Real patient voices: Father’s Day focus for ‘Medical Cannabis and Me’

Anyone who has children knows, your life revolves around them. They’re the source of your joy and happiness, and you want to spend every minute possible making their childhood memorable, and as good as it can possibly be. 

But, those with chronic health conditions know - this isn’t always possible - and sometimes life, and health, gets in the way of giving your kids everything you’d always dreamed of.  

Today we’ll hear from Elisei, Martin and Daryl- three fathers who went out of their way to find an alternative solution, and a solution that not only benefits them as an individual, but their families too.

Elisei: Medical cannabis and chronic pain

Elisei is 47 years old, and runs his own hardwood flooring business. Like millions of self-employed individuals around the world, Elisei faces what feels like an impossible dilemma when his health deteriorates: either rest up and heal, or work to provide for the family he loves so dearly. 

When sharing his patient story, Elisei explained after having surgery for a herniated disc, he just couldn’t take the six weeks off work that had been recommended to him by his healthcare team. If he did, he says he would have lost the contracts he’d worked so hard to secure with industrial companies. So, after resting up for as long as he could, Elisei went back to work. But, he encountered another injury when lifting something heavy. 

For what felt like an age, Elisei tried to manage his pain with potent painkillers and soothe his restless nights with prescribed sleeping aids, but eventually he’d had enough of them not meeting his needs - and so, he went in search of an alternative to treat his chronic pain: medical cannabis. 

During his interview, Elisei told us after he injured himself at work following his surgery: 

“My pain [was] much worse than before. I know it’s my own fault, because I didn’t listen to my doctor, but I had no choice. Life sometimes doesn't give you a choice. I had a wife and a nine-year-old daughter at that time, and I couldn't lose those contracts…. 

At first, I was prescribed a morphine based medication called Tilidine. When I came to the UK, Tilidine wasn’t available and my GP put me on codeine and diazepam, as well as a lot of strong sleeping medications.

My mother is a hospital director in America, and she always told me to do my research, so I checked into one of the medications I had been prescribed for insomnia. It was actually an anti-psychosis medication. It didn’t seem to have anything to do with sleeping, so I don’t know why it was prescribed. I think all that medication was actually hurting me….

I talked with my friend, and he recommended Releaf. He said he’d been with them for five months and that his experience had been fantastic….I signed up, paid the fee, faxed over my medical records, and within a week, I talked to a doctor and was approved for my medical cannabis prescription. It really was that easy. 

Using medical cannabis has helped me a lot. 

The biggest change is that I haven't taken codeine in two and a half months. I haven't even picked up the prescription. That alone has been a huge improvement, because the codeine made me lose my appetite and gave me constipation. Now, I eat all the time. I empty the fridge, and every other day I have to fill it up again! I do physically difficult work, so getting a lot of food gives me the energy I need to get through the day. 

Sleep is the other major benefit. At night, when I come home from work, I use my vape and I can sleep deeply for most of the night. I still wake up sometimes, but I can get right back to sleep. I used to wake up every two hours and could never get a deep, restful sleep…

Right now, I'm just happy to have better quality time with my family. The codeine often affected my moods; I’d get angry easily. That rarely happens now, thank God. I still have my moments, but certainly not as often.”

Read Elisei’s full account of using medical cannabis for chronic pain here.

Daryl: Medical cannabis and anxiety

Daryl’s story is another we’d love to share for Father’s Day. 

For around a decade, Daryl battled anxiety and depression independently without medical intervention. His mental health started to overspill into his ability to concentrate, socialise, and eventually into his work, and once he’d had children, Daryl decided it was finally time to seek out support. 

Daryl went to see his GP first, and tried a number of conventional medications that had been prescribed, but unfortunately, they came with a long list of side effects, and his reactions to them felt - in his own words - terrible. 

Still struggling with concentration, low mood, stress and poor sleep, Daryl began to look into alternatives. That’s when he found Releaf. 

When we spoke to Daryl, he told us how his medical cannabis treatment had benefited his mental health and sleep, saying:

“In my first appointment at Releaf, my doctor recommended an oil option, and this really does allow me to sleep deeply for a good six hours. It’s wonderful to sleep for that long without waking up. 

