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Closed 06/08/2021
Iʼve raised £105 to help fund medical cannabis
- Funded on Friday, 6th August 2021
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Story
Thank you so much for considering supporting me, any additional money raised will be sent to other patients whom are also in need
I really need some help, firstly here’s my story.
Five years ago I had an injury at work whilst working as a commercial, industrial electrician. Unfortunately due to my accident it damaged my spine enough to stop me working and rendering me disabled. I’ve gone from a happy working husband and farther to a useless cabbage, let me explain, following my accident I have been under the Pain Clinic in, The Milton Keynes University Hospital under the direction of Doctor Mirhaz.
My prescription for the last five years is made up of the following Pharma medications,
1) Amitriptyline 25mg X 3 daily
2) Baclofen 10mg X 9 daily
3) Butec patch 15mg/ph X 1 weekly
4) Carbamazepine 100mg X 2 daily
5) Cyclizine 50mg X 3 daily
6) Diazepam 5mg X 4 daily
7) Dihydracodine 5mg X 8 daily
8) Gabapentin 400mg X 9 daily
9) Morphine Sulfate (Oramorph) 5ml to 40ml daily
10) Lansoprazole 15mg X 2 daily
11) Naproxen 500mg X 2 daily
12) Paracetamol 500mg X 4 daily
13) Laxido Orange powder X 2 sachets daily
46 tablets a day, or 322 a week, or 16,744 a year (give or take) yes that figure is accurate.
I have been on the above medication for five years, yes the medication has helped me however had huge implications for my Liver, with my results in the 450’s (they should be no more than 56 for my age) I have been diagnosed with a fatty liver also in the MK Hospital. I was asked do you drink? Obviously no I don’t I can’t. I eat healthy too so it’s not my diet, it’s my medication.
How long can I use the above treatments before my Liver gets worse and I’ll eventually get cirrhosis of the Liver which is very scary indeed, particularly as my scan was in 2017 so I don’t know how it is right now, I get occasional pain in that area which is not related to my back pain.
My diagnosis is Chronic pain, protruding disks at L3/L4 and L4/5, I have Degenerative disc disease which is occasionally paralysing due to pain. I have also had injections into my spine in theatre at MK Hospital (did not help and left me very poorly)
Last year I was getting very worried about my health and my weight, I had gone from a 32 waist up to a 40 waist and in terms of weight prior to my accident I weighed 75 kilos (6ft tall) in other words I was a very healthy weight. In November last year I weighed 120 kilos and it was all in my abdomen area (a very fat stomach)
I knew I was in trouble as this method of treatment was having very negative effects on my body.
I was also a terrible husband and farther, I didn’t play or really interact with my children or wife, I was a living like a zombie because of pain, to be honest it may have been easier to end my life and let my wife and children have a life because (back then) I felt like a waste of space. I can’t explain in detail how embarrassing it is to sit in a wheelchair in public. I didn’t want to go anywhere in the holidays (ie the beech for example Southend) and my wife wasn’t comfortable leaving me as she is my career so if something happened to me she could face consequences, so because of me I also affected her life and that of my five children. It’s very difficult living in constant Pain as well as knowingly damaging your liver.
Now as I mentioned last year I started to look for alternative medication and came across Medical Cannabis, to be honest I was very suspicious that this was a good idea or even a good treatment. However I wanted to find out more, I managed to get hold of medical users and they all had very reassuring results particularly in terms of chronic pain.
After more research on how to go about getting Medical Cannabis I found Project Twenty21, being run by Drug Science to collect data presumably for the governments in the U.K. and Europe.
I eventually found a Private Clinic, The Medical Cannabis Clinic (TMCC) I was delighted to be accepted but still sceptical. I went through the process of an initial consultation and was prescribed Medical Cannabis for the first time. I really had no idea if vaping cannabis would help but as mentioned willing to try anything.
