Last updated on: 7/2/2012 | Author: ProCon.org

Allan N. Schwartz, PhD Biography

Title:
Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Psychoanalyst
Position:
Con to the question "Should Marijuana Be a Medical Option?"
Reasoning:

“It has been my experience with the patients I knew who suffered from severe bipolar disorder and with those who fell into the Schizoaffective domain, that they were not helped by marijuana and were made much worse through its use.

Leaving aside anxiety, those who experience severe depression and who use marijuana end up feeling much more depressed, at least that is what I have witnessed.”

“Marijuana Makes It Worse: Severe Mental Illnesses,” mentalhelp.net, Nov. 1, 2008
Involvement and Affiliations:
  • Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Psychoanalyst
  • Psychotherapist, Outpatient Psychiatry Department, Bronx Lebanon Hospital
  • Psychotherapist, Bronx Municipal Hospital Center.
Education:
  • Graduated, NPAP (National Psychological Association for Psychoanalysis), 1992
  • MSW (Master of Social Work), Wurzweiler School of Social Work, 1988
  • PhD, Ferkhauf Graduate School, Yeshiva University, 1977
Other:
  • Licensed in the states of Colorado and New York
  • Was a psychotherapist in private practice for over 30 years
Quoted in:
  1. Is Medical Marijuana an Effective Treatment for Depression, Bipolar Disorders, Anxiety, and Similar Mood Disorders?