Healing Spirit Psychiatry & Counseling, PLLC

06/01/2026

*^*^*^*. INFORMATION REGARDING THE DEA RESCHEDULING OF CANNABIS TO SCHEDULE III*^*^*^*

Below is information from New Approach South Dakota regarding the current situation of rescheduling cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule 3. The important thing to note is that no changes have yet occurred with the laws, regulations or practices regarding medical cannabis in South Dakota!

The DEA will be holding a hearing from June 29, 2026 to no later than July 15, 2026. I do not look for anything to change very soon after the meeting, either. Just as we deal with opposition to the cannabis program every legislative session in South Dakota, those same entities are at work on a federal level. It is highly likely there will be lawsuits brought forward no matter what the DEA comes up with during their session.

As is noted in the info from NASD, our cannabis registry is set & ready to go whenever the new regulations come down. The industry has been working behind the scenes readying the state for rescheduling since the inception of the program. The industry in SD has focused on good manufacturing practices (GMP), including how to deal with things regarding rescheduling, since the beginning.

Please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions regarding the rescheduling process, or any questions you may have about medical cannabis in SD in general!

Also, continue to watch this page for updates! I will share any new information as soon as it becomes available.

05/29/2026

Interesting perspective considering the rescheduling of THC.

😙💨 "Consumers deserve representation in any hearing involving the future legal status of ma*****na."

That's the message we're sending as federal officials prepare to debate one of the nation's most significant ma*****na policy changes.

🔗 Read more: https://norml.org/blog/2026/05/26/norml-seeks-seat-at-dea-ma*****na-rescheduling-hearing-says-consumers-must-be-represented/

05/28/2026

*+*+*+*JUNE CARD CLINIC ANNOUNCEMENT*+*+*+*

If you or a loved one are in need of an evaluation for a medical card renewal, or a new medical card, our June dates are as follows:

--HURON--Crossroads Event Center--Tues June 2 & Wed June 3
--ABERDEEN--Marriott TownePlace Suites--Tues June 9 & Wed June 10
--MITCHELL--Highland Conference Center--Tues June 16 & Wed June 17
--WATERTOWN--Watertown Event Center--Tues June 23 & Wed June 24

To schedule an appointment, please call our office at (605) 796-4701 or e-mail [email protected] The following information is what is needed in order to schedule:
**Location you are wanting to be seen in
**First & last name as it appears on your ID
**A valid e-mail address that you are able to access
**Phone number
**Date of birth

****RENEWAL PATIENTS PLEASE NOTE**** Many patients are reporting that they are not receiving their renewal notices from the state office. Therefore, if you do not know when your card expires, PLEASE CHECK! We have had several patients not only scrambling to get in at the last minute; many are having to travel out of town to be seen in time so that they do not have a lapsed card. The turnaround time currently when renewing a card, from the time the application is sent in to the time the patient receives it in the mail is about a week. Please do not hesitate to call or e-mail with any questions! We look forward to hearing from you!

05/27/2026

****LEGAL CONCERN****

For the second month in a row we have had a patient present to our clinic in Watertown having received felony charges for possessing a Delta-9 v**e that they had purchased at a smoke shop. Many people feel that they do not want the expense & hassle of obtaining a medical cannabis card, as the feel they can purchase “the same stuff” at a smoke shop or online instead. I can assure you, what is being sold in smoke shops doesn’t compare to the products that can legally be purchased in a dispensary!

Many of the products sold in smoke shops are not legal, nor are they safe. They are not regulated, & there is no oversight to keep customers safe. Everything sold at a dispensary in SD has been tested to make sure there are no pesticides, no solvents, no mold, etc, as well as are tested to make sure that the percentages of THC & CBD indicated on the packages are correct. Several months ago someone from a lab in the Rapid City area had gone into a v**e store & purchased 4 different products, then took them back to the lab to test them. All of the products were full of stuff that shouldn’t be in them, & the percentages of THCA that were indicated on the products were way off.

The patient stated she had no idea that what she was buying was illegal. We did call the store in question & spoke with a manager. When questioned whether they inform customers that what they are purchasing is not legal, he replied that he has talked with staff. He did acknowledge that there is no signage in the store explaining this aspect to clients, either.

Last summer I had a friend who went to a smoke shop in Sioux Falls to check things out. This person was able to purchase a 100mg chocolate bar with no questions asked, nor any warning given about the strength of cannabis in the chocolate bar. If a chocolate bar like this were to fall into the hands of a teenager who has little to no experience with cannabis, that person would become very ill. They would not die, but they sure would feel like they were dying! 🙁

Please be safe! Cannabis is a safe & effective treatment for many conditions when purchased & used appropriately. The stuff you can buy in a smoke shop/v**e shop is not safe, & a good number of those items are also illegal to posses or ingest.

If anyone has any questions about any of this, please feel free to reach out!

