(ANTIMEDIA) Vancouver, British Columbia — A 70-year-old grandmother in Canada who has enjoyed cannabis for five decades says she has discarded her all of her pharmaceutical treatments and uses only the plant as medicine.

Carol Francey lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, where she has campaigned for legalization, which will go into effect in July of next year.

She has incorporated various forms of cannabis into her daily life.

“I’m not your ordinary granny. I’ll bake cookies in the morning, enjoy a tincture-infused coffee, then go for a walk near the river. I cook with and smoke cannabis. Tinctures, vapourizers, dabs, capsules and edible butters all have their place in our house,” she told the Daily Mail in an interview.

She even cultivates her own plants:

“I grow a grandma-sized garden in a little eight by three foot closet. Growing saves my husband and I thousands of dollars each year.”

She looks after her seven-year-old grandson multiple times per week, but she does not push cannabis on him or other kids.

“It’s too early to explain when he doesn’t see or hear about cannabis and is not part of his home life,” she says. “I would not use cannabis with a teen until age 19.” She also did not push cannabis use on her son when he was growing up.

Though she has used cannabis for five decades, failing to find enjoyment in alcohol, she was quiet about her preferences for years. She worked as a drug and alcohol counselor and feared publicizing her cannabis use would harm her reputation.

“I kept my distance from others I might have had as friends. I kept this secret from all but my closest people,” she said. “Had cannabis been more accepted I could have offered greater contributions to my community.“

However, after she retired, she opened up about her use and recalls that “A cannabis community was there waiting for when I could ‘come out of the closet.’”

“I came out publicly and alone in the rain for two winter months to be the top canvasser for decriminalization signatures for ‘Sensible BC’ a grassroots organization,” she told Anti-Media in a message. “They collected in total 200,000 of the 300,000 required to force a referendum.” She has also protested outside her local legislature in favor of legalization.

Francey runs multiple social media platforms to raise awareness about cannabis and its benefits. Her Facebook page, Coming Out of the Closet Cannabis Club, has over 70,000 followers, and she operates a group by the same name. She also maintains a group of nearly 13,000 members called Legalize Cannabis UK, as well as a group called Grannies for Grass International. She wrote a paper about patient barriers to access, which was distributed to lawmakers.

Though cannabis will be legal in Canada next year, she is still going strong with her activism.

“I dedicated myself to fighting for justice for youth cannabis users,” she said. “With new laws against young people who are possessing over five grams, we need to continue this fight.”

She eventually threw away all of her prescribed pills, opting instead to use cannabis to treat multiple issues and avoid the side effects of government-approved options.

“I threw away all my pills. They had slurred my speech and affected my balance. Now [I have] a little Rick Simpson concentrated oil which relaxes, soothes, repairs and prevents illnesses.”

She also said:

“A hot coffee with a toasty cannabis tincture works well for arthritis, pain, and sleep. [I’ll inhale] a dab for sciatica and…after that I can walk. I’m eating healthy foods, walking daily, doing yoga, a little meditation and writing too.”

Her sentiment aligns with recent surveys that suggest many people would prefer to use cannabis over traditional pharmaceutical drugs.

Francey believes cannabis can help senior citizens, in particular:

“We need to help older people have a better quality of life,” she told the Daily Mail.

“Cannabis helps you to overcome anxiety about day-to-day life and stop sweating the small stuff.”

She hopes her openness about her cannabis will serve as a catalyst to normalize use of the plant and help bring it further into the mainstream:

“I hope my example as a professional social worker and middle class older woman will inspire others like me to self-educate themselves and emerge with their own unique voice.”

Creative Commons / Anti-Media / Report a typo