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Treating Autism with Medical Cannabis Part I:  "Why We Chose Medical Cannabis to Treat our Son with Autism”

8/17/2018

24 Comments

 
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​Autism continues to be on a “diagnosis rise” as the Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates it affects 1 in 59 children across the United States. Many of you who have been loyal readers (thank you) of my blog know of our life as a family with a loved one named Richie who has autism. Our family has recently made the decision to treat Richie’s symptoms with medical cannabis and we want to take you along with us on this journey. In this blog series, I will share an overview of how autism impacts Richie's life and our family. This series will chronicle our experience of the application and treatment process. We hope to achieve the same life-changing results reported by other families of loved ones with autism after using medical cannabis. It's also our wish to raise awareness of how medical cannabis can be a holistic and alternative treatment option for families like ours to consider. 
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Parents of children with autism have unique challenges. I write about this in my post, “Understanding the Grief Cycle of an Autism Parent.”  Autism didn’t earn the puzzle piece symbol without merit.  I continue to use the strategies and techniques I learned using positive behavior support. However, it’s not easy implementing a behavior plan when the moods, anxiety or panic attacks of your loved one grow increasingly difficult to predict and understand. Especially with our son Richie, who has gotten older and stronger.  The situation is even harder when there is little or no support.

​I know I don’t have to mention to fellow parents, yet again, how daunting and exhausting it is for us to continually have to do the research, find the right doctors and therapists to work with our family, chase services, fight for services being taken away, etc., etc., etc.  It is both isolating and frustrating.  Dealing with Richie’s aggressive and self-injurious behavior as it increases in intensity, frequency and duration has caused me to experience bouts of depression and crying spells, not to mention how all of this has impacted the dynamics of our day-to-day lives as a family. It is a daily struggle to maintain the patience needed for modifying and improving my son Richie’s challenging behavior. 
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In this picture, our daily reading and spelling lesson was cut short due to self-injurious (banging his head against the wall) and aggressive behavior towards me. Richie has needed to wear a helmet when he is in crisis mode. Thankfully, recent tests have shown no brain or head trauma, but this is always a serious concern for us.
We already know reacting negatively to our child’s behavior doesn’t work. Yelling at Richie doesn’t work. Spanking him is even less effective. These acts will only fuel the cycle of aggression. I have behavior data sheets that recently recorded one incident of Richie slapping himself on the face over 140 times in fifteen minutes. I’ve helplessly watched my son slap himself on his face, neck, head, chest and stomach repeatedly and with great force for hours - nothing I try or do can comfort him.  I have been at the receiving end of my son slapping, punching, pushing, and head-butting.

It’s not easy to be patient and strong while you’re crying in-between blows from your two-hundred-plus pound 16 year-old son who towers over you.  As I write this now, the song “In My Blood” by Shawn Mendes plays in my head.  It resonates with me during these cheerless times. Parents of children with autism experience days with extreme uncertainty of what to expect from our children.   These days I never know how to feel or how my day or night is going to go until I see how well Richie is feeling. This reads pretty bleak, I know.   Still, in my sadness, I have to mention that despite my present feelings of frustration and low spirits, it wasn't always like this.

​There were times when we got to see Richie go about his day happily, learning new things or surprising us with things he already knows for long stretches of great months, weeks, days or just moments. And there are times when our family has to survive those long stretches of months, weeks, days and moments that truly tests the strength of our patience, physical abilities, and love. 


There’s More to Richie than Autism and Challenging Behavior

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​It's important to note that my accounts of Richie's behavior and struggle with self control is not a fair representation of who he really is. There’s so much more to him than just his challenging behavior. 
I wonder if Richie experiences most of his days living in extreme loneliness. I know that most times he is grossly misunderstood. He lives each day going through constant anxiety due to not knowing what to expect from people and not being able to express his thoughts, frustrations, fear, pain, and needs. I have seen how amazing my son can be. I have watched him repeatedly stun us with what he knows and can do.

