I didn't think about my health until I was 34. I was perfectly healthy and in the middle of life. I worked in an advertising agency, had a relationship and a social life. All options were open to me. In my free time I was adventurous. I liked traveling around the world and trying out everything that was fun. Until May 17, 2009. On that day I misjudged the situation and made a mistake. When I took off with my paraglider, I stumbled and hit my head with full force into the meadow. I was completely paralyzed on the spot.
Many people think when they see me that I would rather not live like this anymore. Paralyzed from the neck down, that's a horror idea. Back then for me too. But in Switzerland you can't just die like that. Our rescue and health system saved my life in an exemplary manner. The doctors who repaired my damaged cervical spine knew something about their subject! The nurses in the intensive care unit fought for my life for two weeks.
When I woke up from the induced coma, my “old life” was over. But I couldn't die anymore. My body was stabilized again. I should have actively taken my death into my own hands. That's difficult when you're paralyzed in bed. It is an illusion to believe that you have a choice.
If you survive, you live. The world is collapsing and the fight back to life is incredibly hard. I was in the hospital for a year and a half. Everything is exhausting. You train like a top athlete, even if it's just the smallest movements. You are constantly exhausted to death. And mentally coping with this limitation is incredibly difficult! These 7 minutes are not enough for that.
And then come the pain and the spastic cramps. From one day to the next, being paralyzed was suddenly the least of my problems. My whole body burns like fire every day. My hands are the worst. And when you touch me, my body twists in spastic spasms. The combination with the neuropathic pain is hell. I am in constant pain on a level that a healthy person cannot imagine. The pharmaceutical medications didn't help. They only made things worse. I couldn't eat anything anymore. I kept vomiting and became thinner and thinner. I ended up in the hospital several times with life-threatening additional illnesses. I knew I had to change something or I would die from this drug cocktail.
I chose life. I have never given up and always tried to find a solution. And I actually had this solution very early. Cannabis. The painkillers of my choice. A lot of cross -sectional paralysis have been stunned in the hospital. I immediately saw that outside in front of the hospital. That didn't deter me. I used to use cannabis for the Recreational Consumption . So I tried it and it worked immediately. I said that to all doctors, only nobody was interested.
Cannabis is banned in Switzerland. There are a few legal options for medical use. But these are too expensive for me and don't help me. I really wanted to take the legal route. But what I need doesn't exist.
So I decided to take the rebellious route and help myself. Of course I can't say how I do it. But I don't do anything bad. For me, I'm doing the only right thing. Cannabis allowed me to stop taking almost all medications. I replenished my body with vitamins and trace elements. Now I relieve my pain and spastic cramps almost exclusively with high doses of cannabis. My life is worth living again. But I couldn't last a day without cannabis. That's why I don't follow the law.
There are 100,000 cannabis patients in Switzerland. The Federal Office of Public Health estimates this. I'm not alone. We are many. And we are no longer willing to hide and be quiet. It shouldn't be the case that sick people have to turn to crime to relieve their pain. As President of the Medical Cannabis Association Switzerland, I am fighting for something to finally change. We know exactly what we are doing! That's why we're calling on Parliament to allow medical home cultivation - preferably together with other patients.
Cannabis is not a miracle cure. Despite cannabis, I have pain and spasticity. But these are subdued and I tolerate them better. Cannabis makes it possible for me to want to live despite the pain. Many other patients feel the same way. For us, self-therapy with cannabis is the only way out to alleviate our suffering and maintain our quality of life. Cannabis can be taken as a long-term medication without poisoning the body or damaging the organs. This is a blessing for many chronically ill people.
Cannabis would also be an opportunity to counteract the skyrocketing costs of healthcare. But politicians choose the strictly pharmaceutical route. There is a risk that this medicinal plant will be turned into an unaffordable medicine. I'm afraid of that!
If you also think that we should be able to use cannabis as medicine immediately, then support me and the Association . We will not stop fighting for our rights. Everyone should decide for themselves how they want to treat themselves. It's his health! If you would like more information, visit our website or come to our patient meetings.
Thank you Tsüri on behalf of all Swiss cannabis patients for allowing me to tell my story.
