Please Help - How Do I Convince My Doctor To Prescribe Marijuana For Epilepsy?

Hello everyone,
 
I desperately need some advice and would be grateful for anything that can help! 
 
I've had epilepsy for 13 years (I'm now 26). I live in Canada and I have tonic-clonic and simple partial seizures. I don't have them frequently (about once a year, sometimes up to 5/year if I have bad reactions to other medications, etc.). I used divalproex (called Depakote in the US I think) for a short while and switched to Tegretol around 2004. 
 
Since starting Tegretol, I've had 4 of the rare side effects listed, the worst being suicidal thoughts bordering on intent at the 800 mg dose. I've had depression since around the time I started using Tegretol and was officially diagnosed last year. Unfortunately, suicidal thoughts/behaviours are associated with a number of seizure medications, and I'm really not willing to try any other medications because of it. Not to mention, I tend to have weird reactions to many medications. It makes me extremely wary of trying new ones. To make things worse, as of last December Tegretol isn't working as well as it used to and I've had 3 breakthrough seizures since then. The next highest dose I can use gives me some of those rare side effects. I feel very stuck. 
 
I have never used marijuana before. When I heard of how marijuana (and CBD in particular) could help with seizures, I spoke with a doctor who specializes in prescribing marijuana, and he said that at this time he doesn't think it's the best treatment option for me. He would like for me to try other medications first, but that is a non-negotiable for me. I use 4 medications on a regular basis and I'm not about to make things worse for myself again. I was devastated because I really felt that it is my last hope. He is also nervous because there is a family history of psychosis and thinks marijuana is riskier for me. I have some marijuana off the street but I highly doubt it contains a large amount of CBD so I'm nervous to use it. 
 
I'm seeing a new doctor who also specializes in prescribing marijuana this Friday. Does anyone have any advice as to what I could say to the new doctor he he understands the gravity of the situation? I really don't feel like I have any choices left and I desperately want try a high CBD strain just to see if it works for me... help please... 

TL;DR: How do you convince a doctor to prescribe you marijuana for epilepsy when he thinks the risk factors don't justify its use? Even when you've explained that your other options have shown to be risky before? 

 

Thank you for your reply Upstatenewb. I did my best to give the first doctor all the details and tried to reiterate to him that I wouldn't try any of the other current medications available because I think it was too risky. I also find it weird because he was worried about the family history of psychosis - I thought CBD has antipsychotic properties anyways... 

I don't plan on telling the new doctor that I saw another one prior just in case it affects his decision. 
 
Old School Smoker - you have no idea how often I've thought of moving where it would be easier to get weed, lol. I thought at least Vancouver might be easier Money kind of makes it difficult right now though, I'm also unemployed but looking. 

 

Thank you so much beaniegrl420! I have heard of Epidiolex but only Sativex is currently available in Canada. The first doctor said that Epidiolex might be an option and that it's currently undergoing trials here so it should only be a matter of time.
 
I think you're right though that it would be valuable to approach the new doctor from that angle. I genuinely think that trying more of the anticonvulsant drugs would be riskier than me trying high CBD marijuana... I know how I react to the medications, and it's not good. It's just difficult to get them to understand that just because a side effect (or 4 )  is considered rare, it doesn't mean it won't happen to a patient. I have horrible luck with medications.
 
I was told by the first doctor that marijuana is used as a last resort for people with nothing left to lose. I may not be having seizures everyday but when I don't have any options for medications left and my current one doesn't fully work anymore, all I'm left with is what he considers a last resort treatment. It's a shame. The more I look into marijuana, the more it I believe it should be considered sooner.

 

Hi Galaxy420,
 
Thank you very much for the advice. I've been meaning to buy a vaporizer to use what I currently have - do you have any suggestions? 

 

Beaniegrl420 it's funny that you mention that - the first doctor had told me (against EVERYTHING I've read) that it's a misconception that certain strains are better than others and that some contain more CBD than others. I thought that was very strange.
 
Anyways thank you for the vaporizer recommendations, I will look into those. I'll let you know what happens after the appointment too. The new doctor seems to have a 'if it won't harm let's give it a try' kind of approach (based off of what he says on his website) so we'll see!

 

Thank you all for your suggestions!
 
I just came back from the appointment, and he said yes!!! YAY!!!    He said that my history with seizure medications make my case a giant call for help, and he prescribed me half a gram a day to start. Forms were sent off to the manufacturer I wanted and now I'm just waiting to hear back from them to fill the order. Looks like I need to get that vaporizer soon

 

Hi Chey,
 
Thanks for your reply. I accidentally posted this topic twice so I'm going to answer your posts from both threads here.
 
I've heard about that CBD oil, and I wanted to order it but I'm unsure if it would be illegal to import it into Canada. I don't want to get into that kind of trouble, especially when there would be a trail. I searched many forums to see if any other Canadians had ordered it and I didn't find any, so I didn't want to take the chance. I even tried to see if there were any stores that would sell hemp-derived CBD oil here but I've read varying things on the legal status of hemp here. I've read that hemp (not the seed) contains some CBD but not nearly as much as actual marijuana. It wasn't something I wanted to take the chance on yet, especially when at that point I was still waiting to see the second doctor (he said yes by the way )
 
I found it strange that the first doctor made a big deal about the CBD too. He said things that completely went against everything I've read, such as the strain doesn't matter (as in CBD vs THC content). I have a background in biology and a strong understanding of many medications so I did my research beforehand. I brought tons of articles to the second appointment but I didn't even need to show them to the new doctor. He was pretty convinced that CBD would be a good option for the seizures and he said he'd monitor me frequently to keep an eye out for side effects.
 
I'm glad the oil is working for you! It would be awesome if the CBD oil would be legal here too.

 

Thanks Chey and paulandcathy
 
I accidentally posted this topic twice and I got more replies on the other thread, but the second doctor did think a high CBD strain would be good place for me to start, so he wrote the prescription But you are correct that we are no longer able to grow our own in Canada. My prescription and application was sent off to one of the manufacturers and it will be about 3 weeks before I get the product. Thankfully I don't have so many seizures that the wait is an issue but that's terrible for people who need it more urgently. There are some good things that happened with the new change in laws (Health Canada doesn't have you on file as using medical marijuana anymore) but I hate that for people who have been growing their own for ages that they're not longer able to use it without getting in trouble over it.