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Successful cannabis business owner Danny Sloat has not always been a cannabis enthusiast. In fact, Sloat finally turned to cannabis because he was experiencing chronic pain, and none of the treatments he tried were helping.

“I had been dealing with a bunch of medical issues, mostly some undiagnosed chronic pain,” he explained. “I had some surgeries and complications, and a noncancerous skull tumor; those issues started when I was 21, so that would have been 2003 I think.” Although doctors prescribed Sloat various pharmaceutical medications, nothing seemed to work. “I tried medical cannabis because I had nothing else to lose,” Sloat explained.

Although he now runs AlpinStash, a successful cannabis cultivation company, Danny Sloat admits that when first experimented with cannabis recreationally in college, he was “not a huge fan” of the plant. Therefore, the idea of medicating with cannabis wasn’t exactly thrilling, but he felt it was worth a shot.

Not only did Sloat react well to cannabis treatment in terms of pain reduction, he began to experience all-around positive changes to his health and lifestyle. In fact, he was so drawn to the cannabis that he started growing his own in order to medicate.

“Very quickly after trying cannabis I found relief from the pain, which allowed me to get off opiates and reengage with life,” Sloat stated. “Growing itself was extremely therapeutic. It helped me get out of bed in the morning, and I kind of dedicated myself to that.” Not only was growing cannabis therapeutic in various ways, Sloat was also able to quit his pharmaceutical pain medication and lose about 60 pounds.

Once his health had recovered and his growing technique improved, Sloat realized that the next logical step was to start a business. He noticed that cannabis had definite healing properties, but he took issue with the way that some companies prepared what was supposed to be a professionally grown and curated product.

“I dedicated myself to growing cannabis because of how life changing it actually was for me, so I actually really enjoyed focusing completely on the quality and the product,” he stated. “I also have asthma and so part of the reason that I grew my own is because I wanted the cleanest possible product that I could find, and that became what I grew also. It was important to me to know what was on or in a product; I do care about what I eat and what I put in my body. My company AlpinStash started with [that] kind of that principle, the highest quality products possible, grown in the cleanest and most sustainable way, doing things kind of artisanally.”

AlpinStash is run by family and friends, including Sloat, his fiancé, his sister and a close friend. While some companies only claim to cater to the demographic of patients and sustainability enthusiasts, those at AlpinStash live and breathe to create products that they themselves would want to medically use.

When it comes to patient use and medical cannabis rights, Sloat believes that one of the biggest issues is the lack of access.

“I would say that if you’re not lucky enough to live in a state that has easy access and allows for multiple [qualifying] conditions, the hardest aspect is just access,” he explained. “I have some family in New Jersey and I am a little bit familiar with their medical laws, and they have a list of very limited conditions, such as terminal cancer. You have to see a special doctor at least four times over the course of the year before they can even prescribe it, and then good luck finding it.”

Sloat also feels that the issue of access goes hand in hand with access to a quality, sustainable product that will help and heal others. “In places like Colorado it can also be an issue having access to clean product,” Sloat told CULTURE. “I think it is good that people can grow their own, but for people who purchase from dispensaries, there are definitely those that masquerade under the guise of compassion and caring but are in it for the money and the product reflects that.”

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