Meth use is a symptom of South Dakota's statewide hopelessness as the state's residents stare down another punishing, relentless, and unforgiving winter.
Dr. Steve Manlove, a former Custer resident and practicing psychiatrist for 31 years, agrees that depression plays a big role in suicide, saying suicide attempts are almost always connected to depression and feelings of hopelessness.Read more here.
A study recently published in the Journal of Rural Health found the suicide rate for farmers is not only the highest of any occupation in America, it's spiking because of a lack of ready access to mental health care services.
Cannabis is an effective treatment for Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).
Still another study just concluded cannabis is an effective antidepressant therapy for some patients while keeping it illegal creates paranoia, anxiety and stigmatization.
Even the South Dakota State Medical Association contends that although "marijuana and dronabinol decreased pain" the fact that it is illegal makes it less effective as a therapy.
Although there are different schools of thought concerning the efficacy of marijuana to treat certain medical conditions and concerning whether its possession and use ought to be decriminalized altogether, the fact remains that it is a violation of federal law and South Dakota law to possess or distribute it for any purpose.Read that here.
South Dakota is among the worst states for opioid abuse but even red states like Alaska are learning that cannabis works to treat that disease, too.
Dr. Nancy Babbitt: "As a primary-care physician in Rapid City, I know that many of my patients who own guns and live with a mental health disorder" https://t.co/xdm5PvG4wE #sdleg— interested party (@larry_kurtz) February 22, 2018
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