​Richie is intelligent, funny, and loving. All we need is to give him the opportunity to live as any other teenager would. I know we are not alone. I know there are other warrior parents and self-advocates going through the same ordeal.  I’m reminded of what a dear friend told me once. Jen said, "You’re only as happy as your happiest child.” And Richie has happy moments. He deserves more of them. He is entitled to live a life of happiness and peace. I truly believe Richie is living every  moment in a state of “fight or flight” anxiety (in his case it’s “fight”).

We need something that will help ease the anxiety, pain, anguish, and whatever else is causing Richie to become this person we all know he doesn’t want to be. 

We Turned to Medical Cannabis

There are many medications prescribed to children with autism as early as three years old. Ever since Richie was about three years old, doctors have wanted to prescribe Paxil, Risperdol, Abilify, Zoloft, or Prozac for Richie. I was always concerned about the side effects these drugs would cause, but back then I was more worried about the fact that no doctor could provide any information on the long-term effects these drugs would have on my child’s development. Since Richie's behavior back then was manageable with behavior plans we opted against these medications.  It wasn't until his teen years that his behavior became less manageable over time. 
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While many parents agree that avoiding medication is the best idea, many of us are left with few therapeutic options that are practical and affordable.  This leads us to requiring the assistance and expertise of a good doctor for dealing with our kid's mood swings, compulsive behavior, obsessive thoughts, self-injurious, aggressive and other challenging behavior that children and adults with autism may exhibit.

Trying to find the right combination of medication and dosage can sometimes take months and several different trials. Please note that I am not anti-medication. I respect the fact that some medicines can relieve, heal, and improve quality of life for many people. However, I would rather avoid putting Richie through all those changes and possible symptoms that I know he won’t be able to express to us effectively (Richie is non-speaking). It would be nearly impossible for us to distinguish between behaviors resulting from symptoms of autism and symptoms of medications.

​It's because of these reasons I wanted to try more holistic approaches first. We’ve used melatonin for sleep, but this proved to be inconsistent as we still experienced many nights filled with pacing, behavior episodes, and Richie staying up all night. We use GABA, a neurotransmitter used for calming and relaxing. But it isn't enough to help ease the intense levels of anxiety and panic attacks Richie experiences. We needed something stronger, more effective, and safe.  After much research and having had the opportunity to interview amazing people like Jen Mulry (fellow parent of a child with autism) and Dr. David Berger (a board certified pediatrician with an impeccable reputation in Holistic Pediatric and Primary care) for the blog I wrote, “Tampa Bay Families Turn to Medical Marijuana for Effective and Life Changing Results,” I knew I had to consider medicinal cannabis as an option for helping Richie. 


Related Posts

Stay tuned for our next series segment, “Finding the Right Doctor with the Right Approach.”

Read our post that sparked our interest in Medical Cannabis: "Tampa Bay Families Turn to Medical Marijuana for Effective and Life Changing Results."
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Although we received services as part of our collaboration with Wholistic Releaf for raising awareness on treating autism with medical cannabis, all opinions expressed are my own. 
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Sincerely, Christine SensoryFriends

24 Comments
Scott Gombar link
8/21/2018 09:20:38 pm

I believe that there are a lot of benefits to cannabis, this being one of them. Awesome share!

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Christine Goulbourne link
8/26/2018 11:30:32 pm

Thank you, Scott. We agree!

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Suzanne Melton
8/22/2018 11:54:29 am

That doesn't surprise me how helpful medical cannabis is in helping relax symptoms. I really wish more States were open-minded about allowing its use for all types of medical treatment. I'm am looking forward to reading how your journey continues.

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Christine Goulbourne link
8/26/2018 11:32:31 pm

Thank you, Suzanne. I'm excited about sharing our experience as well!

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kimberly c link
8/22/2018 09:43:43 pm

I am all for trying cannabis. Time and time it has been proven to be helpful for many different conditions. I know several people who benefit greatly from its medicinal benefits. If it were my kid, I would do the same. It it works... what's there to question really...

