Sensory Friends
Let's stay connected:
  • Home
    • About us
    • Contact us!
    • Join Our Email List
    • Media Page
    • Book Christine Goulbourne
  • Blog
    • Disability Blogs
  • Sensory Friends Directory
  • Resources
  • Great Giveaways!

Treating Autism with Medical Cannabis Part VI: "Our Family's Results!"

9/5/2020

2 Comments

 
Picture
Our journey as a family exploring the healing power of cannabis for our son Richie has been a long learning experience. While the learning curve was an arduous one, I’m happy to report that we’ve found the right cannabis medication that works well for Richie. The most interesting part of my experience was how much I had to learn.  Thankfully, I had Dr. David Berger of Wholistic Releaf for guidance, other parents for support, their shared experiences, and online resources for further research. 


Medical Cannabis is not dangerous
​

For prescribed drugs that are approved by the FDA, there are side effects, some are dangerous or life threatening, some are mild, and some may cause minor or great discomfort. If any drug is taken for long periods of time, there will be concern for correct dosing. 

​When it comes to medical cannabis, there is one fundamental and important fact that no one can deny (medical professionals, drug enforcement agency representatives, and concerned citizens): it is certainly an alternative medicine with very low risk. 
Now, I’m not suggesting that negative side effects will not occur. It is very possible to experience discomfort due to feeling too sleepy, disoriented, anxiety, paranoia, dizzy, unmotivated (couch-lock), uncomfortable with dry eyes, dry mouth, headaches, or other side effects.  If you have these reactions, the kind of good news is you can stop taking the medicine immediately (without having to wean yourself off like some other drugs) and it may take several hours before these effects wear off. The bad news is if you are treating a loved one with these strains, (like my son Richie who has autism), this could trigger more challenging behavior. Medical cannabis provides different results and experiences for everyone. 
It’s important to become educated on the endocannaboid system and strains.  Leafly provides a plethora of information on the endocannabinoid system as well as a comprehensive list of hundreds of cannabis strains, reported use for effectiveness and side effects, and where they are available across the country.  


Treatment takes Patience and Time
​

Picture
I had to keep reminding myself there is no single prescribed strain for treating autism or any specific condition in need of treatment. It's good to learn about what is working for others with similar symptoms, but always keep in mind that what works for one person will not necessarily work for another.  We were given specific instructions by Dr. Berger to start by administering low doses of CBD and increasing slowly as needed until we saw improvement in any of Richie’s  symptoms. 
​For Richie, we were looking to relieve his anxiety and eliminate his fits of violent aggression towards others (this included pinching, hitting, kicking, biting, etc.). We also wanted to stop his self-injurious behaviors (self-slapping, head banging, etc.) and destruction of property (punching holes in the walls, breaking glass, etc.). 


Finding the Solution that Works for Richie
​

Picture
After many months of trial and error, we discovered that high doses of CBD without THC proved to bring Richie great relief. As we gradually increased his dose of CBD, within six weeks we noted that Richie’s aggression towards others, self-slapping, and other undesirable behaviors started to decrease daily and his overall mood improved as well. 
Although, our family was and still is using multiple modes of treatment, we are convinced that not only is the high dose of CBD helping to improve Richie’s mood and overall quality of life, Richie’s neurologist and Dr. Berger believe it’s also helping to keep the other prescribed drugs at a low dose.  


​How is Richie doing Today?

Today, our recorded data shows all of Richie's challenging behavior at an all time low. Richie is doing fantastic at controlling his behavior. Richie is talking more, learning more, spelling, teaching us about his interests, and doing pretty much everything with us - it is truly exciting times. 


Planning for the Future
​

Picture

For now, we continue to keep Richie on CBD medical treatment, maintain our Positive Behavior Support Plan, continue with his current medications, and most importantly, we will always presume competence in Richie and his ability to learn new things.

Our plan is to work with Richie's doctors and discuss how we can slowly begin to decrease his other prescription medications until he can come off them completely. We will do this when we have documented reports that show Richie’s aggressive and self-injurious behaviors are at “zero” for at least two months. We will continue to discuss, review and plan on an appropriate exit plan for the traditional medications with Richie's doctors and behavior team.

​For now we love seeing him relieved from anxiety and pain. We love seeing  him happy and smiling. We love watching him enjoy his life! Our overall family life is happier than we've ever been with the help of medical cannabis. 

We wish you luck on your journey to finding relief with medical cannabis!

For more information about Dr. Berger and his Tampa Bay practice, please visit Wholistic Releaf. 


Related Posts

Read our previous segment Part V: Visiting a Medical Cannabis Dispensary:
​Things to know before you go!

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.

Sincerely, Christine SensoryFriends

2 Comments
bohemian babushka link
9/24/2020 06:48:59 pm

So happy for all of you!! And if you can get him off all other meds, ESO!!!

Reply
Christine Goulbourne link
9/24/2020 07:56:27 pm

Thank you, Amiga! When it comes to autism, it's all about using and doing what improves the quality of life in the ones we love.

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Author: Christine Goulbourne
    christine@sensoryfriends.com 

    Archives

    January 2023
    November 2022
    October 2020
    September 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    June 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    November 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    June 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015

    Categories

    All
    Autism
    Inclusion
    Parent Involvement
    Positive Behavior Support
    Special Education

    RSS Feed

    Please note that Sensory Friends is a participant in the Google Adsense and Etsy Programs. These are affiliate/advertising programs designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees (at no additional cost to you) by advertising and linking to their sites. 

An Important Note From Sensory Friends:

All information posted on the website is for informational purposes only.   Please confirm and review information carefully with your professional health care provider before considering a new regime or practice.  The information provided is not intended to replace medical advice offered by physicians.  Sensory Friends only wishes to provide information, resources, options and networking opportunities to its members and site visitors. 
Please note that Sensory Friends is a participant in several affiliate programs (Google Adsense, Awin Affiliates, and Etsy) these affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products or services. We may receive a commission if you purchase any of the linked products at no additional cost to you.  

© 2019 Sensory Friends

Subscribe

Join our mailing list today!
Join Now