These flowers can help veterans, why does our federal government make them illegal?
These flowers can help veterans, so why does our federal government make them illegal? Lester Black

Acclimating to the civilian world after serving in the military can be a grueling experience for a veteran to endure. Just like cannabis is incredibly helpful for a wide variety of medical conditions, thousands of American veterans have found medical marijuana to be helpful when dealing with the after effects.

We don't talk about the benefits of pot for vets enough, but the fine folks over at Seattle’s Leafly News have done a cool thing and published seven stories written by seven veterans. The stories aren't entirely about pot but do include at least some mention of cannabis. Each one is worth reading.

Read J. Brad Wilke’s piece on the subversive thrill of smoking illegal pot shortly after he left the military, and how it helped free himself from the binary military world. Read Sam Arrington’s harrowing story of a veteran who spent his nights “writhing in his own sweat” while he watched his daughter die of cancer. Read the story of a woman looking for balance after six years in the service and the death of her mother, and her request for something that could help “ease the pain of loss, calm the hurt, and allow… some rest.”

Read their stories and then go think about how you can make society better for those that have sacrificed for our country. Making medical pot easier to access and less stigmatizing seems like the easiest place to start