Sleeping well has definitely had a positive effect on my moods and how I feel in the mornings. I have a three-year-old and a baby under one, so in the mornings, I need to be alert and attentive. I don't want the kids to see me acting miserable in the morning—I want to make a fun and exciting day for them. If I have a good night's sleep, I feel better, and that makes my kids happier.

As far as my work life, medical cannabis has given me a much better ability to concentrate. Before I started my treatment at Releaf, I was distracted all the time. It was very easy for me to just drift along instead of completing a project. I would jump from task to task, only concentrating on small details and missing the bigger picture. Now, when I start a project, I work exclusively on one task until I can't go any further. Releaf has made it much easier to organise my work day.

I've also been able to socialise and go out more. I've found that vaping before going out is very useful, because it takes the edge off. I don’t exactly turn into a social butterfly, but at least I can enter a room and participate in the conversation….

I don't use my vape around the kids. While I don’t think that I think it will harm them, I don't want them to see me inhaling anything. I don't like that association, but I have no problem using cannabis oil in front of them, because it’s like any other medicine—it’s no different to them…..

I don't want my kids to know that there is anything wrong. I certainly don't want them to think there's something wrong with me….I’m thankful that my treatment came along right now, when my family needs me most.”

If you’d like to find out more about how Daryl’s found managing anxiety and depression with medical cannabis, read his full patient story. 

Martin: Medical cannabis and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome

As a father of four and a full-time illustrator and printmaker, Martin has a busy (and that’s putting it lightly!) schedule - but it’s a schedule that his spinal arthritis and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome quite often try to overthrow. 

Much like Elisei, being self-employed caused Martin to feel like he had to ‘grin and bear it’ when his health conditions were flaring up, or the side effects from his NHS prescribed treatments were reeking havoc on his body, because he’s always wanted to be able to provide the very best for himself, and more so, his family. 

But after making the all the accommodations he could to his work environment, and following along with his doctors instructions, Martin was still struggling on a daily basis. When he saw an advert for medical cannabis crop up, his intrigue peaked - and he reached out to Releaf to find out more. The rest, as they say, is history. 

When sharing more about his health journey, Martin told us: 

“My EDS, which I was diagnosed with around eight years ago, means my muscles have to work extra hard to support my joints because my skeleton doesn’t hold itself in place like most people's. When I’m asleep, those muscles finally relax, which leaves me feeling battered and bruised when I wake up. It’s not just one area—I get pain throughout my body - in my neck, jaw, back, hips, wrists, hands and knees…My work and lifestyle have, of course, added to certain issues surrounding my pain levels…

I’ve never been a smoker and have always been into fitness and training, so I wasn’t sure it [medical cannabis] would suit me. Sure, I’d tried cannabis recreationally a handful of times years ago, but I was never a regular user at all, and the idea of it actually being a legitimate medicine was a new concept to me. I guess the best way to put it was that I was curious, but also a little sceptical….

When I had the initial consultation, you know, I didn’t really know what to expect. I wasn’t even sure if I’d be eligible, so I went in with some uncertainty. After speaking with the specialist, though, it turned out to be a really good first meeting. The doctor went over everything, and was extremely professional. They explained what I could expect from treatment and introduced me to things I hadn’t considered, like different medical cannabis flower options and varying THC levels...

I didn’t realise there were cultivars that could help with creativity while still allowing me to stay functional, go out, and get on with life. I’d imagined it might leave me feeling stuck on the sofa, but it really supports my day-to-day activities without holding me back. Professionally, it helps me with creative thinking and I find it quite energising.

For daytime use, I was prescribed a specific flower to do just that as well, to reduce my joint pain considerably and target inflammation. I have a different flower for evening use as it is more relaxing and help my mind to switch off. It also helps to reduce the pain I’m feeling when trying to get to sleep….

It’s opened up opportunities that I don’t think I’d have gone for otherwise. It’s given me an option for relief that lets me stay active and in control, and it's also changed how I see my own capabilities.”

Read Martin’s full account of managing Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome with medical cannabis here

Find out if medical cannabis may be right for you

If you too would like to take the plunge, and start your own medical cannabis journey - it’s never been simpler. 

Just use our fast and free eligibility checker to get in an indication on if cannabis-based treatments may be suitable for you and your health condition in under a minute. 

Our money-back guarantee on initial consultations provides further protection, and ensures you won’t be left out of pocket if our doctors decide these treatments won’t suit your needs following triage. 

What have you got to lose?