Information – Alex's Story https://alexneedshelp.com Autism, rage, marijuana, and heartbreak Mon, 25 Sep 2023 18:29:32 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.9.6 Post-KKI Alex https://alexneedshelp.com/post-kki-alex https://alexneedshelp.com/post-kki-alex#comments Tue, 30 Dec 2014 18:14:49 +0000 http://www.alexneedshelp.com/?p=962 Continue reading "Post-KKI Alex"]]> [ I apologize for the lack of contact, I’m actually at work right now delaying my “clock-in” time, so to speak, in order to write something up – it’s been a crazy, crazy couple of years ]

Initially, Alex went to a “crisis home” in Salem (I think that’s what it was called). It was okay, but they never really got a handle on his behaviors. The state shuffled him off to Creswell before he was stable in our opinion, though we couldn’t fault them really — we, his parents, never did, either. Nor did various doctors, medications, etc.

But the Creswell home is where things went downhill. It seemed like the goal was to figure out the cheapest way to keep Alex alive, as opposed to figuring out how to keep him engaged and keep his mind working.

There were quite a few staff people we really liked there, but somewhere in the hierarchy of management there were a lot of very bad decisions. They wouldn’t train staff, they wouldn’t really work at any kind of communications strategy with Alex, they would fight us on everything, even just trying to set up a daily routine.

Sending Alex to KKI was the best thing that’s happened to him, I believe. Don’t get me wrong, it was a huge ordeal, and way too far to travel for what they did for him (I’m certain if our nation weren’t completely insane, centers like KKI could exist in every state). But they created structure for him, special arm splints to prevent the majority of his injuries, and even managed to reduce his emesis rate by a fair amount. Having a set, enforced structure allowed us to get him in the care of a FAR more effective group home. They train their staff, they don’t just pull people off the street and hope for the best. They listen to our concerns, and work with us when issues arise. And most importantly, they follow Alex’s routine very well. He’s always being directly engaged by people – he isn’t allowed to just be left in his room, watching TV and vomiting on himself out of boredom. (At the time we didn’t know what would help, we just kept trying to press them to do SOMETHING with his mind. Their response was just outright lies – “that never happens, his staff are always with him”)

So to anybody with a similar situation, I’d say FIGHT. If you can’t get something like KKI, at least fight, and fight hard, to get a structure that’s required to be followed (you’ll have to talk to multiple doctors probably, but good ones are out there who will say, yes, this structured system is a good idea). Get doctor’s orders, and bring in lawyers if you have to. (Maybe later I can provide a sample of the kind of structure that works so well for Alex.)

Anyway — the point is that KKI gave Alex the structure he needed to be significantly happier and safer. And now that he’s in a place that will work with us, we managed to get them to open up a home just 10 minutes away from us. Not a day has gone by since the move that he hasn’t seen one or both of his parents.

]]>
https://alexneedshelp.com/post-kki-alex/feed 1
Vote yes on Oregon measure 91 https://alexneedshelp.com/vote-yes-on-oregon-measure-91 https://alexneedshelp.com/vote-yes-on-oregon-measure-91#comments Sun, 10 Aug 2014 21:43:04 +0000 http://www.alexneedshelp.com/?p=951 Continue reading "Vote yes on Oregon measure 91"]]> Alex visits are extremely draining when he’s almost three hours away (round trip). As such, I won’t be posting a lot about him unless there are major changes. But I figured our ballot measure is worth at least a quick mention.

A few weeks ago, New Approach Oregon got their cannabis legalization initiative on the ballot. It will be measure 91 on the ballot in November.

If you live in Oregon, register to vote – it’s insanely easy, and our voting is by mail, which is so much better than states that require in-person voting. There’s no excuse not to vote. But REGISTER now.


Measure 91 isn’t perfect by any means. I have concerns about the four-plant limit, the fact that we still allow employers to drug test for off-the-job cannabis usage, etc. But it’s a HUGE step in the right direction. It won’t touch anything in the current OMMP laws, so medical patients are still completely protected with the same high limits they have today (I think 6 mature plants and 12 seedlings or something — and 24 ounces of usable plant matter). Taxes will go to police and schools primarily, which should alleviate the fears of the naysayers who somehow still think it’ll cost a lot to enforce the new laws. The tax level isn’t a set amount, so it can change as the black market changes and as other states legalize, keeping our system competitive with the black market while minimizing potential interstate trade.

