Harry’s story: From slipped discs to working, walking, sport, and travelling again

Could you talk us through your diagnosis and how it affects you day to day?

I've got two slip discs in L4 and L5, and in S1 from a previous injury when I was at work. I’ve been on god knows how many different painkillers that just didn’t work.

It was a pain consultant at my local hospital who actually recommended trying medicinal cannabis because he’d seen it work for a number of his patients who had gone about it themselves and had seen huge benefits. So, I thought I’d give it a go.

That was in February. It just took me a while to find the right clinic. A lot of shopping around, researching, and then I found Releaf.

Up until starting with Releaf, I’d been in pain from when I woke up to when I went to bed, really. I wasn’t able to walk to work, so I’d have to get public transport, which would cost a lot of money. Public transport is always busy, not the most comfortable, so that would aggravate my back as well.

I’m not very good when I’m in pain, so I would be quite moody as well - it did affect my mood a lot. That’s just improved tenfold since the pain stopped not being managed. So yeah, it’s really great.

What’s your line of work, and how do you manage cannabis treatment alongside it?

I'm actually a nurse, and a substance misuse nurse as well. The first Releaf clinician I saw was very surprised by that because they have seen a lot of push back from people working in substance misuse. But my argument would be, “don't knock it till you've tried it.”

And if you've been on the amount of medications I've been on, you might understand why. 

I have been on oral morphine, tablet morphine, MST, pregabalin, amitriptyline, gabapentin, meloxicam, naproxen, paracetamol, codeine. I was at one point taking about 30 tablets a day, and I was just like, “I'm not doing this any more”, because it wasn't helping. I was just getting through the day, but I was still in loads of discomfort the majority of the time.

Obviously, I make sure not to use it whilst I'm at work. I tend to try and stick to the lowest dose if I do need it before I go to work, but that is rare.

What are you currently prescribed, and how has your routine or activity level changed since beginning treatment?

My first Releaf prescription was in April 2025. I’m currently prescribed two medical cannabis flower options that I take through a dry herb vaporiser, and one medical cannabis oil option.

Before starting with Releaf, there’s no way I could walk 15 to 20,000 steps a day. Now I do that every day, seven days a week, with ease. I couldn’t do any contact sports. I’ve now been told I can do contact sports again because my back has improved so much.

With being able to move more, one of the slip discs seems to be slowly, possibly, going back in, but they don't want to say it too soon. It looks like it might be. They said only very marginally, but it definitely looks a bit better than the last MRI. 

I haven’t got back to rugby, but I think I’m too old for that now to be honest anyway. But I have started playing football again and started swimming again, which has been great.

I’ve also started to do free weights in the gym and stuff, which I’ve not been able to do for a very long time. It’s been excellent. My sleep’s improved, mood’s improved, skin’s improved. 

Everything really. It’s been a real game changer for me.

Had you ever accessed private medicine prior to Releaf?

No, never, and I’m very impressed. It was seamless, easy to understand, and a very easy process. Much better than I was expecting, really.

You can actually get hold of a clinician - a few times I’ve had an appointment the same day. The customer service is excellent too. If the chatbot doesn’t answer the question, they put you straight through to someone else, which is brilliant. Everyone is very helpful.

There was even a time when I was going away and wasn’t sure if the prescription would arrive before my flight. I contacted customer service, and they sped it up, contacted the pharmacy, and got it sent out quickly. That was great because my back flares up a lot on planes.

And have you experienced any side effects from your medical cannabis treatment?

I’ve had no problems with it at all. I haven't found myself feeling groggy or tired in the mornings. I haven't felt over-sedated. I haven't felt groggy from the oil or anything like I was told that could be possible side effects. 

It has actually been life-changing for me. 

Was it important for you to go down the legal route for treatment?

Yeah, definitely. I didn't want to get caught up in a scenario of having to get it illicitly.

There was no rhyme or reason to do it when there was the route through medicinal and legal. 

Have you discussed your cannabis treatment with your colleagues?

I have been honest with a few of them if they've asked, because I was off work so consistently for such a long time with my back issues, but since starting treatment with Releaf, the amount of time I have needed off work has dropped dramatically.

