FND and CBD (Functional Neurological Disorder)

I have FND, Functional Neurological Disorder, those of you that have this debilitating disorder can relate. Those of you that don’t, can learn.

Functional Neurological Disorder, as defined by Medical News Today, “also called conversation disorder, is a complex condition where patients experience physical neurological conditions, but without a clear structural problem in the nervous system. The exact cause is not completely understood, although stress can be a major contributor.”

 My FND was caused by a brutal assault to the head. Others, in my FND support group, have told me their FND was caused by a car accident, various traumatic experiences including domestic violence and abuse, falling off of a trotting horse, undiagnosed medical conditions such as pernicious anaemia, being under general anesthesia, etc.

The vast majority of FND sufferers in my support group, with over 7,800 members diagnosed with FND, had some sort of trauma to the head causing the horrible disorder.

Unfortunately, FND is under researched. Therefore, many medical professionals, including neurologists and emergency room doctors that I have seen personally, label FND as a psychological issue. I assure you it is not.

The psychological symptoms exist in many FND patients due to the disorder’s awful symptoms that come and go, varying on the day, never truly knowing how you will feel from one day to the next. Having FND is depressing and causes anxiety, but depression and anxiety are not the cause of FND.

CBD can help alleviate FND symptoms, speaking from my own experience.

 So what are the symptoms of FND?

There are so many it is almost too hard to name them. I will do my best.

 First of all, those with FND, including myself, have no control over the symptoms and do not deliberately trigger them. Also note that according to FND Hope, a nonprofit advocacy group for those with FND, symptoms can be as debilitating as multiple sclerosis or Parkinson’s disease.

The symptoms are severe. They include, but are not limited to, hearing difficulties, trouble concentrating, difficulty swallowing, overall weakness, chronic fatigue, seizures, pain including twitches and tremors in the muscles and joints, impaired movement, loss of balance, paralysis, loss of senses including vision and taste, memory problems, speech problems, trouble concentrating, migraine headaches, insomnia and lack of responsiveness to name a few.

 I did not need to research these symptoms, I have the majority of them and so do the thousands in my FND support group.

Symptoms can last for days or weeks, the patient never knowing when they will subside. Sadly, sometimes the symptoms are so severe some FND patients seriously contemplate suicide, which is definitely not the answer.

What is the answer and how do FND patients control their symptoms?

 Because FND is not seen on CT scans or on MRI’s, the only way FND is treated is by treating each symptom through prescription medication, trips to the emergency room, and therapy, both physical and psychological.

Personally, I have a medication list that is over two pages long. I am on prescription muscle relaxers for the twitches and tremors in my muscles, Adderall for concentration, pain medication for headaches, sleeping pills for insomnia, anti-seizure medication for seizures etc.

The problems with all of these medications are the horrible side effects that come with them.

Unfortunately, FND patients don’t know at times if the disorder is causing discomfort, or if any discomfort is a side effect of the many prescription medications they take on a daily basis or when symptomatic.

Therefore, having FND is a never ending cycle of simply never feeling well and being unable to live a productive life or even a semi-productive life.

This is where CBD can help FND patients and has helped me. I have been taking CBD and keeping an active journal.

FND and CBD, what is the outlook?

According to Peter Grinspoon, MD at www.health.harvard.edu , “CBD stands for cannabidiol. It is the second most prevalent of the active ingredients of cannabis (marijuana). While CBD is an essential component of medical marijuana, it is derived directly from the hemp plant, which is a cousin of the marijuana plant.”

Unlike marijuana, CBD does not cause a high.

The World Health Organization claims, “In humans, CBD exhibits no effects indicative of any abuse or dependence potential. To date, there is no evidence of public health related problems associated with the use of pure CBD.”

So here FND patients have a “medication”, pure CBD, which has no side effects.

This can help us lessen the amount of prescription medications we take and dealing with their side effects. FND sufferers just need to make sure the CBD they purchase or use is pure.

A lot of CBD companies add unknown and/or unneeded ingredients to their product, making it less effective and selling it as “pure” CBD.

 I have been taking CBD from pHAZE Naturals. It is pure CBD and has worked wonders for me.

 For FND patients such as me, CBD can relieve many of the symptoms that we have.

 According to the New York Times (www.nytimes.com), CBD is advertised to help relieve anxiety, depression, and post traumatic stress disorder. As a CBD user, I can personally claim this is true. CBD also promotes sleep. Since taking CBD, my insomnia has subsided, and so has my need for sleep medication with side effects.

 I have also found that CBD helps with my chronic pain associated with FND. Dr. Orrin Devinsky, a professor of neurology, neurosurgery and psychiatry at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine and director of NYU’s Langone’s Comprehensive Epilepsy Center led studies on CBD and seizures according to www.health.usnews.com.

 He claims that “Part of CBD’s novelty is that it affects the nervous system through a different route than other antiepileptic drugs. Although CBD’s action is still not fully understood, we do understand some of the ways in which it helps control seizures (by working) on a receptor system that no other drug touches.”

GPR55 receptors are blocked by CBD. In FND patients, if this receptor is a cause of seizures, CBD can be very effective in controlling seizures. This is extremely positive news.

In conclusion, having FND is dreadful.

Unfortunately, so are the side effects of the prescription medications that FND patients take to subside the unbearable symptoms. The good news is that pure CBD can help relieve many of the symptoms that we face, including seizures.

 Having FND, and using pHAZE Naturals pure CBD has definitely given me a better quality of life.