Florida is one of the largest producers and consumers of medicinal marijuana in the country.

In this election, Florida voters will decide whether marijuana should be made available to millions more people, allowing anyone age 21 or older to obtain and consume marijuana without a prescription.

Jeff Rexford, 53, knows there are many skeptics of the amendment, but he hopes voters will reconsider as he did.

“Years ago, I wasn’t a fan of marijuana,” Rexford said. “I mean, you used to get it from your local drug dealer down the street.”

Rexford has changed his mind about marijuana because he says it changed his life. He says he once used painkillers for his back pain, but those medications made him feel like a “zombie” because he became so sleepy. He says pot candy is now a better solution for him.

“They immediately relieved my pain. I would say after about 30 minutes I start to feel some relief. And if I want instant relief, I’ll smoke a pre-rolled joint.

Rexford picks up his medical marijuana each week from a Sunnyside dispensary in Cape Coral. He says his daily dose also improved his marriage – it helped him in his long battle with anxiety and depression.

“It helps me communicate with my wife in a more civil way. No shouting or shouting. You know, if I was excited about something. It’s just a more relaxed feeling,” Rexford said.

Rexford is one of nearly 900,000 people currently holding a medical marijuana card in Florida. He believes more Floridians could enjoy the same benefits if it were easier to obtain marijuana and that’s why he supports legalizing recreational marijuana. He doesn’t completely understand the opposition.

“It’s a question of age without education. Older people, older baby boomers, considered it a party drug. You know, they didn’t realize in the ’60s and ’70s that there were benefits to this,” Rexford said. “And now, as science advances and we learn more, there is verifiable evidence that marijuana helps with many things: anxiety, depression, pain relief, many things. ”

Fort Myers businessman Cole Peacock also supports the measure, but for more than just personal physical benefits.

“It’s a proven job creation tool,” Peacock said.

Peacock is co-owner of Caloosahatchee Cannabis in downtown Fort Myers, a cafe where you’ll find everything from coffee to beer infused with CBD, one of the active ingredients in the cannabis plant that doesn’t get you high. people. Peacock would like to be able to add recreational marijuana to his coffee shop products. He hopes to obtain a recreational marijuana dispensary license from the state if voters approve Amendment 3. He has seen the benefits in his customers’ lives as well as his own.

“It covers my back pain, my muscle pain, my sleep potential and my anxiety when things happen,” Peacock said.

The entrepreneur and business consultant helped promote the adoption of medical marijuana in Florida. Peacock says the state’s economy will benefit financially from the expansion of recreational cannabis, provided it is carefully regulated, underscoring the state’s successful oversight of medical marijuana.

“It pays very well and on average more than most industries. It touches everything from construction to development, marketing, science and pure agricultural culture,” Peacock said. “We need to have buildings to expand the facilities. These are large and massive installations.

One of these massive new facilities recently opened in North Florida. The 750,000 square foot cultivation facility built by Trulieve, Florida’s largest marijuana grower, is now one of the largest of its kind in the country.

There are currently more than 660 dispensaries in the state, including about 30 in Southwest Florida. The medical marijuana industry is estimated to generate more than $2 billion in sales annually, but medical pot is not taxed. Supporters of Amendment 3 say recreational marijuana could be. Some economists predict that marijuana sales could triple if the measure passes, which could generate at least $200 million or more in state and local revenue each year.

But Deborah Grochala sees a danger in adopting this proposal because of the consequences on her mental health and that of her family.

“My son really showed psychosis while smoking marijuana. He thought the FBI was listening to the phone calls. He thought his girlfriend was having an affair. He thought people actually listened to him when he was at home. You know, he was really, really, really out there,” Grochala said.

She is a behavioral health technician at Valiant Recovery in Punta Gorda, which treats people struggling with substance use disorders. She says many people are unaware of the potential risk between frequent marijuana use and psychosis — a disconnect from reality. She herself is in recovery from substance abuse. She says pot caused her severe paranoia.

“I suffered psychosis from marijuana when I was smoking it even before it was as potent as it is now – thinking people were talking about me. There’s a lot of weird, mental stuff going on. said Grochala.

Although the long-term risks of marijuana are still being researched, there is growing evidence of potentially serious side effects. Several studies, including two conducted in Britain and Denmark, suggest a link between frequent weed use and psychiatric disorders like schizophrenia. Scientists believe that it is the high levels of THC – the mind-altering chemical in cannabis – that can trigger these disorders in people who have a genetic predisposition to them. The federal government says three in ten people who use marijuana will develop a cannabis use disorder.

Grégory Collora is one of them. He is now a counselor at Valiant Recovery.

“I was first introduced to it probably around 15 or 16, and it consumed my life after I smoked it,” Collora said.

He says pot was a gateway drug for him.

“I started going down the darker path of what comes with drug addiction. I started trying to sell it, buying more, and that led me down a dark and dangerous road much further than I had originally anticipated,” Collora said. “I thought it was just going to be fun and something to do. Recreational. And it turned into a lifelong illness.

Collora and Grochala say legalizing cannabis would put more lives at risk, not just those who use it.

“The fact that marijuana is as accessible as alcohol only brings more danger to people on the streets,” Collora said. “I look at our county sheriff’s website every morning and I see all the DUIs and irresponsible people, and I just think this is going to be another way for this to happen.”

Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummell, who now heads the Florida Sheriffs’ Association, echoes Collora’s concerns. He expects to see more DUIs, involving marijuana, if the measure is approved. He believes the state won’t get the tax benefits touted by recreational marijuana advocates.

“They say for every dollar earned in so-called recreational marijuana tax revenue, there’s $4.50 in expenses related to emergency room visits and law enforcement and the whole gamut” , Prummell said.

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