Kirk Anderson, California
My brother thought he was John the Baptist. He slept under a freeway because he believed God wanted him to live there. (See https://anightinjail.com/ and a long story of Kirk’s life from Moms Strong: https://momsstrong.org/2018/01/19/brothers-marijuana-use-led-mental-illness/ )
About 10% to 15% of the population is predisposed to psychosis, and most of us don’t know it. Many people have not heard THC products can pull the trigger for a psychotic experience, which would not have happened otherwise.
How do I know my brother and I are predisposed? Because I lost touch with reality onc time while getting high. It was the only time it ever happened, and it was frightening.
My brother liked the feeling of getting high, so he used marijuana every day for a decade. As I described, he has schizophrenia. Of all the illicit drugs that can cause psychosis, those that cause schizophrenia most often are today’s high potency THC products. We can see how homelessness has grown in the legalized states of Washington, Oregon, California, and Colorado. While I would never say this is the only reason for the increase of homelessness, to not acknowledge high-potency THC as a contributing factor misleads our youth and ignores a major reason for the homeless crisis in the west.
- Because more young people will think it’s safe—just like my brother.
- And some of them will acquire a mental illness—just like my brother.
- And some of those victims will wind up on our streets—just like my brother.