With the pain stopping, I've managed to lose like 40 kilos in weight because I've been able to move around a lot more. 

Have you discussed your medication more openly with those close to you?

Yeah, definitely. I talk to everyone about it because it’s quite obvious when you lose 40 kilograms, and being able to move with way less pain is very noticeable. People have asked me what it was that changed, and I've only been able to put it down to my medical cannabis prescription really, that has been able to get me moving again.

Even if work were unhappy with it, I know that this is a fully legal treatment option protected by the same regulations and standards as any other prescribed medication. As clinicians, we should be looking at using anything that's available that can help or support someone. 

Obviously, like many pain-killing medications, cannabis can be abused. But when it is legally prescribed, with ongoing clinical supervision, it is just an absolute lifesaver I think.

How does cannabis fit into the wider picture of substance use in your field, and have you spoken about your own treatment in that context?

I'd say with cannabis in the substance misuse sector it's very low down the pecking order with alcohol, opiates, cocaine, and so on.

I've had clients who I've spoken to who are also registered medicinal cannabis users who use it for long-term pain on top of their other opiate issues, but they have the legal route for the cannabis.

They said that it was life-changing for their pain that they had in their lower leg as well.

I have offered in multidisciplinary team meetings my insight on medicinal cannabis before, but I've never felt a need or reason to officially declare it. I would be happy to though - I don't think it would be a problem.

What advice would you give someone thinking about trying medical cannabis through Releaf?

Do it. If you go to that initial consultation, if they don’t think you’re suitable for it, they’re not going to give it to you.

I think people just assume it’s for children with epilepsy or for people having chemo who can’t eat, to build up their appetite or to help with their pain. I think a lot of people see it as the NHS only do it for that, therefore that’s all it must be used for. But I’ve explained if you actually go onto these websites, the list of conditions that it’s licensed for is much, much more than you’d expect it to be.

The Releaf Patient Dashboard makes things so easy. The options from the shop, to the booking process, and the travel section are really fantastic. It was really straightforward getting set up with the starter kit. I really didn't have to worry about anything. 

That was the thing I was most impressed with, to be honest. It was a very worry-free process and quick. I mean, within half an hour of logging in for my initial consultation, I had the prescription, it was sent to the pharmacy. It was all really seamless.

So yeah, I’d encourage them to just give it a go. Just go to that initial consultation and see what happens from there.

What are you hoping for in the near future?

Well, we’re hoping to go to Greece again, possibly at the end of September, which would be very nice. Other than that, just carry on getting fit, managing the pain, and enjoying the way things are at the moment compared to four months ago. 

It’s a very different story, for sure.

Do you travel often?

Yeah, fairly often, every couple of months. 

The process of taking it abroad is straightforward, far less daunting than I expected. A lot of the people at security said that they were surprised by how many people carry medical cannabis with them, and that they very rarely pull people up on it now. 

My last trip was to Italy, and before heading off, I just was on the Releaf website and went to the travel section of the Patient Dashboard. This section is split up into separate countries, so I went to the Italy section, and it was very clear that medicinal cannabis is legal.

The advice was to contact the embassy in Rome, and also reach out to the Italian consulate in London to say I was going to be coming and travelling with it. The responses were all, “Yeah, yeah, it’s fine, not a problem.”

In Greece, when I was in the airport travelling back, there was a bit more confusion and a bit of resistance to the form and the scanning of the card. But once they got an English speaker, it was much smoother, and they said it was absolutely fine.

So I haven’t had any real issues travelling with it at all, really.

As someone in healthcare, how do you view the future of cannabis acceptance?

Yes, but I think the problem in the UK is that we have a very resistant government and a very old-fashioned view on drugs in general. Their attitude towards drug policy is, in my opinion, quite out-dated.

I remember a few years ago it was David Cameron’s chief medical officer who said cannabis should be legalised, and he was sacked the next day. That was years ago. I think now that probably wouldn’t happen. Now there would be more of a debate about it, because there’s a lot more information on it.

So yeah, I’d like to think so, but I don’t have much faith in government. So we’ll see.

For more information about medical cannabis treatments for this condition, please see medical cannabis for chronic pain.