Medical Cannabis Medical Cannabis Consultations

Medical Cannabis Consultations (Coaching and Recommendations) with Dr. Abraham Benavides and Dr. Kogan

What is Cannabis Coaching?

Medical Cannabis Consultation consist of two types: Coaching and Recommendations. Cannabis coaching is a type of health coaching that involves providing individualized guidance on how to best use medical cannabis for your conditions or symptoms. Medical cannabis use and product selection can be overwhelming since cannabis comes in a wide variety of forms, strengths, and include many combinations of terpenes and cannabinoids like THC, CBD, CBG, CBN, acidic cannabinoids, and many others.

At GW CIM, our expert cannabis coach Dr. Abraham Benavides will gladly meet with you via televisit to discuss your cannabis wellness goals and provide up-to-date, scientific information to make decisions together. Our partners at Acute on Chronic can also see patients in states outside the DMV for cannabis coaching and recommendations. Cannabis coaching is open to people with and without current medical cannabis recommendations.

Cannabis coaching services can:
- Answer cannabis and health-related questions
- Give patient education about cannabis and terpene science
- Discuss strategies for dosing, product choice, routes of administration, and healthy consumption
- Help develop personalized, in-depth cannabis wellness plans
- Do coaching intakes and follow-ups as needed, and for certification by other providers
Initial Visits:
- 60 minute cannabis coaching intake by Dr. Benavides
- Rate: $180/hour for cannabis coaching sessions
- Outside of the tri-state area, Acute on Chronic also offers medical cannabis coaching and recommendation services
Follow-up Visits:
- 60 minute comprehensive follow up to reassess wellness plan
- 30 minute brief follow up just to touch base

What is Cannabis Recommendations?

If you are interested in obtaining an official medical cannabis recommendation, Dr. Benavides will meet with you first to gather sufficient information so that afterward Dr. Kogan can touch base with you briefly, and then issue a certification in the tri-state DMV area if appropriate. This is the general process:

Initial 60-minute intake with Dr. Benavides
Intake and coaching information reviewed by Dr. Kogan
Dr. Kogan or other provider will briefly touch base with you
Dr. Kogan or another CIM provider can issue a medical cannabis certification in the tri-state DMV area
Outside of the Tri-State DMV area, Acute on Chronic offers medical cannabis recommendation services in the following states:
- Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and West Virginia.

What can you use Cannabis for?

Cannabinoids and terpenes—particularly when combined—have distinct effects on the body’s cannabinoid receptors, producing numerous potential therapeutic benefits. Medical cannabis is used both anecdotally and formally to treat many symptoms and conditions, including:¹^,²

Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and dementia-related symptoms
Appetite loss
Arthritis
Chemotherapy-induced vomiting
Chronic pain
Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis (IBD)
Eating disorders like anorexia
Epilepsy
Gastrointestinal inflammatory and motility disorders
Glaucoma
Itching
Mental health conditions like general anxiety, depression, social anxiety, OCD, ASD, and post-traumatic stress disorder
Muscle spasms from multiple sclerosis and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Nausea
Neuropathy
Palliative care in HIV/AIDS and terminal cancer
Psychiatric symptoms and psychological suffering
Stroke and traumatic brain injury
Wasting syndrome (cachexia)

Medical cannabis may be just one part of the integrative medicine approach to such conditions. Of course, larger research is needed to confirm the efficacy of medical cannabis in these conditions as it is not yet FDA approved outside of rare, childhood epilepsy syndromes.

Besides Medical Cannabis Consultations, GW CIM also offers a variety of complementary and alternative therapies such as naturopathy, holistic psychiatry, acupuncture, traditional Chinese medicine, Reiki, Ayurveda, and more that are to be employed in conjunction with medical cannabis.

Medical Cannabis Resources

Cannabis is one of the oldest known therapeutic substances, and yet also among the most misunderstood. Finding quality information online can be difficult, often involving sifting through and weighing the credibility of many websites.

At GWCIM, leading experts like Dr. Mikhail Kogan and Dr. Abraham Benavides can help answer patients’ questions about medical cannabis and guide them on their cannabis journey. They have combined their credible online resources to make this helpful guide for patients who want to do their own evidence-based reading.

Medical Marijuana: Dr. Kogan’s Evidence-Based Guide to the Health Benefits of Cannabis and CBD

Buy Book on Amazon

An outstanding resource and reference guide for patients and clinicians alike written by Dr. Kogan.

What Does CBD Feel Like?

Answers FAQ about taking CBD for beginners.

https://americanmarijuana.org/what-does-cbd-feel-like/

Cannabinoids and the Endocannabinoid System

An in-depth, scientific explanation of the endocannabinoid system.

Cannabinoids and the Endocannabinoid System: A Match Made in Heaven

Conditions That may be Treated With Medical Cannabis

A directory of medical conditions articles that have been medically reviewed, edited, and updated with the latest science by Dr. Benavides.

Conditions

Cannakeys 360

A subscription research platform geared towards healthcare practitioners. Helpful for looking up publications organized by medical condition, cannabinoid, terpene, and organ system. Synopsis articles and evidence base are edited and updated by Dr. Benavides.

CannaKeys

Outside Resources

References:

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Health and Medicine Division, Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice, & Committee on the Health Effects of Marijuana: An Evidence Review and Research Agenda. (2017). The Health Effects of Cannabis and Cannabinoids: The Current State of Evidence and Recommendations for Research. National Academies Press (US). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK425767/
Barrales-Cureño, H. J., López-Valdez, L. G., Reyes, C., Cetina-Alcalá, V. M., Vasquez-García, I., Diaz-Lira, O. F., & Herrera-Cabrera, B. E. (2020). Chemical Characteristics, therapeutic uses, and legal aspects of the cannabinoids of Cannabis Sativa: A Review. Brazilian Archives of Biology and Technology. Retrieved January 6, 2022, from https://www.scielo.br/j/babt/a/vshCZMZdHpQRhMYwQ8WwVWq/?lang=en

Last Reviewed by Dr. Abraham Benavides and Dr. Mikhail Kogan on 10-05-2022