T
The420Guy
Guest
A WHEELCHAIR-bound multiple sclerosis sufferer described yesterday how she
made cannabis chocolates to help alleviate the suffering of others with the
condition.
Elizabeth Ivol, also know as Biz, told a court she began taking cannabis to
numb the pain from MS, which she described as like having "barbed wire going
through my spine".
Ivol, 55, of South Ronaldsay in Orkney, is on trial at Kirkwall Sheriff
Court charged with cultivating, possessing and supplying the drug.
She said she eventually agreed to help other MS sufferers by developing the
chocolates and cannabis patches to be applied directly to the skin.
In her evidence, she said her former island GP had recommended using
cannabis after she had tried a long list of legal medication - some of which
resulted in "horrific" side effects.
She told the court she came up with the idea, along with others, of
developing the cannabis chocolates after agreeing to help a non-smoking MS
sufferer.
Ivol said: "We had to figure out a way of getting cannabis into his system -
he did not smoke - and that's how the cannabis chocolate came about."
Ivol said that while undertaking research into the drug, she found that
combining it with animal fat increased its relaxing effects.
Although she said she was in regular contact with others about the use of
cannabis, she stressed she was only approached by others and "never actually
encouraged anybody to use cannabis".
The court heard that Ivol's day-to-day life had become almost unbearable due
to the onset of her condition, which was diagnosed in the early 1990s. She
told the court: "At the moment I feel like somebody's pulling barbed wire
through my spine. I have muscle spasms and my eyesight's failing, but it has
not gone yet. It is very, very painful.
"I'm completely and utterly paralysed from the neck down. A nurse comes to
get me up between 9am and 10am and plonks me in the wheelchair where I sit
until about 3pm when somebody comes and puts me back to bed, and that's it.
"I can make myself a cup of tea, if my hands are alive, and answer the
phone. Usually, by 1pm, my fingers are paralysed. I can't even hold a pen."
Ivol told the court that over the years she had taken prescription
medication as well as special diets, but nothing seemed to work.
One type of tranquilliser left her "looking like a zombie and gazing out of
the window".
Although apprehensive at first, Ivol eventually began smoking one cannabis
joint each evening.
She said she had toyed with the idea of using the drug for two years but was
unsure because of the stigma attached to its use. But using cannabis relaxed
her muscle spasms and acted as an appetite stimulant, she added.
"It was either cannabis or nothing. I tried everything else and nothing
worked," she said.
"It got to the point where I felt that nobody was doing anything for MS and
when you find something that does alleviate the symptoms you go for it.
"It is not like a nasty chemical drug. It is a natural, God-given plant."
Under cross-examination by Sue Foard, the procurator fiscal, Ivol admitted
to the court she had possessed, produced and supplied cannabis, the charges
she had pled not guilty to. Asked by Miss Foard why she had not pled
guilty, Ivol replied that she did not think she was doing anything wrong.
The trial was adjourned until 2 July.
Last week, Ivol, 56, took delivery of a cardboard coffin and says she will
commit suicide after the trial as she believes her condition has left her
with no quality of life.
The Scottish Socialist Party has tabled a motion urging the Scottish
Parliament to send a message of support to Ivol and calling for more money
to go into research of MS treatments, including the medical use of cannabis.
An internet petition was also started this week by the Legalise Cannabis
Alliance, which has raised the issue with Cathy Jamieson, the justice
minister, and David Blunkett, the Home Secretary.
Pubdate: Fri, 20 Jun 2003
Source: Scotsman (UK)
Copyright: The Scotsman Publications Ltd 2003
Contact: Letters_ts@scotsman.com
Website: The Scotsman - Scottish News
made cannabis chocolates to help alleviate the suffering of others with the
condition.
Elizabeth Ivol, also know as Biz, told a court she began taking cannabis to
numb the pain from MS, which she described as like having "barbed wire going
through my spine".
Ivol, 55, of South Ronaldsay in Orkney, is on trial at Kirkwall Sheriff
Court charged with cultivating, possessing and supplying the drug.
She said she eventually agreed to help other MS sufferers by developing the
chocolates and cannabis patches to be applied directly to the skin.
In her evidence, she said her former island GP had recommended using
cannabis after she had tried a long list of legal medication - some of which
resulted in "horrific" side effects.
She told the court she came up with the idea, along with others, of
developing the cannabis chocolates after agreeing to help a non-smoking MS
sufferer.
Ivol said: "We had to figure out a way of getting cannabis into his system -
he did not smoke - and that's how the cannabis chocolate came about."
Ivol said that while undertaking research into the drug, she found that
combining it with animal fat increased its relaxing effects.
Although she said she was in regular contact with others about the use of
cannabis, she stressed she was only approached by others and "never actually
encouraged anybody to use cannabis".
The court heard that Ivol's day-to-day life had become almost unbearable due
to the onset of her condition, which was diagnosed in the early 1990s. She
told the court: "At the moment I feel like somebody's pulling barbed wire
through my spine. I have muscle spasms and my eyesight's failing, but it has
not gone yet. It is very, very painful.
"I'm completely and utterly paralysed from the neck down. A nurse comes to
get me up between 9am and 10am and plonks me in the wheelchair where I sit
until about 3pm when somebody comes and puts me back to bed, and that's it.
"I can make myself a cup of tea, if my hands are alive, and answer the
phone. Usually, by 1pm, my fingers are paralysed. I can't even hold a pen."
Ivol told the court that over the years she had taken prescription
medication as well as special diets, but nothing seemed to work.
One type of tranquilliser left her "looking like a zombie and gazing out of
the window".
Although apprehensive at first, Ivol eventually began smoking one cannabis
joint each evening.
She said she had toyed with the idea of using the drug for two years but was
unsure because of the stigma attached to its use. But using cannabis relaxed
her muscle spasms and acted as an appetite stimulant, she added.
"It was either cannabis or nothing. I tried everything else and nothing
worked," she said.
"It got to the point where I felt that nobody was doing anything for MS and
when you find something that does alleviate the symptoms you go for it.
"It is not like a nasty chemical drug. It is a natural, God-given plant."
Under cross-examination by Sue Foard, the procurator fiscal, Ivol admitted
to the court she had possessed, produced and supplied cannabis, the charges
she had pled not guilty to. Asked by Miss Foard why she had not pled
guilty, Ivol replied that she did not think she was doing anything wrong.
The trial was adjourned until 2 July.
Last week, Ivol, 56, took delivery of a cardboard coffin and says she will
commit suicide after the trial as she believes her condition has left her
with no quality of life.
The Scottish Socialist Party has tabled a motion urging the Scottish
Parliament to send a message of support to Ivol and calling for more money
to go into research of MS treatments, including the medical use of cannabis.
An internet petition was also started this week by the Legalise Cannabis
Alliance, which has raised the issue with Cathy Jamieson, the justice
minister, and David Blunkett, the Home Secretary.
Pubdate: Fri, 20 Jun 2003
Source: Scotsman (UK)
Copyright: The Scotsman Publications Ltd 2003
Contact: Letters_ts@scotsman.com
Website: The Scotsman - Scottish News
