Philippa Fleming Activist

Before i tell you about my journey with Medical Cannabis i would like to point you towards a video that explains what the Endocannabinoid system is. Click on the word Endocannabinoid which will take you to more information.

Medical Cannabis became legal in the UK in November 2018. But was out of the price range for most people with the illnesses that are treatable with cannabis. The list of legally treatable conditions is much shorter than the list that cannabis actually treats but you have to start somewhere. To get cannabis on the NHS you either have to be a child with one of the treatment resistant types of epilepsy, someone with MS where no other treatments have worked or are in a later stage of the condtion or someone with cancer, having treatment with chemotherapy. You can only get oils or flower for other conditions through the private clinics listed on the useful links page.

I started my journey into legal cannabis in May 2021. I had just seen an advert for Project Twenty 21 so went to investigate. I decided to go with The Medical Cannabis Clinics under P2021. At my first appointment the doctor suggested oils for me but I did want some flower as that was what I was used to. Before the call finished the doctor told me it has to go to panel to be agreed but said he did not see an issue with the prescription being granted.

The whole process took about 3 weeks from having the appointment to getting the product, which is posted out to you via courier.

There was very little guidance just a prescription that said:-

Althea Oil THC 5% CBD 10% Use sublingually 0.2 ml – 1 ml twice a day. Start at 0.2 ml, increase dose by 0.2 ml every 3-5 days.
Noidecs Flower 16% use vape. Sativa 0.2 gram dose max 1 gram. Supply 10 grams. With some searching I have found the strain name to be LA Amnesia. The parent strains are Amnesia haze and a Kush (maybe Hindu). (click on the first 2 images to be taken to the webpage of the corresponding product).

I started the oil on 19 July 2021 but I got to the maximum dose quite quickly I seem to remember. The 50ml bottle was to last 2 months. The flower was a little more complicated. I had bought a Storz and Bickel Mighty vaporiser second hand which was a lot cheaper that a brand new one. This comes with small capsules but can only fit in 0.1 gram of flower. It was all trial and error to begin with to try and find the best temperatures and so that it was not so harsh on the throat.

It took quite a while to get used to vaping and I did switch back to spliffs a couple of times. I then decided to see if I could get myself a second hand Storz & Bickel Volcano classic (the best on the market, very popular and more useable for those with lung issues (Not to be used if you have Asthma or COPD).

In September 2021 I started a new oil prescription:- Noidecs T10 C15 oil 50 ml bottle. A dose of 0.1 – 0.5ml sublingually. Please supply 50ml (fifty millilitres). The flower was the same but I got x2 pots of 10 grams of the Noidecs T16 flower.

In December 2021 I got some more oil and asked for a flower that would be a bit more relaxing so was given Adven Flos EMT 2 THC 20% CBD 0.1%. I have no idea what this strain is called in the non medical world but the parent strains are White Widow and Amnesia Haze. May 2022 update – the strain is known as Cairo but there is little information about this strain at the current time.

I was trying to educate myself as much as possible. I was reading everything I could get my hands on including some medical papers (no not rolling papers) (some of which were quite technical). I eventually came across some information about different cannabinoids and terpenes (essential oils) within the cannabis flower having different boiling points and all of them had special powers (more on that later). With the volcano classic I had to keep looking up the temperatures in the book provided which was getting a little annoying so I decided to purchase a Volcano digit (second hand of course). Well it’s the best thing I have done so far as I now sit with the volcano sat beside me so that I can fill a balloon and vape whenever I feel the requirement.

I have definitely noticed some things starting to feel better. I have less pain (not no pain that would be impossible I think), I am no longer nauseous, my IBS has become less of a problem and have stopped taking Imodium daily. I no longer have those electrifying pains and all the muscle spasms have gone. I do still get quite a lot of pain around my shoulder blades (which wing themselves, most of the time without me noticing). I used to get pains that felt like pain running through my vascular system (in my lower extremities) but unless I forget a dose this has calmed down. It helps my anxiety and depression. I have had a very positive side effect of helping me with menopause symptoms. With all the conditions I have I was told I would not do well with HRT and in February/March of 2021 (over a year after menstruation stopped) I was getting really tearful (something I don’t do) I had no idea what I was going to do so I just had to put up with it. Luckily once I started the cannabis prescription the tearfulness stopped. Other things in this area also started getting better but I fear at this point it might just be too much information. Lol. May 2022 update with regards to HRT i have recently remembered that i was told by a family planning doctor when i was in my early twenties that i can not have the combined pill because of the risk of a thrombophlebitis so this would be the reason that i can not take HRT. I used to have a briuse type mark on my lower inside right leg just above the ankle. It was a reddish purple colour and only started to disappear once i started my prescription so i have had this for more than 30 years.

I think I will leave this post here for now and will tell you more in my next post, about the different cannabinoids, terpenes and their temperatures and what special powers they all have. This may end up being more than one post in it’s own right. This will also allow me to explain a little more about symtoms and the effects of the Cannabinoids & Terpenes.