pATIENT Profile
By SIMONE FISCHER | PHOTO by @BERMANPHOTOS
JOHN FOWLER BATTLING LYME DISEASE THROUGH CANNABIS John Fowler created the “To Be Blunt” YouTube channel where he reviews Cannabis products from local Oregon dispensaries. Besides his passion for all things Cannabis, Fowler is a proud Eagle Scout who uses Cannabis to relieve the painful symptoms of Chronic Lyme Disease.
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ohn Fowler was not diagnosed with Lyme disease until December 2015. He was living with a roommate who was going to school, so he thought he was just getting sick from something going around. But things started to get worse, and fast. Though Fowler was working technical support at the time, he thought previous years of construction and physical labor had taken a toll on his body. Then Fowler’s father passed away and he had to make his way back East for the funeral. “I started getting sick on the job and had to call in,” Fowler said. “I thought the construction work that was abusing my body - and I was tired from the hard work. Between that and the three-year-old, I would have never guessed it was Lyme.” Fowler finally saw a doctor on the East coast and had a series of tests done to figure out what was causing his fatigue. “Finally after numerous tests, my doctor said I had Lyme for years. The West coast doctors and - especially the neurologists - think it’s all in your head because they are not as familiar with Lyme as the east coast doctors,” Fowler said. “In my experience, neurologists can be very dismissive.” Reports of Lyme disease are much higher on the East coast in comparison to the West. Unfortunately, Fowler did not experience the typical bulls-eye rash associated with Lyme when he was first infected – which is why he went undetected for so long. He went years before he finally got properly diagnosed when he became routinely sick due to Lyme wearing down his immune system. “I was living in North Carolina a few years back before the diagnosis and chances are, it probably started there,” he said. “I lived on several acres in the middle of the woods and part of my chores was spreading tick poison. We estimated it was around 2000 when I contracted Lyme. When I was finally diagnosed in December 2015, my doctor said I had it for at least five years.” Fowler didn’t try Cannabis until his early 20s in New York. He grew up and became an Eagle Scout
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“I find it a lot harder to filter myself these days, which is part of the reason why I named my show “To Be Blunt.” and wasn’t a big drinker either. Fowler smoked about Cannabis products for his ‘To Be Blunt” socially from time to time but did not become a channel on YouTube because it was a way he bonafide stoner until after his diagnosis. could give back to the OMMP community by “I became an OMMP patient in 2016 and startproviding education and real-time reviews to ed using Cannabis products on a medicinal basis. help navigate new Cannabis users. The problem with Lyme is that it releases toxins “I find it a lot harder to filter myself these as you kill it from the inside. Often, [late stage/ days, which is part of the reason why I named undiagnosed] Lyme tends to do more damage on my show “To Be Blunt.” It all started because its way out. Honestly, the brain and memory issues my friends and I wanted to be like the “Buzzare much worse than the physical part. It’s hard feed” of weed. Now, I live in a small town and for me to recall a lot of things memory-wise.” I feel trapped in my small room, so I started “I’m in a wheelchair because of my muscles as making videos,” he said. well as my joints. I often deal with cramps and “I hope someday it might be something, but inflammation, so I use a lot of CBD. My favorite for now it keeps me busy and keeps me using CBD flower is Freedom grown by 7 Points, which any kind of skill I might still have. I figured if is said to be bred by a veteran.” I’m going to be an OMMP patient, I wanted to He’s also a dabber. “For concentrates, I love the focus on the education aspect. I want to talk ‘Lite Me Up’ processed by Dab Society and grown about THCA and suppositories – things you by Bull Run Craft Cannabis. THCA helps when I’m normally wouldn’t associate with Cannabis culfeeling crampy/twitchy, but I still need mental clarture. It’s a way I can give back the community, ity. I feel like it’s not something a lot of people talk which is also why I became an Eagle when I about, but Cannabis suppositories are was in the Boy Scouts. Giving back See John’s reviews really helpful as well,” Fowler said. to my community has always been a of Oregon products Fowler started to make review videos Youtube.com/ToBeBlunt part of who I am.”