POT STORE OPENS IN WINDSOR

WINDSOR - Although the debate about medical marijuana may be heated,
there is one group in Windsor working to help share information and
provide the medicine itself.

In Harmony Wellness is the only medicinal marijuana clinic in town.

Recently opened in the Westgate shopping center (Suite 12), it
already has 60 registered patients.

"My goal is to be someone that people can listen to and be educated
by," said Tina Valenti, managing partner for In Harmony Wellness. "I
think that marijuana is one of the most misunderstood medications out there."

Currently, state and federal laws disagree regarding the use of
medicinal marijuana.

There only are 13 states that have legalized it as a medicine. The
federal government has refused to interfere as long as dispensaries
are following state laws.

"When 25 percent of the states have already legalized it, I think
that the federal government will have to evolve to the idea," Valenti said.

In Harmony Wellness set up shop in Windsor following a series of
informational seminars and after an advertising campaign in local newspapers.

Although the business just opened it has been serving many people and
setting up appointments during its early stages.

"The phones were ringing off the hook," Valenti said. "A lot of
people were really interested in us and wanted to find out more information."

A misconception about these clinics is that they only sell one form
of marijuana: the kind that is smoked as a cigarette.

Like at a restaurant, there is a menu of different forms of the herb
that can be purchased from suckers, brownies, liquid and even lip balm.

Each form gives different benefits, affects different parts of the
body and relieves different types of pain.

Uses aren't limited to pain either. Patients also can receive it for
anxiety and other psychological ailments.

Erin Flow, a patient at In Harmony Wellness, has been treated for her
arthritis that restricted her from moving her thumbs.

"It makes the pain go down and I am able to move my hands
completely," Flow said. "The man-made, chemical narcotics from
doctors were hard on my body and didn't work. Those painkiller pills
made it difficult to live. Marijuana rids (me) of my pain without any
of the nasty side-effects of standard narcotics."

While a main concern for people may be that the marijuana can be
abused for recreation or can affect a patient's work life, Flow said
those simply are misconceptions.

"There is no recreation," she said. "You learn to be responsible.
There are certain medications that just relieve the pain and don't
make you giggly and uncontrollable."

At this point, the Windsor community hasn't taken any stand against
the organization.

"I would recommend that anyone come by to ask any question," Valenti
said. "We want people to come by so we can open eyes and minds to an
alternative medicine."

While medicinal marijuana may not be for everyone, Flow said it is
better than any pill she has taken.

"Come with nonjudgment and open your mind to the medication," she
said. "This has been a godsend in helping me manage my pain. When all
else isn't working, we know that this will. It is one thing that can
cover what 10 pills can't. It is the one-cure-all."