had no idea how to help a patient get medical marijuana. And the doctor wasn’t inclined to figure it out.
Determined, Hayes educated herself on what the physician needed to do, went back to her and walked her through the process.
Credit: Natrice Miller / Natrice.Miller@
Credit: Natrice Miller / Natrice.Miller@
Getting the card that allows her to purchase cannabis oil required more effort than it should have, said Hayes, an independent insurance agent. But it was worth it.
”Being in pain, it makes you want to cry,” she said. The low dose of medical cannabis, she said, has helped her…