T
remember
A YEAR TO
By Robin Emerson, medical cannabis campaigner
In the debut issue of this publication,
Robin Emerson told of his family’s
emotional turmoil as they battled to
obtain a medical cannabis prescription
for their infant daughter Jorja. Almost
a year later, Robin gives his account
on the year that not only changed his
daughter’s life, but the lives of more
than a dozen families in the UK.
As I sit at my desk, I think through the rollercoaster of
emotions and the journey I and others have taken this
year.
Boom, then it hits me again.
The doctors said that they couldn't ever control Jorja's
seizures.
Our world-renowned NHS told me to take my daughter
home to die.
Looking at a picture of Jorja, I think about how this little
warrior has come so far and battled so hard in three years.
People talk about how I saved my daughter, but my
daughter saved me. She showed me what was important
in life, and she gave me the strength to keep fighting.
Jorja is now thriving. Previously she was having over 30
seizures a day, now it’s less than five, some days none at all.
Her development has shot forwards.
She is full of giggles and smiles and started school in
September. Wow. This is all thanks to cannabis – it's given
me my daughter back.
The campaign has had lots of ups and downs.
The extreme high of the (then) Home Secretary stepping
up and doing the correct thing to legalise medical
cannabis in November 2018, the tears running down my
face that day, and the faces of many others, as we thought
the battle had been won and it was time to pack up and
go.
The high profile cases of Alfie Dingley and Billy Caldwell
had shown the national media that medical cannabis
worked. The tireless campaigning from the many,
including myself, across the UK all contributed to years
of effort by the many activists to change this extremely
unjust and out-of-date law.
Unfortunately, then came the stark reality that no one in
the NHS was going to prescribe this medication.
Indeed, even the private sector was hesitant to prescribe,
but Jorja's neurologist stepped up, and putting their head
above the parapet wrote the first UK prescription for
medical cannabis since the law had changed.
Jorja made history as the first child to get a prescription
once the law had changed. The mixed emotions of pure
euphoria and relief that my child was going finally have an
opportunity at life.
I was extremely fortunate to then have Aphria Inc step in
to fund Jorja's medication, until we can get this blockage
within the NHS sorted.
To date, we have secured approximately 16 prescriptions
for other families through Jorja's private neurologist.
Again, the mixed emotions of euphoria from parents to see
their children, many for the first time, being able to meet
milestones and keeping seizures controlled, along with the