This morning's deluge feels apropos after weeks of poor sleep and the stress of deliberating the next step in Calvin's epilepsy regimen; I felt the need for an emotional cleansing of sorts. After much inner thought and analysis, some discussion with Michael and a little with his nurse, I decided to discontinue Calvin's small dose of CBD cannabis oil, at least for now.
The change in treatment, which I commenced yesterday, came after too many nights of a restless child who'd sit up and whack his head against his bed's safety panel every ten to thirty minutes on average. Every time Calvin does this one of us has to get out of bed to go lay him back down and cover him back up. This can happen close to a dozen times each night, depriving us all of sleep. A couple of weeks ago I began wondering if, perhaps, this behavior could be due not only to Calvin's benzodiazepine withdrawal—he had his last dose just over a month ago—but to his CBD cannabis oil. I came to this conclusion knowing that CBD and benzodiazepines like Onfi, the one he was on for so many years and weaning for nearly four, utilize the same liver cytochrome P450 to metabolize and, thus, interact with each other. It occurred to me that in Onfi's absence, the CBD might have the latitude to act differently.
I went onto social media and posed the question—whether CBD can seem to cause restlessness, agitation, insomnia or problems getting to sleep. The answers I got were mostly "yes" including various accounts saying that large doses of CBD are sedating while small doses of CBD can alert or stimulate. Some parents advised not to dose it after four or six p.m. Others said it depends on the strain, confirming what I know about sativas and hybrids being more stimulating than indica strains.
Having cut Calvin's CBD dose in half late last summer and again last fall, I noticed a reduction in partial complex seizures. In eliminating his CBD I hope to see less agitation, improved sleep and perhaps even fewer partial complex seizures. We will see. As always, cross your fingers and knock on wood. You'll be hearing from me.
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| Photo by Michael Kolster |
So hoping it works. A question: do you use a bit of CBD oil on his lips or in his mouth, when Calvin has a major seizure? That over a Valium or whatever suppository that is often given?
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