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Had Brain Surgery For Trigeminal Neuralgia. Smoked Marijuana And Had Alcohol. Is It Advisable?

Posted on Fri, 13 Dec 2013

Question: hi- my wife just 9 dyas ago had brain surgery for trigeminal neuralgia. while the surgery was a success she is trying to get herself from taking all of the prescription medications. she is a marijuana smoker and has smoked one hit for the past 3 days, and also had a few drinks tonight as she was feeling better. now tonight a few hours later she is feeling severe pain in her joints. Is it Ok or advisable to either smoke marijuana or have a drink advised or allowed or harmful? thank you.

Answered by Dr. Chobufo Ditah (1 hour later)

Brief Answer: Marijauna is wrong except when prescribed! Detailed Answer: Hi and thank you so much for this query. I am so sorry to hear about the trigerminal neuralgia and the recent severe pains this evening. Unless prescribed for medical reasons, marijauna consumption is not the right way to go. Alcohol can be taken in small quantities even after surgical procedures. What we really discourage is taking too much of it. If she only took a couple of glasses, then I think it is fine. however, if you can go without drinking alcohol, then you are on a safer side. If she has any pain medications at home, then let her take some and control her pains with. Alcohol or marijauna is not the direct cause of this but may rather just represent a coincidence and not a cause and effect situation. I hope you find this helpful. Thank you so much for using our services. Feel free to ask for more information if need be. I wish you good health. Dr. Ditah, MD.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Prasad

Follow up: Dr. Chobufo Ditah (3 hours later)

thank you for your response and good to know the alcohol and smoking marijuana are likely not the cause for her pain in her joints. do you feel the smoking mariuana (even if only one hit per day) can hurt or cause any damage to her brain while it is in recovery mode from her brain surgery? she insists it helps her pain, but i am afraid of what it may do to her brain until it is healed and only 9 days after feels too soon (she has a medical marijuana liscence here in california where it is legal for her anxiety). i just dont want her to smoke anything till her head and brain are fully recovered from the surgery she had on the 13th. thanks.

Answered by Dr. Chobufo Ditah (37 minutes later)

Brief Answer: Medical marijuana is safe Detailed Answer: If she has a licence, then I will not find any reason to stop her from consuming it. Marijuana is also a powerful pain medication and would help her with the pains. It will not have any effect on her brain or the healing process. However,I will not encourage her to over do it and more so if she can keep away from. I wish her a safe recovery. Pretty excited about your care and concern. Keep up. Feel free to ask for clarifications if need be. Thanks Dr. Ditah, MD

Note: In case of any other concern or query related to prevention, evaluation, diagnosis, treatment, or the recovery of persons with the any type of addiction or substance use, follow up with our Addiction Medicine Specialist. Click here to book a consultation now.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Prasad