If you’d told me a few years ago that I’d be writing a book about cannabis and mushrooms, I wouldn’t have believed you. I never imagined I’d become so passionate about these plants (well, plants and fungi—technically, mushrooms aren’t plants). I always equated them with the “recreational” use I experimented with in college. The terms “weed” and “shrooms” immediately brought me back to visions of being surrounded by clouds of pot smoke, giggling and having the munchies—and the vivid psychedelic experiences I had on mushrooms while studying abroad.
In 2007, as a twenty-four-year-old party girl who needed to clean up her life, I quit drinking and swore off all drugs—which, of course, included cannabis and mushrooms. I never thought I’d have a reason to revisit them. As I slowly learned to navigate my new drug-free and alcohol-free existence, I became an explorer of wellness, an avid researcher, and a dedicated experimenter. I started my first blog in 2008 to share what I was learning, and I’ve been writing online about wellness ever since. I became certified as a health coach through the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in 2010, and worked as a health coach in Dr. Frank Lipman’s functional medicine practice in New York City. My mind was opened up to new natural remedies daily. Working with his patients, researching their conditions, and witnessing their improvements showed me the power that dietary changes, lifestyle shifts, herbs, and supplements can have on our well-being.
For more than a decade now, I’ve been living my passion for wellness and creating a career out of it—but as it turns out, sometimes our greatest sense of purpose can come from the most difficult life experiences.
In 2017, the day before Thanksgiving, the man I look up to most in the world—my dad, my hero—was diagnosed with stage IV pancreatic cancer. My whole family was together in the hospital, and we got the news at the same time. If you’ve had a loved one diagnosed with cancer, you understand how disorienting that moment feels. Hearing a diagnosis like that is one of the most painful things in the world, and we were immediately overwhelmed by feelings of desperation, hopelessness, and fear.
After the initial shock subsided, I jumped into action mode. When you do an online search for “pancreatic cancer,” the majority of what you’ll find isn’t positive. I resisted the negative information I found with every rebellious beat of my heart—I knew there had to be something I could do to help my dad. Suddenly, my passion for wellness was no longer about kale salads and green juice—this was about life or death.
My priority became laser-focused as I dove deeply into what would be the most important and meaningful research of my life. Little did I know, my dad’s diagnosis would catapult me into a whole new world of healing and advocacy that I never expected to be a part of. I committed to learning as much as I could about alternative methods for healing, and this plunge into inquiry ultimately led me to cannabis and medicinal mushrooms as the all-star players of his healing team. To get there, I had to sift through a lot of conflicting information and red tape, due to the ever-changing legality of cannabis—and although the majority of medicinal mushrooms are legal, their powers are still largely unknown by many people. I gathered as much information as possible, from as many sources and studies as I could find, and I moved home to my parents’ town for a few months so I could take on the most important role I’ve ever stepped into—the role of my dad’s health coach.
This is how I unexpectedly became passionate about two classifications of plant medicine commonly thought of as “drugs.” The information I found was astounding—not only are there countless stories of cannabis and mushrooms helping people with serious conditions like cancer, but I learned that these plants and fungi have been used as medicines for healing and wellness for thousands of years.
Under my guidance (and with his oncologist’s blessing), my dad began to add cannabis and medicinal mushrooms into his daily routine alongside his chemotherapy treatments. Shortly after starting on that regimen, he started to feel better—the side effects he was initially experiencing from the chemotherapy lifted. Since then, he’s been able to avoid all of the most common (and often debilitating) side effects of chemo. He has no nausea, his appetite is great, his mood is positive, his energy is high, and his immune system is strong. His tumors have remained stable and dormant for two years since his diagnosis, and his tumor blood markers are back down in the normal range and continue to improve. His doctors say his progress is “remarkable.”
My dad’s quality of life has been, in many ways, better than it was before he had cancer—he’s been traveling, playing golf, and feeling great most of the time. While we can’t say with absolute certainty it’s the cannabis and mushrooms that are causing him to feel so good, we definitely believe they’ve played a major role in enhancing his quality of life. Most important, we’ve been able to spend an incredible amount of time together as we embarked on this adventure of learning, healing, and progress.
As I researched cannabis and mushrooms for improving my dad’s quality of life during cancer treatment, I began to uncover a wealth of knowledge about using them for everyday wellness. I started experimenting with them myself—to help me sleep, to support my immune system when I was feeling under the weather, to calm my anxiety, to ease my menstrual cramps, to give me energy, and to help me focus on my work. Some of the effects were subtle; some were more profound. My own home became a “rebel’s apothecary,” as I started incorporating cannabis and mushrooms into my morning-to-evening routines.
