The General
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Maine - Twelve-year-old Cyndiamae Meehan loves painting and drawing to express herself. Watching her, it's hard to believe that she couldn't paint with a steady hand several months ago. "We noticed the cognitive brightening, we notice her talking more with us when she's coloring, she is looking at the shape she is coloring instead of randomly coloring a page," said Cyndiamae's mother, Susan Meehan.
Things that never happened before, like running, playing, feeding herself, are now a reality because of medical marijuana, according to her parents. Cyndiamae has Dravet Syndrome, a rare and severe form of epilepsy, that left her with constant seizures. The seizures turned off her brain and kept her from developing at a normal pace. After trying 23 different epileptic drugs with little success, her neurologist suggested that Cyndimae and her family move from their Connecticut home to Maine, where she could be legally treated with medical marijuana or cannabis.
Once in Maine, Meehan began using a rescue medication consisting of specific marijuana strains whenever her daughter had a grand mal seizure. This type of seizure causes a loss of consciousness and violent muscle contractions. Family members started taking video of the seizures to show Cyndimae's doctors. The video shows that once given the rescue medication, the seizure slowly stops. In the past ten months, Meehan said she has weaned Cyndimae off all of her medications.
"Without the cannabis, we would still be in that situation where she would be so drugged she couldn't eat. She is up to 85 pounds now which is just amazing. Her muscle tone is good," said Meehan. Meehan said that medical marijuana saved her daughter's life. It is a controversial treatment, but more parents are turning to it for seizure treatment. Four-year old Kaylee Brown suffered her first seizure at 9-months-old. "It ended turning into a full blow very severe seizure. She was turning blue, salivating profusely and when we go to the hospital she finally responded to medications," Kalyee's mother, Samantha Brown.
Doctors prescribed Kaylee medications that caused horrible side effects and more seizures. Kaylee was eventually diagnosed with a mild form of Dravet syndrome. After hearing other success stories, Brown began Kaylee on cannabis and tried weaning her daughter off other medications. The combination was too much for the small child, and doctors put Kaylee in a medically induced coma this past summer. Kaylee was transferred to Maine Medical Center and while at the hospital, the neurologist on duty discovered that Kaylee was using medical marijuana and asked Brown if she had the drug with her.
"He says, 'I can't let you give it her,' and I am like, 'okay,' knowing in my mind that 'I don't care what you say I am going to do what is best for my daughter.' I came to the hospital to get her better and not make her worse," said Brown. Brown said the medical staff told her it was against hospital policy for her to administer medical marijuana to her daughter. However, Brown had seen the improvement in her daughter since she started giving her medically marijuana and believed that it would help.
"I basically turned the curtains and just gave it to her. It was scary - they could walk right in and abruptly take the medication, and she needs it," said Brown. Kaylee is a patient of Dr. Dustin Sulak, who helps patients become certified for medical marijuana. He said that not giving medical marijuana users cannabis while they are hospitalized could have dangerous effects. "That could be literally a lethal situation. In some cases, that is when the kid needs the cannabis the most, when they should be getting it in the hospital," he said.
Maine Medical Center said that it is not just hospital policy, but a federal requirement for their license. "Maine Medical Center's policy prohibits the administration of marijuana to any patient, by any means, while the patient is within our facilities and under our care. Our federal license does not allow for marijuana - classified by the Drug Enforcement Agency as a Schedule I controlled substance to be on the premises," said Senior Pharmacy Director Brian Marden.
According to the Jeff Austin with Maine Hospital Association, it's a policy all hospitals in the state must follow because they are federally regulated and licensed. Austin said while the association sympathizes with families of sick children, medical marijuana must be left at the hospital door. Maine is a legal state for medical marijuana, but the drug is classified in the same category with heroin and LSD, which are illegal under federal law.
Congresswoman Chellie Pingree supports taking marijuana of the list of dangerous drugs, but said there has been little movement in Congress to get it done. Rhode Island is one state that has pushed back and allows so-called 'home remedies,' such as medical marijuana, to be administered in their hospitals. Meehan gave Cydinmae cannabis at Hasbro Children's Hospital in Rhode Island in September as she was weaning off the last of her powerful anti-epileptic drugs.
Brown, Meehan and other parents have joined forces and are pushing for legislation that would force hospitals in Maine to allow them to give their children medical marijuana in the hospital. In the meantime, both mothers said the hospitals policies put parents in a very difficult situation. "Would I have to sneak giving her the medication and do it without telling them? Would I just have to object to the ruling and give it to her anyway? I am not sure what the consequences would be," said Meehan.
Brown said she would find a way to give her daughter medical marijuana if she ends up in the hospital again. "To take away the only medication they are depending on, that is life threatening. It's threatening their lives and that is unacceptable," said Brown. There are currently FDA trials for a synthetic strain of marijuana to be used for medical purposes, but the trial could take several years. In the meantime, parents said they will continue to give their children medical marijuana, the only drug that has given their families hope for a seizure-free future.