On the day my prescription turned up, if I’m not mistaken it was the 6th of January 21 I was one, shocked to have Medical Cannabis in my home legally and two I was blown away at how effective it is and how quickly the relief is, it’s instant, there is no waiting for tablets to kick in or wait for morphine to work. I was truly shocked at how good it worked for Pain and what was noticeable from day one was my personality (it came back)
By the end of January I had either stopped in full or decreased the amount of tablets I was taking. I felt amazing, I wanted to play with my children, I could actually hold a conversation with my wife and also lost 10 kilos.
By the end of February, I stopped mostly all my medication. I had gone from 46 tablets a day down to 8, No Patch, No Morphine a massive change and very much for the better. When I informed my Private Doctor (Dr. Sunny Nayee, an amazing knowledgeable friendly doctor) he was very pleased with my treatment and so was I.
Fast forward to the end of March and I managed to reduce my medication further to just 6 a day.
So that’s my background, I am registered disabled due to my accident however I’ve lived an amazing life these past three months then the last five years. It’s almost as if I had woken from a bad dream and was out of it.
Smoking Medical Cannabis has literally changed my life for the better, I’m able to walk further, my back doesn’t go into horrific spasms and cognitively I’m back to being me. I’m sure there are others whom are having just as much joy and relief as me. Any stigma I had, even telling my mother about the treatment has gone, I am genuinely shocked at why this is not available to more patients, and more shocked at the fact it’s all private.
So with everything said you may wonder why I’m writing to you.
I can’t afford as a disabled person on a very limited income with a wife and five children to continue this method of medication and I have to revert back to all the drugs mentioned above. All the drugs mentioned above our fully funded by the NHS so it’s free to me to carry on the way I have been for the last five years.
What I was using is two types of medical cannabis flowers, a 20% Indica at night and a 20% Sativa during the day. That’s it just two types of medical cannabis, however at a cost of the following,
1st consultation fee £75.00 (December 2020)
1st prescription fee £300.00 (January 2021)
2nd consultation fee £65.00 (February 2021)
1st repeat prescription fee £30 (February 2021)
2nd prescription £300 (February 2021)
2nd repeat prescription fee £30 (March 2021)
2nd Prescription fee £300 (March 2021)
To date I have spent £1100.00
This has been the best money I have ever spent however it’s not sustainable, I just don’t have it available in fact for March I used credit cards to gain access for treatment but my wife has made it very clear we can’t afford it and I will soon be in danger of putting myself in subsequent debt.
I’m writing to you to ask for help to assist me in getting Medical Cannabis through the NHS, I have no idea how so really need your help. I’m quite sure my monthly medication prior to medical cannabis was quite costly so wouldn’t it be cheaper to keep me on medical cannabis so I can live a better happier life. I don’t say that lightly my family mean everything to me and I want to be part of it too and go out in the summer to different beaches so my child can enjoy their life’s and that of my wife’s. We went out for one day in 2019 for the summer holiday other than that I stay at home. I really need your help to get access through the NHS to get hold of Medical Cannabis, I also feel Medical Cannabis should be more talked about and I can tell you for certain it will eradicate anyone with an opioid addiction. (It worked for me)
Please can you help?
I appreciate you are very busy but there is some urgency for a response, even if you can point me in the right direction to contact the NHS so I can get access to medication. I can’t make clear enough how important this email is, I want to thank you for your time in reading it and eagerly await a reply.
Updates
1
- 4 years ago
Ryan Holmwood
4 years agoShare this update to help us raise more
Ryan Holmwood started crowdfunding
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Supporters
7
Jo Alm
Apr 27, 2021
As a single parent and someone who also suffers from prolapsed discs, I totally know exactly how you feel. I hope you get the results you need - good luck!
£20.00
Saz
Apr 27, 2021
Ah Ryan. Your story is identical to mine & this article had me in tears at the bit about laughing again. It was a huge milestone here too, nothing's funny in pharma/pain hell. Keep fighting mate!!
£20.00
Anonymous
Apr 26, 2021
£20.00
Dominic Kos
Apr 11, 2021
Good luck Ryan!
£20.00
Baltic
Apr 8, 2021
Good luck and best wishes.
£10.00
Anonymous
Apr 8, 2021
Anonymous
Apr 8, 2021
Happy to support! Will also be joining your Facebook group and happy to help in any capacity!
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