Family want drug to be made available in bid to halt fits

A MUM is fighting for medical cannabis oil so she doesn’t have an epileptic seizure while holding her baby again.

Beth Sodden was diagnosed with the condition at age 14.

Doctors have so far been unable to pinpoint the exact type of epilepsy Beth, 30, has.

It can lead to her having countless seizures a week that can cause her to collapse, injure herself and black out.

Now parents to eightmonth-old Jessica, Beth and her partner James Hanlon, 36, are frightened of the risk to the baby after Beth had a seizure while holding her.

Beth, from Glasgow, said: “James works 40 hours a week and I am here alone with Jessica. I’m always on edge because I could have a seizure at any point. I can’t bath BY JENNIFER HYLAND Jessica alone and I have to limit the amount of times I lift or carry her, which is so hard when she cries and you need to pick her up and cuddle her.

“I’ve tried so many medications the NHS offers but nothing works.”

Epilepsy causes seizures in the brain that temporarily affect how it works. Symptoms can include losing awareness, becoming stiff or collapsing and uncontrollable shaking. Beth said: “Once I had just finished feeding Jessica and began burping her. James had nipped out of the room and heard Jessica crying.

“He says when he heard her still crying after a minute, he came back to find me having a seizure still holding Jessica.

“James quickly took her from me and put her in her basket before lying me down to make sure I didn’t injure myself.”

James added: “Beth was having a seizure and because she had been burping Jessica she still had her hand around her neck. After that we knew we needed to find something to help control this.

“Cannabis oil is available and it is used in the UK but it isn’t readily available for people like Beth and it needs to be.

“I’ve read accounts of people breaking the law to get their hands on it and if I have no other choice, I’ll do the same because I want to keep my partner and baby safe.” The couple found reports on the oil which suggested it targets the part of the brain where seizures stem from. Now they to ask health officials for access to it.

Since November, cannabisbased products have been available for medicinal use in Scotland, England and Wales.

The Scottish Government says specialist doctors are able to prescribe cannabis-based products after a decision is made it would be beneficial.