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Wcsh6.com
Author: Vivien Leigh
Contact: Contact Us
Website: Ban of medical marijuana in hospitals threatens sick children
Things that never happened before, like running, playing, feeding herself, are now a reality because of medical marijuana, according to her parents. Cyndiamae has Dravet Syndrome, a rare and severe form of epilepsy, that left her with constant seizures. The seizures turned off her brain and kept her from developing at a normal pace. After trying 23 different epileptic drugs with little success, her neurologist suggested that Cyndimae and her family move from their Connecticut home to Maine, where she could be legally treated with medical marijuana or cannabis.
Once in Maine, Meehan began using a rescue medication consisting of specific marijuana strains whenever her daughter had a grand mal seizure. This type of seizure causes a loss of consciousness and violent muscle contractions. Family members started taking video of the seizures to show Cyndimae's doctors. The video shows that once given the rescue medication, the seizure slowly stops. In the past ten months, Meehan said she has weaned Cyndimae off all of her medications.
"Without the cannabis, we would still be in that situation where she would be so drugged she couldn't eat. She is up to 85 pounds now which is just amazing. Her muscle tone is good," said Meehan. Meehan said that medical marijuana saved her daughter's life. It is a controversial treatment, but more parents are turning to it for seizure treatment. Four-year old Kaylee Brown suffered her first seizure at 9-months-old. "It ended turning into a full blow very severe seizure. She was turning blue, salivating profusely and when we go to the hospital she finally responded to medications," Kalyee's mother, Samantha Brown.
Doctors prescribed Kaylee medications that caused horrible side effects and more seizures. Kaylee was eventually diagnosed with a mild form of Dravet syndrome. After hearing other success stories, Brown began Kaylee on cannabis and tried weaning her daughter off other medications. The combination was too much for the small child, and doctors put Kaylee in a medically induced coma this past summer. Kaylee was transferred to Maine Medical Center and while at the hospital, the neurologist on duty discovered that Kaylee was using medical marijuana and asked Brown if she had the drug with her.
"He says, 'I can't let you give it her,' and I am like, 'okay,' knowing in my mind that 'I don't care what you say I am going to do what is best for my daughter.' I came to the hospital to get her better and not make her worse," said Brown. Brown said the medical staff told her it was against hospital policy for her to administer medical marijuana to her daughter. However, Brown had seen the improvement in her daughter since she started giving her medically marijuana and believed that it would help.
"I basically turned the curtains and just gave it to her. It was scary - they could walk right in and abruptly take the medication, and she needs it," said Brown. Kaylee is a patient of Dr. Dustin Sulak, who helps patients become certified for medical marijuana. He said that not giving medical marijuana users cannabis while they are hospitalized could have dangerous effects. "That could be literally a lethal situation. In some cases, that is when the kid needs the cannabis the most, when they should be getting it in the hospital," he said.
Maine Medical Center said that it is not just hospital policy, but a federal requirement for their license. "Maine Medical Center's policy prohibits the administration of marijuana to any patient, by any means, while the patient is within our facilities and under our care. Our federal license does not allow for marijuana - classified by the Drug Enforcement Agency as a Schedule I controlled substance to be on the premises," said Senior Pharmacy Director Brian Marden.
According to the Jeff Austin with Maine Hospital Association, it's a policy all hospitals in the state must follow because they are federally regulated and licensed. Austin said while the association sympathizes with families of sick children, medical marijuana must be left at the hospital door. Maine is a legal state for medical marijuana, but the drug is classified in the same category with heroin and LSD, which are illegal under federal law.
Congresswoman Chellie Pingree supports taking marijuana of the list of dangerous drugs, but said there has been little movement in Congress to get it done. Rhode Island is one state that has pushed back and allows so-called 'home remedies,' such as medical marijuana, to be administered in their hospitals. Meehan gave Cydinmae cannabis at Hasbro Children's Hospital in Rhode Island in September as she was weaning off the last of her powerful anti-epileptic drugs.
Brown, Meehan and other parents have joined forces and are pushing for legislation that would force hospitals in Maine to allow them to give their children medical marijuana in the hospital. In the meantime, both mothers said the hospitals policies put parents in a very difficult situation. "Would I have to sneak giving her the medication and do it without telling them? Would I just have to object to the ruling and give it to her anyway? I am not sure what the consequences would be," said Meehan.
Brown said she would find a way to give her daughter medical marijuana if she ends up in the hospital again. "To take away the only medication they are depending on, that is life threatening. It's threatening their lives and that is unacceptable," said Brown. There are currently FDA trials for a synthetic strain of marijuana to be used for medical purposes, but the trial could take several years. In the meantime, parents said they will continue to give their children medical marijuana, the only drug that has given their families hope for a seizure-free future.
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Wcsh6.com
Author: Vivien Leigh
Contact: Contact Us
Website: Ban of medical marijuana in hospitals threatens sick children
