Written by mom Lisa
We have a 5-year-old daughter who was diagnosed with a rare form of epilepsy when she was 2 1/2-years-old. Her condition was intractable meaning resistant to treatment. We tried many medications. None of them helped. They only made her seizures worse and the side effects were unbearable – she regressed cognitively, was irritable, had mood swings and rage. We tried the ketogenic diet in which she was restricted to 10 grams of carbohydrates a day. She was having hundreds of seizures a day – all day long. Please imagine a small child suffering through so many seizures and nothing you did helped.
The financial, mental, physical, emotional, social impacts of a diagnosis like this are more than one can bear. After two years we were left with two options – another pharmaceutical that came with known side effects or medical marijuana specifically Charlotte’s Web (low THC). Since our daughter failed multiple pharmaceuticals the chance of another working was less than 5%. Charlotte’s Web had only beneficial side effects in the short term but unknown side effects in the long term. What it came down to is we needed to save her life. The seizures and medications were taking her away from us. And it was only a matter of time.
Charlotte’s Web worked. Within five months she went COMPLETELY seizure free. We are now weaning her off of the harsh pharmaceuticals and are seeing our daughter come back to life! It has changed our lives so much that she is starting Kindergarten in the fall – something we didn’t think would be possible two years ago! I don’t know a single parent who wouldn’t search under every rock to try to save their child. And every parent should have that right regardless of their zip code. The desperation of patients wanting the chance to try a medication that has been beneficial to others when pharmaceuticals haven’t is understandable. They are suffering. Marijuana is a schedule 1 substance, but it doesn’t warrant that classification. No one has died from the overdose of marijuana, but people die every day from the overdose of pharmaceuticals. From the research that has been done, we also understand that CBD is a natural neuro-protectant and protecting our daughter from brain damage. The opposite of what her pharmaceuticals were doing. I urge anyone to read the research that has been done – it does exist. Education and awareness on this topic are crucial and mind changing.
Note: Lisa wrote to us in 2015 when Charlotte’s Web CBD oil was manufactured as medical marijuana (cannabis) prior to it being grown as hemp. In 2015 families were still moving to medical marijuana states to obtain Charlotte’s Web. Thankfully the laws have since changed and CW is being shipped to most states.
