adapted, and we had some pretty good months, but the river dog pack grew, and he wasn’ t safe anywhere outside. So, we had to go.
Butch and I are trying to adapt to city life. It’ s his first time, and mine in three decades. We’ re parked in the driveway of family in a neighborhood where houses are only a few feet apart. He’ s a watchdog but lacks a clear view of his surroundings and has no established safety zone. The other night, he somehow sensed a threat outside enough to go through the emergency hatch window— a five-foot jump— and run to the neighbor’ s yard barking. There, he was met by an angry, screaming man. It was a lot to wake up to.
Now, he doesn’ t want to get out of the car or leave the camper when we get there, and his seizures are daily. I was out of my bally-wick, and I needed professional help. to have a plan for all childhood diseases. Autism got an honorable mention, as the rates of Autism in children back then were 1 in 10,000, with no treatment plan.
In 2003, when our database was operational in the clinic where I worked, we found that 21 % of our student population came from two-parent homes. Students living in single-parent homes accounted for 23 %. Over half of the kids aged 9-13 at our school were either living with a grandparent or couch surfing, and many were leading lives marked by trauma.
CBD shows great promise in helping children with Autism, traumarelated issues, and many other conditions.
Money, Money, Money
The number one deterrent to parents of special needs kids and dogs using CBD is money. The drugs are free, paid for by insurance companies that benefit from keeping us sick. CBD is pricey.
Insurance needs to step up and start covering effective treatments, as well as paying clinicians like Rachel Crawford, Katie Thomas, and Alice Mangan, RN, who have dedicated the past ten years to learning the how-tos and whys of plant medicine.
Don’ t Wait. There are products at all price levels, and these clinicians will find you something that fits your price range and location.
If you live in the KC Metro, Rustic Oils is barely a block off 50 Highway and 3rd Street in Lee’ s Summit. And right down the road is a Flora Farms Dispensary. You can get all your full-spectrum needs on one street.
In SW Missouri, you have Alice Mangan, RN, at AliceCBD located in Joplin, just off the highway.
In SE Missouri, you have Blue Key CBD and Katie Thomas, located nowhere near anything convenient, but a beautiful drive across the Bourbeuse River at Mill Rock Crossing.
Alice Mangan, RN, owner of AliceCBD with Dolores.
So, here we are on Rachel Crawford’ s couch( photo above) at Rustic Oil in Lee’ s Summit. I am listening as she explains all the brain neurons involved in PTSD, and how to help my dog.
“ During a seizure, use HempLucid tincture,” Rachel instructed.“ But Butch’ s seizures appear to be stress-related, so let’ s deal with his stress first. For daily use to prevent seizures, we’ ll use Green Gruff Relax + CBD. This is especially good for dogs with delicate tummies. It’ s made with hemp flour, cricket flour, ashwagandha, chamomile, Valerian root, tryptophan, and CBD.”
Butch is a dog. What about our kids?
In 2000, I wrote the charter for then-Governor Claire McCaskill to open the first Children’ s Mercy School-Based clinic in KCMO. I had
I hope someday to see a program where no suffering child loses access to plant medicine because they can’ t afford it. I don’ t know what that program would look like, but maybe one of you does!
Dolores Montgomery Halbin, RN, BSN, and Ordained Nurse Minister, resides in SW Missouri. After her husband passed in 2015, she retired from nursing. She worked with the 2014-2018 Missouri campaigns for legalized medical marijuana. She continues as a cannabis reform activist working toward Federal decriminalization through educational speaking and freelance journalism. Doloreshalbin @ gmail. com.
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