Submitted by Berta K. from London, England

I am 36 years old, living in London, England, and I've been managing my complex health since age 22.

Seven Diagnoses & 40+ Symptoms

I face multiple challenges, including fibromyalgia, arthritis, hemianesthesia (loss of sensitivity on the left side), bilateral sciatica, chronic pain from Morton's neuroma, and a syrinx on my spine (fluid-filled cyst) at C6/C7. In addition, I'm dealing with long COVID, asthma, and over 40 associated symptoms such as chronic pain, brain fog, loss of appetite, and insomnia. These conditions have significantly impacted my mental health, leading to feelings of anxiety and depression. At times, suicidal thoughts, which further worsened my overall well-being.

Juggling prescriptions

At one point, I was juggling nine different prescriptions with little to no effect on my symptoms. To give you an example, just for the pain, I was taking daily 12 tramadol, 12 naproxen & 12 paracetamol. Just to be comfortable enough to lay in bed all day. These medications would also double down on the existing symptoms that I had, so although it was managing one aspect, another was being exacerbated. It’s important to note that I spent 5 days a week bedbound if I was lucky 4.

During the worst of my health struggles, I relied on a range of medications to manage my symptoms, each bringing its own challenges. For pain management, I used Tramadol, which made me feel spaced out and unable to process my surroundings, leading to frequent withdrawals with nausea, vomiting, headaches, diarrhea, and fever. Amitriptyline provided minimal relief for widespread pain and sleep. Naproxen, while effective for inflammation and pain, caused severe stomach ulcers, nausea, vomiting, and blood in my stools. Gabapentin helped more with bone pain but had similar cognitive side effects as Tramadol. Paracetamol was effective for mouth ulcers and gum, jaw and teeth pain when combined with Tramadol.

For anxiety and sleep issues, I used Mirtazapine, which increased my appetite, leading to significant weight gain and added pressure on my body, exacerbating my pain. It provided slight relief for anxiety and sleep. Zopiclone initially helped with sleep but eventually caused sedation, forgetfulness, cognitive impairment, and chronic fatigue, leaving me physically and mentally exhausted.

Tizanidine for my tremors, which helped but left me in a dreamlike state, struggling to distinguish reality and increasing my risk of accidents. Stemetil prevented fainting spells but caused lightheadedness, likely due to interactions with other medications.

It had never occurred to me to use Cannabis medicinally

I was introduced to medical Cannabis by a friend/colleague who was going to start working at one of the Cannabis clinics in the UK. I was already a senior regional manager for the substance misuse service and was very familiar with Cannabis as a whole, as we do a lot of psychoeducation around this topic with patients; I just never really considered it for myself. No reason why, despite working in a similar sector and being familiar with it. It had never occurred to me to use it medicinally and I have no idea why, which is bizarre. It goes to show how rooted the stigma is, because it wasn’t even an option for me, despite my health getting worse and worse.

Stigma is still a concern

I still get judged for my medications. People often think I'm using it to legitimize personal use. I educate them and explain to them my life without Cannabis and they are immediately converted, as I had little to no quality of life.

Unfortunately, despite medical Cannabis being legal, as a black person, I'm sorry to say that I do not feel comfortable taking my medication out with me. I honestly have to ration my medication when I leave the house, which I shouldn't do, but I fear being stopped and having my medication that I depend on confiscated, as this will resurface my symptoms.

The routine that helps me

I dry flower vape in the morning with my coffee to have a baseline, followed by yoga. Then, I would vape my balanced cartridge during the day to top up if needed. By the evening (6 pm), I would vape flower 30 minutes before bed to ensure a baseline for sleep hours. The flower lasts in my system for about 5-6 hours; after that, the pain wakes me up, so I vape more; I'm not usually able to get back to sleep. Therefore, I'm up for the day. And repeat.

Gradually, I worked towards establishing this routine for myself, as I required six months of continual use to get my body and my mind to a point where I could finally start to push myself to engage in treatment services and holistic approaches. I titrated up to 40g (0.2g is the standard per dose, and I require 0.4 per dosage to get optimal effect) and from there, I stabilized, going from needing 0.4/0.6 every 2-3 hours to 0.4 every 5-6 and then started implementing the routine mentioned above. In the UK, you can only vaporize your flower, so I use a vape pen. I have been on this routine for roughly two years now.

I was bedbound before Cannabis

I lost everything, I could not think of nor formulate words in order to be able to have articulate conversations with people. Almost all of the medications I took caused cognitive processing difficulties. Despite taking these meds, there were days when I could barely manage basic tasks.

To simply get to the bathroom, I had to throw my blankets and pillows on the floor, roll onto them, and drag my body due to hemianesthesia-induced paralysis on my left side. The constant mixing and side effects of these medications made my symptoms worse. I was vomiting so frequently that I would stay in the bathroom with my tablet on the floor because it was easier than dragging myself there every 10 minutes. My life was a cycle of pain, confusion, and relentless vomiting. I became bedbound, not just from the physical agony but also because I couldn't think, speak, or understand what was happening around me. My bed became my safest refuge, the only place where I could avoid further injury if I fainted.

Trying to communicate or do anything became too painful, so I stopped. Engaging with family and friends ceased, leading to the development of anxiety and difficulty in speaking with them. Work became impossible, and I lost everything I had worked my entire life for. I no longer looked like myself and felt like a shadow of the person I once was. I was merely existing, not living.

Rebuilding a journey to recovery

Since Cannabis I regained my family, friends, relationships, work, sanity, and well-being. I'm slowly rebuilding and starting to recognize myself again. Sadly, I am 2.5 years in and only just started picking up the pieces of my life. There was a period when I was doing a bit better, and I worked from home for a year, but that was due to having a treatment break for the arthritis. The minute that resumed in October 2023, I was quite ill and lethargic, triggering everything all over again. I stabilized again in May 2024 and just started to get a routine back in place, pick up a few work hours here and there, gain some strength, and slowly rebuild. Due to Long-COVID destabilizing six conditions, as well as healthcare providers being very difficult, resulting in treatment delay, it has taken longer than the average person to stabilize.

Managing symptoms with Cannabis

All of my symptoms are treated with Cannabis except insomnia. Unfortunately, sleep hates me, but everything else is managed effectively, reducing my symptoms by 75%. This means the frequency and acuteness of the symptoms are significantly improved. Apart from the pain and inflammation and chronic insomnia, which are now 5/10 on average, the rest of my symptoms are 3/10, and some are always mild (3-4/10) in the background.

This is Berta’s personal story and not meant to be medical advice. It is for informational purposes.

To work with a medical Cannabis professional, please visit our directory of coaches, educators, and medical professionals. Everyone's endocannabinoid system (ECS) is different; good results start with the right approach. You don't have to figure it out on your own.

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