The Cannabis Kids: Tiny Icons

Sadly, these tragic circumstances seem to fall on deaf ears as far as the public and our policymakers are concerned.  Lately, though, cries from another, a smaller subset of our population are really starting to resonate.  They are those Tiny Icons, the Cannabis Kids.

Social media is chock-full of stories of sick children benefiting from both high-THC and non-psychoactive CBD-rich cannabis.  The internet is being used as an information outlet, a support network and a fundraising tool as parents publicly plead for their children.  They share happy moments of progress, birthdays, holidays with their children’s radiant smiles, surrounded by loving friends and family members.  Also included are heartbreaking setbacks including trips to the ER and the financial struggles involved because insurance companies callously refuse to cover those most in need.  Stories abound of pediatricians hypocritically ignoring their Hippocratic Oaths by pushing hard-core pharmaceuticals that have lists of side effects longer than their patient’s little arms. 

Many of these children have lifelong debilitating ailments or a terminal prognosis.  Spencer is a Cannabis Kid with brain cancer.  The Prayers for Spencer Facebook page, which has thousands of likes, is where his mom provides updates on this little fighter, lovingly documenting the daily cute “Spencerisms” for all to see, making you smile, laugh, and also cry with despair.  She is unfailingly optimistic, positive in her steadfast love for this innocent being under her watch.  Faith is a key component for her as a higher power is beseeched to bless and cure Spencer. 

While cannabis is showing promise in treating many ailments including autism, ADHD, and even leukemia, some of the best success stories involve children with epilepsy or other seizure-inducing conditions. The improvements are oftentimes stark and immediate.  Austin’s parents were desperate when they moved him from Oklahoma to Colorado to treat his Dravet Syndrome with cannabis oil.  Amazingly, within just a few days, his seizures markedly decreased.  His parents were then left with the daunting task of weaning him off of other drugs while determining the optimum ratio of cannabinoids: CBD, THC, or a mixture?  Which delivery system works best for each ailment?  The options are mind-boggling for a scientist much less a parent operating on a wing and a prayer.  The Cannabis Curriculum encourages research and development into this area as well as a myriad of other subjects relating to cannabis hemp and its prohibition.  

Supernova has Schizencephaly, a rare neurological disorder that has left her with severe developmental problems.  Her parents took their beautiful three-year-old daughter to Colorado from Texas where they have been treating her with high-THC cannabis oil.  Her seizures have been greatly reduced and she is smiling more and even saying “mama!”  The story of this Tiny Icon drives home the true power of cannabis and underscores the urgent, unmet need of untold thousands.

It is a cruel lesson in geography when living in a close-minded state like Texas or Oklahoma prevents parents from providing their children with safe and effective medicine.  One Oklahoma family would like to be able to take their daughter, Avacake, to Colorado where her epilepsy could be treated more effectively.  However, because her dad is in the military, they can’t just pick up and go.  In fact, going public is a risk within itself.  Parents trying to provide therapeutic cannabis for their children are being harassed by child protective services, losing custody of their children, and even getting arrested. Crueler still is our federal government’s continued Catch-422 classification of cannabis as a Schedule I narcotic.