Welcome back to the Red Bench – today I want to talk to you about something that’s been on my mind a lot for the last few months, and that’s an idea I call “Cannabis-Positive”. You’ll be hearing me use this phrase often in the future, so let’s define our terms…

Cannabis-Positive – Having a positive attitude towards the use of cannabis, whether you are a cannabis user or not.

Being cannabis-positive has many faces – it’s the person who doesn’t smoke the herb but doesn’t see anything wrong with it, and even acknowledges it’s benefits. It’s the person who uses edibles every once in a while and doesn’t have a problem with it. It’s the person who smokes on weekends, and knows they haven’t done anything wrong. It’s the person who smokes everyday, and knows the herb is adding to their well-being, as well as their mental and physical health. It’s the person who smokes just for the fun of it, to get high and enjoy themselves. It’s all these people and everyone in between.

For the last decade I’ve lived at the far end of the spectrum… I live a cannabis-positive lifestyle. I spend a good deal of my time promoting the healthy use of cannabis. Everyone who knows me knows how much I love the herb – it’s usually a part of our early conversations. I believe in the potential of the herb as a medicine and a source of well-being – I have experienced these truths in my own life. I believe nearly everyone could benefit from using this amazing plant, at least occasionally.

At the other end of the spectrum of being cannabis-positive are the people that don’t smoke the herb, but also see nothing wrong with it. These are our cannabis-positive allies. I imagine that most people who would be reading this article fall somewhere in between those poles.

I wasn’t always so open about my herb smoking, but that changed years ago, and now I live out of the closet, as they say…

What is your attitude about the herb? Do you smoke, but keep it secret from everyone who is not in your smoking circle? Do you keep quiet when people make ignorant comments about pot smokers? I’ve been there. The drug laws in some places can make being open about your herb use risky… it’s a harsh reality. Society likes for us to stay in our closets of fear.

But I ask you – as a cannabis user – do you believe you are doing anything wrong? Set the current laws aside, and just talking about the plant itself. Is there anything wrong with smoking this plant under the right circumstances? I didn’t think so. To me that means that every negative attitude about the herb is actually a residual effect of societies’ attitudes… and these negative attitudes will absolutely affect the quality of the high, which is why I strongly advocate for a cannabis-positive approach to smoking.

Being Cannabis-Positive

Being cannabis-positive is giving yourself permission to fully embrace the high – the full experience. Giving yourself permission removes much of the stress and anxiety that can be caused by herb smoking.

Being cannabis-positive is standing up for the herb. Of course, I do recommend picking your battles carefully, but I don’t let people in my life talk negative about the herb without engaging them in conversation about their opinion – and hopefully I get to shed some light on the subject. Most negativity around cannabis comes from either ignorance or a fundamental misunderstanding of the herb.

Being cannabis-positive is knowing that, in spite of the hilarious Cheech and Chong type pot humor, there is so much more to the herb than the jokes. That stereotype really doesn’t fit most of us, so we do what we can to show the world another side of the pot smoker experience.

Being cannabis-positive is taking a smart approach to smoking. Knowing my strains and what I am consuming is crucial to my highs. My mind is better prepared for what’s ahead – it’s like having a road map, and I’m one of those people who likes a road map when I travel.

Being cannabis-positive is being proud of being a stoner – a pothead. Sure people hurl those terms as insults, but being a pot smoker is not something I can be insulted with – this is who I am and I proudly embrace it. I am, after all, cannabis-positive!

Note about the graphic above: I created this symbol to express the idea of being cannabis-positive. Please inquire for permission to use.

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