Due to the claimed positive aspects of using cannabis, some individuals have criticised the Government for re-classifying it as a class B drug.

While I am sure many thousands of people derive pleasure from its use and many others will testify to its pain-relieving properties, we should not underestimate the serious health issues it can cause.

A recent television documentary stated that about one per cent of all cannabis users were at risk of developing psychosis.

I believe this figure is grossly underestimated, not only from first hand experience, but from talking to friends and relatives, many of whom know of, or have heard of, someone who has become ill as a result of its use.

My own brush with this evil drug – and I don't use this term lightly – came a few years ago when someone close to me suffered from what is known in the medical profession as a psychotic episode, as a result of smoking it.

My life has not been the same since. I could write several lines describing how this person was affected, but to keep it short, imagine someone who keeps drifting in and out of a drunken state, someone who claims they are being watched so they won't open the curtains, preferring to sit in the dark; they say they hear voices and laugh to themselves for no apparent reason; they claim that the voices from the television or radio are speaking directly at them. Then there are the bouts of semi-depression, sometimes brought on by something quite simple as an unhappy scene on the television.

Because of this, you are in constant fear for their safety and have to keep a close watch on them.

After six weeks of 24-hour support and prescribed medication, this person nearly made a full recovery. Sadly though, they did not accept that the use of cannabis had brought about their illness and started to smoke it again.

The earlier symptoms soon returned and so several more anxious weeks were spent watching over him, until eventually, the stress of it all made me ill.

I had little choice, but to carry on as the alternative was to have him admitted to a psychiatric hospital.

After four months or so, and with the aid of medication, constant supervision and keeping him away from cannabis, he eventually recovered. Two years on, he is free of both cannabis and the prescribed drugs and has got his life back on track. He has had a lucky escape.

For those who say there is no proven link between psychosis and cannabis. I say these people are deluded.

For anyone who is, or might be, considering using cannabis, I would say don't – there are better things you can legitimately buy without risking your health or the health of those who care about you.

Name and address supplied.