05/12/2026

05/01/2026

It is hard to believe that May is here already!

If you or a loved one are in need of an evaluation for a medical card, our May clinics are as follows:

--HURON Tues May 5, Wed May 6 & Thurs May 7th
Crossroads/Huron Event Center
--ABERDEEN Tues May 12 & Wed May 13
Marriott TownPlace Suites
--MITCHELL Tue May 19 & Wed May 20
Highland Conference Center
--WATERTOWN Tue May 26 & Wed May 27
NEW LOCATION--The Watertown Event Center
(Old Ramkota)

If interested in scheduling an appointment please call our office at (605) 796-4701 or e-mail the following to [email protected]:

--First & last name as it appears on your ID
--Reason for seeking treatment
--Date of birth
--Phone number
--Valid e-mail address (if different than the e-mail used to send in this information).

And as always, if you believe this may be helpful to others, please share this post!

03/30/2026

Hello! If you or a loved one are in need of an evaluation, our February clinics are offered on the following dates:

--HURON Mon March 30 & Tues March 31 and Wed April 1
Crossroads/Huron Event Center
--ABERDEEN Tues April 7 & Wed April 8
Marriott TownPlace Suites
--MITCHELL Tue April 14 & Wed April 15
Highland Conference Center
--WATERTOWN Tue April 21 & Wed April 22
NEW LOCATION--The Watertown Event Center
(Old Ramkota)

If interested in scheduling an appointment please call our office at (605) 796-4701 or e-mail the following to [email protected]:
--First & last name as it appears on your ID
--Reason for seeking treatment
--Date of birth
--Phone number
--Valid e-mail address (if different than the e-mail used to send in this information).

And as always, if you believe this may be helpful to others, please share this post!

03/02/2026

Hello! If you or a loved one are in need of an evaluation, our February clinics are offered on the following dates:
--HURON Tues March 3, Wed March 4 & Thurs March 5.
Also Tues March 31 & Wed April 1
Crossroads/Huron Event Center
--ABERDEEN Tues March 10 & Wed March 11
Marriott TownPlace Suites
--MITCHELL Tue March 17 & Wed March 18
Highland Conference Center
--WATERTOWN Tue March 24 & Wed March 25
NEW LOCATION--The Watertown Event Center
(Old Ramkota)

If interested in scheduling an appointment please call our office at (605) 796-4701 or e-mail the following to [email protected]:
--First & last name as it appears on your ID
--Reason for seeking treatment
--Date of birth
--Phone number
--Valid e-mail address (if different than the e-mail used to send in this information).

And as always, if you believe this may be helpful to others, please share this post!

02/22/2026

If you are my patient, we have likely discussed the many benefits of CBD….helping with anything from chronic pain to treatment of ADHD, PTSD & depression. This is interesting research from Israel showing significant improvement in ADHD symptoms in autistic children.

The following on article also discusses research from London outlining the benefit of using CBD in entrenched, treatment-resistant depression. https://norml.org/news/2026/01/15/study-cannabis-treatment-provides-sustained-relief-for-patients-with-treatment-resistant-depression/

Please make sure if you choose to use CBD that it comes from a reliable source. Don’t trust products that are sold in smoke shops or at a gas station! These products are not regulated & tend to contain all sorts of nasty stuff (solvents, pesticides, mold, etc.) At the same time, these unregulated products also often have inconsistencies between the amount of CBD & other cannabinoids & what is listed on the label.

🌿 Researchers reported "improvements in core behavioral domains" following patients' use of CBD-dominant extracts.⁠
⁠
👉️ Read more: https://norml.org/news/2026/01/15/cbd-rich-cannabis-extracts-reduce-adhd-symptoms-in-children-with-autism/

02/22/2026

Good news for gun owners who possess or plan to possess a medical cannabis card! The ATF is proposing a rule change that would allow medical cannabis users to use & possess fi****ms.

In addition to this recommendation from ATF, a panel of 3 judges in Atlanta ruled that it was likely unconstitutional to prohibit medical cannabis users from possessing fi****ms. https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/us-appeals-court-sides-with-medical-ma*****na-users-challenge-gun-ban-2025-08-20/

Unfortunately, the US Dept of Justice e disagrees, & is fighting these changes. https://www.ma*****namoment.net/doj-tells-supreme-court-that-federal-gun-ban-for-ma*****na-users-must-be-upheld-even-if-trumps-rescheduling-order-is-finalized/

😚💨 Under the proposed change, which is subject to public comments, any use of cannabis would no longer be defined per se as a violation of federal gun laws. Rather, the new rule would require evidence of either "compulsive" or "regular" drug use over "an extended period of time continuing into the present, without a lawful prescription or in a manner substantially different from that prescribed by a licensed physician."⁠
⁠
👉️ Read more: https://norml.org/blog/2026/01/22/feds-propose-amending-2nd-amendment-ban-for-cannabis-consumers-others/