Jerry Carraccio: “[Cannabis] is not necessarily a young person’s thing.”
Jerry Carraccio is a lifelong resident of Philadelphia who has consumed cannabis regularly since the 1970s. Back then, Jerry said, he had to rely on the unregulated black market like everybody else. Today, he is a frequent customer of Ethos – Philadelphia (Center City).
Although Jerry shared that his consumption was purely social and personal for most of his life, a recent medical diagnosis has made it therapeutic as well. Without Ethos, Jerry said, he wouldn’t be able to learn as much as he has about which cannabis products could be most effective for his goals.
Jerry, who is 76, is just one of the many older adults who consume cannabis for relief. This is what he had to say about the drastic changes to the legal status of cannabis in his lifetime and how cannabis products offer him relief.
Q: Did you ever think you’d see cannabis legalized in your lifetime?
Jerry said cannabis legalization was unfathomable decades ago, joking that he wishes it happened 50 years sooner.
“When it finally became legal, I said, ‘thanks a lot … where were you when I was 25?’” he shared. “I never thought I’d live to see what’s happening today.”
Jerry said not only is the end of prohibition a drastic departure from his younger years, but also other peoples’ attitudes toward cannabis and cannabis consumption have drastically shifted over the last few decades.
“People are beginning to realize that even if they don’t want to do it, live and let live,” Jerry said. “If people are having a better life because of cannabis, let them do it.”
“Many people as old as me are at Ethos as there are young people, which is interesting,” Jerry added. “They go in there with their canes, just like me. I’ve noticed it’s not necessarily a young person’s thing. A lot of older folks with hip pain or joint pain, they’re looking for some relief and that’s why they’re there – I think it’s great.”
Q: How do you find relief consuming cannabis?
Jerry was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2020. That’s when his otherwise personal cannabis consumption also became medical.
“My oncologist gave me the go-ahead, so I started using THC oil a little over a year ago,” Jerry said. “I’m trying to find my niche there. There are so many things that different oils do.”
Today, Jerry is consuming cannabis not just for personal enjoyment, but also to help get a good night’s sleep, he said. With the help of Ethos associates, Carraccio said he has tried different tinctures with varying THC:CBD ratios and terpene profiles, learning the differences between each and trying products to see which is best to help relieve his symptoms.
“That’s where [Ethos Cannabis pharmacist] Charlie [Last name] and the other people at Ethos come in,” Jerry said. “They explain to me why I might want certain products, and I trust their input.”
Of older adults, Jerry said they are a demographic eager to learn and engage with the legal cannabis industry. While a lot of the information can be overwhelming at first, Jerry said Ethos associates have been instrumental in helping him choose new products to try and find what is best for him.
“We just need a little education. I don’t know if other people are struggling like I am to find the right thing, and even though the doctor has given you permission, he doesn’t really know about it – you’re kind of on your own,” Jerry shared. “But I’m relying on Charlie and the other Ethos staff to take me where I need to be.”
Q: Do you have a favorite product you’d recommend to someone to try?
Although he primarily consumes cannabis oil cartridges now, Carraccio said he believes nothing beats high-THC, low-CBD cannabis flower. His favorite strain lately has been Do-Si-Do for what he called its creativity-boosting quality.
“That would be my go to because I need to stay active,” Jerry said. “I want to be as productive as I can. I want something I can sip on in the morning with my coffee, take it throughout the day, and something that won’t keep me up at night.
“Flower will always be my first choice, but today we live in a high-rise and if I smoke flower, people complain,” Jerry said. “I’ve always had that problem over the years.”
As an alternative, Jerry said the THC oil cartridges are a good substitute. Asked which strain he was thinking about trying on his next trip to Ethos, he said “I might get the Maui Wowie.”
