Motherhood and medicinal cannabis.

Simple item page
dc.citation.volumeEarly View
dc.contributor.authorWithanarachchie V
dc.contributor.authorRychert M
dc.contributor.authorWilkins C
dc.coverage.spatialAustralia
dc.date.accessioned2025-02-28T02:25:56Z
dc.date.available2025-02-28T02:25:56Z
dc.date.issued2025-02-18
dc.description.abstractINTRODUCTION: Women are emerging as a key demographic for medicinal cannabis (MC) use in countries that have implemented MC reforms. However, research on mothers' experiences of consuming MC remains limited beyond studies on perinatal outcomes. This study explores mothers' diverse experiences of consuming MC in New Zealand under the legal MC scheme. METHODS: Interviews with 15 mothers using MC via prescriptions, the illegal market or both in the last 12 months. Thematic analysis focused on MC use in parenting, MC conversations with children, societal stigma and risks. RESULTS: Mothers reported MC as an important facilitator of their ability to positively parent their children, enabling them to manage their own health needs (i.e., anxiety, endometriosis and arthritis). High costs of legal products hindered access to MC. Participants expressed unique risks that mothers face accessing the unregulated market for MC like being deemed a 'bad mother' and losing custody of children. Stigma was countered with narratives of empowerment through proactive MC conversations with children and agency by self-medicating with MC despite the judgement they may face for being a parent that uses cannabis. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: Mothers felt managing their health with MC allowed them to be more present parents and better tolerate the stressors of motherhood. In-depth exploration of discussing MC with children and anticipating these conversations was a novel finding. Most mothers tried to destigmatise MC in conversations by classifying it in the same category as other medications and discussing its therapeutic benefits. Few were cautious about having these conversations too early.
dc.description.confidentialfalse
dc.identifier.author-urlhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39967064
dc.identifier.citationWithanarachchie V, Rychert M, Wilkins C. (2025). Motherhood and medicinal cannabis.. Drug Alcohol Rev. Early View.
dc.identifier.doi10.1111/dar.14027
dc.identifier.eissn1465-3362
dc.identifier.elements-typejournal-article
dc.identifier.issn0959-5236
dc.identifier.urihttps://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/72545
dc.languageeng
dc.publisherJohn Wiley and Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs.
dc.publisher.urihttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/dar.14027
dc.relation.isPartOfDrug Alcohol Rev
dc.rights(c) 2025 The Author/s
dc.rightsCC BY 4.0
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.subjectmaternal health
dc.subjectmedical marijuana
dc.subjectmedicinal cannabis
dc.subjectstigma
dc.subjectwomen
dc.titleMotherhood and medicinal cannabis.
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.elements-id499770
pubs.organisational-groupOther
Files
Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
499770 PDF.pdf
Size:
1.04 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Evidence
Download
License bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
license.txt
Size:
9.22 KB
Format:
Plain Text
Description:
Download
Collections
Journal Articles