Cannabis use is often divided into two categories: medical and recreational—but is that distinction even real?
Society has built a system where cannabis is considered legitimate only if a doctor prescribes it. If someone smokes after work to relieve stress or takes an edible to sleep, they’re labeled a “recreational” user. But if they have a medical card and take the same edible for anxiety or insomnia, suddenly, it’s "treatment."
Here’s the truth: Most people, regardless of what their card says, are using cannabis for the same reason—to feel better.
Why Do We Have to Justify Feeling Better?
One thing I’ve noticed at the dispensary is how different people approach their cannabis use. Longtime users—people who’ve been consuming since their teens or early adulthood—are often the most comfortable with it. They have stories about sneaking joints during their teens, getting weed from “that one uncle,” or how cannabis helped them through hard times. They may have been forced to hide it but never doubted its benefits.
Then there are newer medical users, and that’s where I see something interesting: shame.
Some new medical cannabis users feel the need to announce their condition out loud in the dispensary, almost like they have to prove they belong there:
“I have chronic pain, so I have to use this.”
“I never thought I’d do this, but my doctor recommended it.”
“I know some people just use it to get high, but I really need it.”
It’s as if they’re trying to separate themselves from "those recreational people.” But why? Why do people feel the need to justify using something that helps them?
A study in the Harm Reduction Journal found that many medical cannabis users internalize stigma, feeling like they have to defend their use—even when it’s legally prescribed (Bottorff et al., 2013). The shame doesn’t just disappear because a doctor signs off on it.
But here’s the thing:
Nobody stands in line at a pharmacy and loudly explains why they need ibuprofen. Nobody apologizes for taking antidepressants. So why do cannabis users feel like they have to justify themselves?
The Stigma of Recreational Use
When a new dispensary opens, the divide between medical and recreational users becomes painfully apparent.
On opening day at one local medical dispensary, the demand was so high that they set up a shuttle to take people back and forth from a parking lot half a mile away! The line stretched around the building. People were taking pictures, posting on social media, mocking the "stoners" waiting for weed.
But what didn’t make it into those pictures? Who was actually standing in that long line.
It wasn’t just 20-year-olds stocking up for a party.
There were:
People with walkers and crutches
Elderly individuals who couldn’t get a medical card but still needed relief
Veterans managing PTSD
People dealing with chronic pain, anxiety, or sleep disorders.
But they were judged because they were in the "recreational" line. Their presence would have been valid if they had been inside the medical counter.
That’s the problem with this divide. Many of us make assumptions based on a label, not reality.
Why Is It Okay to Medicate but Not to Feel Better?
This stigma isn’t just about cannabis—it’s about how society decides what’s acceptable.
People drink coffee to wake up. No one questions that.
People take Tylenol for pain. No one questions that.
People take prescription meds for anxiety and depression. That’s considered normal.
People drink alcohol to relax. Not only is that accepted—it’s encouraged.
The hypocrisy is glaring. Why is it okay to take something that makes you feel better as long as it comes from a pharmacy? Why is it OK to unwind with a glass of wine but not a cannabis gummy?
And let’s not forget—alcohol is far more dangerous than cannabis. A study in Addiction found that alcohol is one of the most harmful substances, both to individuals and society, while cannabis ranks far lower in risk (Hall, 2015). Alcohol contributes to 88,000 deaths per year in the U.S. alone (CDC, 2022), yet we don’t shame people for drinking.
Cannabis vs. Pharmaceuticals: Better Results, Fewer Risks
Not only does cannabis provide relief, but in many cases, it works better than pharmaceuticals—with fewer side effects.
One of the clearest examples is opioid recovery. Many states now offer free medical cannabis cards to people recovering from opioid addiction because cannabis has been shown to help people transition off opioids successfully (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2023).
If cannabis can help with opioid recovery, what else can it help with? Could it also support people dealing with alcohol dependence, anxiety-related compulsions, or even emotional eating? We should be having these conversations, but they’re often ignored because of outdated stigma.
The Truth: There Is No Line Between Recreational and Medical Use
At the core of this discussion is one simple truth:
People use cannabis to feel better.
Some use it for pain, some for sleep, some for anxiety, and yes, some just because they enjoy it. But if we strip away the labels and stigma, it all comes down to the same thing: relief.
The idea that recreational use is indulgent while medical use is legitimate is an outdated, artificial distinction. Whether or not someone has a card should not determine whether their use is respected.
It’s time to stop asking people to justify their cannabis use. Feeling better—mentally, physically, or emotionally—should be enough.
Final Thoughts
This is the conversation we need to be having. We need to challenge the stigma and acknowledge that cannabis use—whether labeled as medical or recreational—serves a purpose. We also need to recognize the hypocrisy in how society accepts pharmaceuticals, coffee, and alcohol while still judging cannabis.
It’s time to stop punishing people for making choices that improve their well-being.
Cannabis is not just about getting high. It’s about feeling better—and that should be enough.
Sources
Bottorff, J.L., et al. (2013). Perceptions of cannabis as a stigmatized medicine: a qualitative descriptive study. Harm Reduction Journal.
Hall, W. (2015). What has research over the past two decades revealed about the adverse health effects of recreational cannabis use? Addiction, 110(1), 19-35.
National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2023). Cannabis and Opioid Use Disorder.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022). Alcohol and Public Health.
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