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Christine Goulbourne link
8/26/2018 11:34:38 pm

Thank you, Kimberly. We're hoping for a life-changing experience for our son, Richie. If it works, I hope more families and medical professionals are open to consider medicinal cannabis as another treatment option.

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Anvita link
8/22/2018 11:09:24 pm

Cannabis has it's benefits for sure. Everything has side effects these days. Sometimes it's just weighing what works and what doesn't work.

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Christine Goulbourne link
8/26/2018 11:35:57 pm

You are right, Anvita. As parents we need to weight our options based on our child's individual needs. We're hoping for a positive outcome.

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Trina link
8/23/2018 08:19:26 am

As an autism mom, I know how controversial this can be but also the incredible results parents have had. I hope you continue to see great results.

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Christine Goulbourne link
8/26/2018 11:38:06 pm

Thank you for your support, Trina. We hope for positive results as well.

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Terri Beavers link
8/23/2018 10:40:07 am

I don't knowo anyone with autism but if I learn of them, I'm going to share this. I have never thought about how cannabis could help with this.

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Christine Goulbourne link
8/26/2018 11:37:23 pm

Thank you for sharing this. Part of why I wanted to do a blog series like this is to raise awareness for self-advocates, families and medical professionals. Medicinal cannabis can be another option for families to try.

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Autumn Murray
8/23/2018 01:54:13 pm

Cannabis laws need to be lifted - especially when it comes to medical usage. It has so many health benfits.

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Christine Goulbourne link
8/26/2018 11:39:29 pm

I agree with you, Autumn. Medicinal cannabis is an option that should be made available to all families and self-advocates when nothing else is working or offering relief.

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Angela Ricardo link
8/23/2018 04:08:47 pm

In the PH, cannabis is illegal and that is the reason why some families who needs cannabis treatment are migrating to different country.

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Christine Goulbourne link
8/26/2018 11:43:15 pm

We see the same thing here in the US, Angela. Families and individuals are leaving their home states and moving to states that have legalized the use of medicinal cannabis. It's not surprising that this is happening around the world.

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Jennifer link
8/23/2018 06:46:39 pm

I never knew you could use medicinal cannabis for treating autism. I think this would be very helpful for parents who are looking for more natural remedies. I know there are many great benefits to medicinal cannabis. Happy to see this treatment is working for your son.

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Christine Goulbourne link
8/26/2018 11:44:49 pm

Thank you, Jennifer. I agree that this is a wonderful option for families looking for less invasive treatments. We're happy to keep everyone informed once Richie starts receiving treatment.

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Heather
8/23/2018 10:20:46 pm

I had not yet heard of this as a treatment for autism but it does sound like it's helping Richie. The teen years are tough for all kids, but it sounds like you're finding a solution that makes sense for you.

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Christine Goulbourne link
8/26/2018 11:48:41 pm

Thank you, Heather. At this time, we are hopeful that this may be what works for Richie - based on other families and their success with treating their children with medicinal cannabis.

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Danielle link
8/23/2018 11:59:48 pm

This is so amazing! I never knew medicinal cannabis could be used to help with autism!

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Kylie cre8tone link
8/24/2018 01:38:10 am

It's great to hear there's treatment for autism.. Well, at least there's a hope for every person with autism.. speedy recovery

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Farrah Less link
8/24/2018 01:37:56 pm

This really brings awareness to those who has kids with autism. It will educated everyone that this medicinal plant can be very helpful.

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Roxy Rhodes link
8/25/2018 06:16:03 am

Cannabis seems to becoming far more accepted as a medicinal treatment. I can't say that I've done enough research to decide how I feel about it personally yet, but I absolutely know that for my kids I would do whatever I felt was best for them at all times. Super glad it's helping you!

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    Author: Christine Goulbourne
    christine@sensoryfriends.com 

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