A new clinic in Fredericton, opening Monday, hopes to ease veteran suffering with medicinal cannabis.
Trauma Healing Centers vice-president Trevor Bungay served 17 years in the Canadian Forces before being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Before discovering cannabis, Bungay was taking up to 19 pills a day to manage his illness.
“I was on pills to wake up, pills to fall asleep,” Bungay said. “My son who was four years old at the time came in and said, ‘Daddy I couldn’t wake you up last night,’ and from that day forward I was like, ‘That’s it.'”
Bungay said medicinal cannabis is a great tool to deal with PTSD and chronic pain and that the drug gives veterans the support they need to go through their therapy.
Since joining Trauma Healing Centers, Bungay has become the face of the operation. Clinics have also opened in Ottawa and Dartmouth, with affiliate offices in Moncton and Hamilton.
The clinics offer patients assistance accessing medical cannabis, along with psychology services.
Psychologist Joan Wright will host the the Fredericton clinic out of her office.
“For lots of these guys medical marijuana is the most appropriate intervention for them,” said Wright. “There’s about 35 per cent of people who don’t benefit from the traditional medications, or from the traditional psychotherapy interventions.”
The clinics receive funds from Veterans Affairs Canada.