Only Cannabis Stops Harry's Constant Seizures, Says Mom, He Gets It For Free Thanks To 'I Am Billy Campaign'

While there is much speculation about the negative and positive effects of cannabis, one thing has been proven to be certain – it is effective in treating rare forms of epilepsy. Unfortunately, not all those who suffer from epileptic seizures have access to this life-saving natural medicine.

Will this change in the future? There’s hope, thanks to advocates who consistently support the reform of marijuana laws and research into the plant's extraordinary benefits.

Thanks to them, one teenager from Dunmow in Essex, UK is among the first patients to be given free medical cannabis.

The story is about Harry Siddans, 15, who suffers from refractory epilepsy, also known as drug-resistant epilepsy. He has been using medical marijuana (MMJ) for two-and-a-half years.

According to his parents, only cannabis helped stop Harry’s otherwise constant seizures. It has enabled him to walk and go back to school. His mother, Marie Siddans told ITV News Anglia that cannabis has been a life changer.

"It got to the point where Harry was unable to walk, he was just lying lifeless, dribbling, eyes rolling back on his head," she said. "We were literally moving him from room to room on a duvet. It was really tough.”

"The thing is when you start it [MMJ] there's no going back."

Up until now, the Siddans family had been spending around £995 (around $1196.62) a month for this medicine.

"I think we've spent over £30,000 and it's worth every penny to find that money, even though it's a struggle because you see the difference it makes in your child,” the Siddans said.

Charlotte Caldwell’s Campaign “I Am Billy”

Great Britain legalized medical marijuana use in 2018. The need for cannabis as medicine was highlighted by two cases involving children with severe epilepsy. One is Billy Caldwell, and the other is Alfie Dingley, and both of them were using cannabis oil with low THC to treat their disease.

Billy, who had been suffering from life-threatening epileptic seizures since he was a baby, became the first person to be prescribed medical cannabis by the National Health Service (NHS). That was 2020.

His case first hit the headlines after his mother flew to Canada to get a new supply of cannabis oil, which was seized at customs upon her return. Billy’s condition worsened and he was taken to hospital for “life-threatening” seizures. That’s how he was first granted an exceptional license to use marijuana oil for medical purposes.

Billy’s case effectively legalized medical marijuana in the country, but for his fearless mother, this was not enough of a win. She wanted to help others who were going through a similar nightmare. Caldwell believed that more clinical trials are needed for NHS doctors to feel comfortable prescribing the medication so that medical marijuana can be more accessible and covered by UK’s taxpayer-funded  NHS.

Caldwell launched her “I am Billy” campaign under which, earlier this year, she helped set up a scheme, wherein several global marijuana producers agreed to provide free MMJ to epileptic children if their medical data and outcomes could then be shared with doctors.

Harry Siddans’ mother got in touch with Caldwell via social media and had her son take part in the scheme.

"It's incredible and I am truly grateful to Charlotte for putting out there what us parents can do because you do feel very lonely and isolated and you come to expect this is what life is going to be," Siddans said.

Siddans' second child, Rose, also has a rare genetic condition in which she has several epileptic seizures a day as well as cognitive disability. Thanks to the Caldwell scheme, MMJ producers has now provide Rose with free medical marijuana as well.

Photo: Courtesy of Andre Taissin on Unsplash