It’s a good measure. Maybe it’ll need work in 5-10 years, but for today, it’s a good measure. We believe it’s a step in the right direction for kids like Alex. Getting cannabis for him should be a lot easier, and in the long run, a lot cheaper than it is today. For others in situations like ours, they can try it out before it’s too late, and have time to experiment with dosage and strains. I urge everybody to vote yes – whether it’s because you value freedom, believe in helping children like Alex, or just want to see Oregon’s schools get a bit more money.

I’ve discussed the cons of prohibition so many times it’s not worth repeating old myths, but check out the facts of cannabis prohibition if you want a brief refresher. There are too many arguments and counter-arguments out there for me to cover them all, so do your own research and I guarantee you’ll come to the conclusion that a vote of “yes” is logical and the right thing to do.

]]>
https://alexneedshelp.com/vote-yes-on-oregon-measure-91/feed 4
I think I’m done https://alexneedshelp.com/i-think-im-done https://alexneedshelp.com/i-think-im-done#comments Thu, 18 Apr 2013 04:34:39 +0000 http://www.alexneedshelp.com/?p=920 Continue reading "I think I’m done"]]> After stating the blog would go on, I haven’t touched it.

Partly I don’t feel like putting up more because I’m satisfied that Alex’s story was able to really be told. Partly I feel like the updates aren’t helpful since it’s just repetitive information – Alex is happy, now he’s unhappy, now he’s happy, and so forth.

But honestly, a lot of why I’m done has to do with Alex’s situation just not being one that makes for good updates.

The tincture hasn’t helped him very much since the brain surgery in late January. When it does help it’s only a little bit. We aren’t sure why. Many of his best days recently have been completely unmedicated, in fact. Since the surgery, his mood has been a bit better overall (though the initial all-happy-all-the-time situation didn’t stick around), but whether he’s happy or not, cannabis just hasn’t been doing much for him recently. This makes it tough to want to post any updates because … what do we say? On a good day without medication, it’s great to share, but it has nothing to do with our main struggle. On a bad day where he was medicated, I don’t want to share anything. I could say a lot about Saturday’s visit, but it was a really sad visit, and the tincture did nothing.

What’s worse is that we got a high-CBD oil donated from a local follower of Alex’s story (he said to refer to him as “Genesis”). We were very hopeful at first, but after giving it to Alex on two separate occasions, he was visibly uncomfortable and even unhappy. We gave it a minimum of two and a half hours both times and the results were basically the same: Alex was worse off after the dose than before. Since those doses we have only given it once more, and a very small amount (and it still didn’t seem to have any effect).


I feel like his story has done the best we could have hoped. We opened a few eyes to the fact that cannabis needs WAY more research. Children like Alex can be helped, but it’s almost impossible when it’s such a huge guessing game and the medical laws make it so absurdly difficult to try out different strains and get a regular dose figured out. Prohibition hurts children in his situation, and while cannabis clearly isn’t an easy cure-all, it’s got the most potential for helping deal with rage and pain.

I more or less said this during my interview with Russ Belville. I feel like there’s a strain and/or method of dosing that could work wonders for Alex, but I don’t really have much faith anymore that we’ll find it.

Alex’s story doesn’t have a happy ending right now, and I just don’t want to keep saying the same things over and over again about our inability to figure out what’s right for the kid, and generally my feeling that I failed him, that I wasn’t strong enough to keep him home or smart enough to figure out how to fix the situation. People have asked why we feel the need to defend our very personal and painful decision to place Alex outside the home. Why do we feel that we have to justify it? Because we have to remind ourselves that it was for the best. Because some days we just feel like shitty parents. Because a part of me will always believe that what we did was unfathomable, cruel, unfair, and inhuman.

We’ll keep doing the best we can, and we’ll keep trying different strains and dosing and delivery methods. I might come back to post very significant changes or particularly important activism information. Who knows, maybe one day the story will have a happy ending. But for now, I just need to focus on my family and not worry about telling the story.

