A Look Inside Jacqui Childs’ Cannabis Journey

Jacqui Childs is an award-winning social influencer with an online following into the millions. She is an international best selling author and the host of a very successful cannabis podcast called The Green Room on Cannabis Wiki.

As some of you might know, I share snippets of my life all over social media. I post pictures that hopefully encourage people to think, feel, hope, or at the very least, roll their eyes. A few years ago, I stumbled upon CBD which was great. CBD helped me very much while I weaned myself off my pharmaceuticals (which I had been using and abusing for years). It was during my research on cannabis for anxiety, depression, and Crohn's disease that I started to grow my own cannabis and juice the leaves. 

"What to do with a house full of homegrown cannabis?" Smoke it, of course! I documented my experience with cannabis on social media from my first doctor's appointment where I suggested using cannabis instead of pharmaceuticals to my growing journey to judging cannabis cups and hosting cannabis festivals and events around the world. While I still wouldn't consider myself an expert, I have the utmost respect for the plant and the community. I owe the cannabis plant and the cannabis community a lot. If it wasn't for them, I might not be here.

Don't get me wrong, I never set out to form a career around cannabis. My excitement and interest in the plant were initially for selfish reasons. I desperately wanted to heal myself from years of abuse and mental trauma. Once I began to heal, I started to speak out and women and mothers responded by the thousands. They reached out to share their personal journeys and acknowledge mine. My journey began to inspire others to try and live a more natural or conscious life. I'm proud of how far we've come in the Canadian cannabis space, of course, I recognize there's so much further to go and it hasn't been easy for the men and women that came before me. 

Before I speak at a conference, and especially before I interview a guest I really admire on my podcast, I take a moment to recognize how remarkable this plant is and what an honour it is to part of this community, however small my contribution may be. My anxiety had kept me inside for many years and I had missed so much. Thanks to cannabis, I'm finally living. I feel free to express and share, hopefully helping end the stigma around cannabis consumption and its users. 

Three years in, I've won a few awards, partnered with some brands and businesses, met incredible humans, and have been lucky enough to travel the world sharing my journey to wellness all thanks to cannabis. To think, just a few years ago I was overwhelmed by depression and lost in a vicious cycle of drug abuse and addiction. The cannabis plant has not only helped heal old wounds, health issues and trauma, but it has also made me a more empathetic and kind human, as well as a better mother and friend. I definitely see the world differently now. 

In closing, I hope this message finds you well during such uncertain and uncomfortable times. I know I am feeling the weight of the world now, while also recognizing how lucky I am. Our “new normal" is strange and who knows how this will all look in the weeks and months to come. What I do know for certain is that I'm grateful to have spent time and space with such an amazing group of humans during my journey with cannabis. 

Learn more about Jacqui and her work on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.