I started recommending CBD and medicinal mushrooms to my friends. I posted about our experience on my blog and social media, and emails started pouring in with questions—not only from people who are interested in everyday wellness, but from people who are really struggling. Many of these messages come from caregivers just like me who have family members with cancer. In fact, we got so many messages that my dad and I created a guide to managing chemo side effects, which is included in this book.
I can feel the pain and uncertainty in every message I get, and I knew I needed to share this information in a clear, accessible way. Not with the intention to cure anything—but to help people take their quality of life into their own hands. To help people feel better.
The power of cannabis and mushrooms reaches far beyond just me and my dad. I continue to learn more about how cannabis and mushrooms are helping people every day. To do my research for this book, I’ve attended medicinal mushroom seminars and medical cannabis conferences, gone on mushroom-foraging walks, and learned directly from herbalists, mycologists, doctors, and scientists. The more I learn, the more fascinating cannabis and mushrooms become to me.
In the two years since I started sharing about these topics, many of the same people who were reaching out to me in a moment of hopelessness are now sharing messages of hope. These days, every time I open my inbox I find stories from people who have tried cannabis and medicinal mushrooms and found relief—from both everyday concerns and more serious conditions.
I’m not a doctor, and I’m not claiming to have the answers that will heal you. But my world has been completely illuminated by the research I’ve done on cannabis and mushrooms, and I believe they can offer us potent medicines if we learn how to work with them. My intention is to arm you with information to help you enhance your own life, whether you want to feel better during chemotherapy or just finally get a good night’s sleep.
First, I’ll teach you all about cannabis and why our bodies are so nourished by it. We’ll go over CBD, THC, and how to use cannabis without feeling intoxicated (now that you know my story, you know I care a lot about that aspect).
After that, I’ll guide you through the wild world of mushrooms, and you’ll meet some of the most potent medicinal mushrooms in the fungi kingdom.
Once you get acquainted with cannabis and mushrooms, I’ll guide you through protocols for daily wellness and share a few delicious cannabis- and mushroom-infused recipes so you can easily incorporate them into your life. In this section, you’ll find help with reducing pain, alleviating anxiety, improving your mood, enhancing your energy, sleeping more deeply, and more.
From there, we’ll move on to learn about cannabis, mushrooms, and cancer—and how to help manage chemotherapy side effects if you’re going through treatment.
As you make your way through this book, I’ll help you clear any confusion you may have, so you can create your own “rebel’s apothecary”—stocked with exactly what you need to start feeling better. (We’ll even cover magic mushrooms, and I’ll share some of the latest research with you!)
You’ll notice that I mention some specific brands throughout the book and in the Resources section, as these are the brands I trust, have experienced benefits from, and enjoy using at the time of this writing. To see an updated list, head to RebelsApothecary.com/Resources.
You can read through this whole book start to finish, or simply flip to the section that addresses what you want help with in this moment. It’s here for you anytime you need a guide along your healing path.
As I write this, I’m sitting in my parents’ kitchen. My dad is outside doing work in the yard, enjoying the fruits of his tomato and cucumber garden (he says planting is a sign of optimism—that you’ll be around to enjoy the harvest). He’s still going through chemo treatments, and he’s still using cannabis and mushrooms every day. Two years after one of the darkest days of his life, my dad’s motto is: “If I didn’t know I was sick, I wouldn’t know I was sick!” He smiles and laughs every single time he says it. Seeing that sparkle in his eye and knowing his suffering has been lifted—that is the greatest gift. You’ll hear more about his story from him directly, on this page.
As for me, I never thought I would put cannabis and mushrooms into my body on a daily basis, but they’ve become a fundamental part of my everyday life. My perception of them has completely changed, as I’ve learned to use them in quite a different way than I did in college—without any intoxicating effects. They’ve found a home together in this book because the questions I get about them are always the same. When I mention CBD or cannabis, the first comment is often “But I don’t want to get high,” and when I mention medicinal mushrooms, I commonly hear, “Am I going to hallucinate?” Once you learn to use them without fear or uncertainty, they may quickly become a cherished part of your daily life, too.
As you begin to create your own “rebel’s apothecary,” I think you’ll find cannabis and mushrooms just as enchanting as I do. I hope the information in this book sends you on a great journey of healing, fascination, and well-being—and encourages you to form a relationship with plants, herbs, and mushrooms for the rest of your life.
Love,
Jenny Sansouci