A Conversation With GreenThumbEdu’s Founder, Calan Ma’lyn

One of the greatest barriers facing the medical cannabis industry is a lack of education. Or, in some cases, active misinformation which is designed to discourage people from using cannabis and discovering the amazing power of this plant. Luckily, there are incredible people within the cannabis industry fighting to change this. Today, we’d like you to meet Calan Ma’lyn, Founder, CEO and Chief Educator of GreenThumbEdu.

What is GreenThumbEdu?

Founded in 2018, GreenThumbEdu came into being after Calan’s mother suffered from a debilitating stroke and began using cannabis during her recovery. Amazed by the effects of this medicine, Calan decided to educate herself, and others, on the possibilities and power of cannabis as medicine.

GreenThumbEdu is a community of creatives, educators, and advocates, and their Cannabis Basics class is designed to dispel myths and provide some introductory understanding of how cannabis is medicine. The class is designed not only for individuals interested in becoming a medical marijuana patient, but also for those seeking to advocate for the community, start a business within the industry, or for those curious minds who love to learn.

The online class costs just $10 and you can take it whenever you’re ready. You also get downloadable resources to be saved for later.

Plus, GreenThumbEdu is not just an educational group. It also gives at least 15% of all proceeds to teaching and restoring BIPOC communities.

Calan’s Medical Marijuana Story

Like many of us in the medical cannabis industry, Calan is motivated towards her mission of educating people about marijuana as medicine because it helped her and those she loves. Both Calan and her mother are medical cannabis users.

After Calan’s mother suffered a debilitating stroke in 2018, an enlightened neurologist suggested that they try medical cannabis. The impact this whispered piece of advice had on her mother was transformative and without that experience, Calan declares. “I wouldn’t be here teaching and spreading the good news about this plant.” Seeing is believing and Calan founded GreenThumbEdu to educate others about the power of medical cannabis.

For herself, Calan has been a certified medical marijuana card carrier in Pennsylvania for several years for a few different qualifying conditions. That’s one of the benefits of medical marijuana: it can treat multiple conditions at once, rather than having to take a cocktail of pharmaceuticals. Calan explained to Leafwell why she became a medical marijauna card holder:

“I have Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Type 1 Diabetes, and Depression. It helps me with physical aches and pains, getting through the mental stress and anxiety of everyday life, going into social situations, letting go of past experiences, and numbing the triggers of my PTSD so I can work, play, experiment, create, eat, and enjoy all the facets of life.”

Most state medical marijuana programs have a list of qualifying conditions. A physician is required to certify that an individual suffers from at least one of these conditions before approving their application. PTSD and chronic pain, both of which Calan experiences, are common qualifying conditions across most programs in the US.

How Calan Uses Medical Marijuana

There are many different ways to consume medical marijuana. Thanks to the flexibility of the plant, it allows users to find the consumption method which suits their lifestyle, needs and preferences. We asked Calan, an experienced cannabis consumer, what she personally enjoys.

“I love flower, so I enjoy vaporizing or inhaling from my water bong….going to go get some now, thanks for reminding me.”

But that’s not the only way Calan consumes cannabis. She also enjoys edibles.

“I love making teas with high CBD during the day, and I really enjoy CBD chocolates for continuous pain.”

In terms of her go-to terpenes, Calan loves:

• Limonene – to start her days
• Pinene – to round off her days
• Terpinolene  – to round off her days
• Caryophyllene
• Linalool

And when it comes to cannabinoids, Calan uses:

• CBG
• THC-rich products
• Equal THC:CBD dosing (1:1 ratio)

Calan Recommends

It takes time to find what works for you, because everybody is different and we all react differently to each marijuana product. Calan put together some recommendations for us to give to our Leafwell readers:

“As far as meds go, I love Cresco, Sweet Island Skunk really helps me focus without pain through my work day. Also my MOMED, hemp CBD balm helps different localized pains. My Session Goods device for enjoying my medicine. So much good!”

Calan also gave a shout out to Broccoli Magazine which helps her to understand that there’s a beautiful world within medicine, particularly as a black woman, artist and broccolini (Calan’s their Community and Operations Manager!)

Industry Partnerships

Leafwell is a proud partner with GreenThumbEdu, working with and supporting Calan and her team. The best way to keep up with their great work is to follow GreenThumbEdu and Calan herself on Instagram. Oh, and why not give Leafwell a follow while you’re over there!