]]>
https://alexneedshelp.com/i-think-im-done/feed 28
Why cannabis must be legalized – a non-user’s perspective https://alexneedshelp.com/why-cannabis-must-be-legalized-a-non-users-perspective https://alexneedshelp.com/why-cannabis-must-be-legalized-a-non-users-perspective#comments Thu, 07 Feb 2013 03:05:22 +0000 http://www.alexneedshelp.com/?p=900 Continue reading "Why cannabis must be legalized – a non-user’s perspective"]]> The federal government recently refused to reclassify cannabis, stating it still hasn’t been proven to have medical value. Of course, it’s a tough thing to prove when the government allows very limited research on the subject. And to be honest, even if they do reclassify it, we don’t much care anymore. We want full legalization, even though neither Alex’s mother nor myself use cannabis. Why?

Simple: recreational use just doesn’t matter. If somebody really and truly wastes their life feeding an addiction all day every day, that’s up to them, and chances are they’re already doing it. Maybe with illegal pot, maybe with legal alternatives like alcohol. Maybe with something totally unrelated like video games, internet porn, or whatever. But pot itself isn’t the problem with people like this – it’s about as addictive as caffeine. Only a handful of people will actually abuse pot to the point of it affecting their daily lives.

And heck, I’d rather see a bunch of people throwing their lives away to pot than alcohol. At least the high folks are fairly safe to be around.

Additionally, in places where cannabis has been legalized or decriminalized, use hasn’t skyrocketed. Depending on your source, you can find “proof” that use has gone up or that it’s gone down, but no studies even hint that the more 420-friendly nations have had concerning societal problems due to cannabis being more available and accepted.

So if we accept that recreational use is no big deal, then we still have one question: why not just be happy with medical cannabis laws?

Easy answers:

  • The federal government is full of SHIT on this issue and won’t allow cannabis to be rescheduled, so medical laws are still at odds with the federal government – which means places like Alex’s home can cite federal law to avoid dosing a person who could truly benefit.
  • Along the same lines, the government will push fake therapies on us like Marinol: a synthetic, pure THC pill which costs MORE than black-market cannabis, and lacks CBD, CBN, and other extremely beneficial cannabinoids! THC by itself is just unpleasant from what I’ve heard, and even the super-high-THC strains of cannabis still have some amount of the other cannabinoids. To put it another way, if nature offers us the whole plant, the government has no right to try and push synthetics that only have one small piece of that plant unless very clear and obvious evidence shows the other components are dangerous. (So far, the only cannabinoid anybody is actually afraid of is THC, and this plant has been with us since the dawn of man)
  • Medical cannabis laws have been considered a joke by so many that some states are really cracking down – deciding who is “sick enough” to get medical cannabis. Even here in Oregon, we couldn’t have gotten Alex on the OMMP (Oregon Medical Marijuana Program) without his seizure disorder. Intense self-injurious behaviors wouldn’t be enough.
  • In states where cannabis is now legal, a person in need can get a small amount of cannabis from a friend (or in CO grow their own) and try it THAT VERY DAY. We didn’t have that option – it took weeks to get an appointment, get approval from the doctor, and get a dose to try out. It’s impossible to say for sure, but we feel those weeks could have made a huge difference in terms of figuring out the right strain and dosing if we’d had better options like somebody in CO might have.
  • We’ve given the government time to accept medical use, and they keep saying, “hell no”. Full legalization in CO and WA has forced a new conversation to take place, and the more states that force this conversation, the more likely kids like Alex will have a new option.

So whether it’s 2014 or 2016, if you live in a state that puts legalization on the ballot, please remember that legalizing can be of tremendous value to medical users, especially in states where medical laws are jumbled and confusing, or where patients are left with almost no guidance on the issue.


And for the skeptics: you pay for a pee test and I’ll take it. A few people somehow actually think Alex’s story is a front to get me high. It’s appalling, but I guess that’s what happens with nearly a century of propaganda against cannabis.

]]>
https://alexneedshelp.com/why-cannabis-must-be-legalized-a-non-users-perspective/feed 8
OCTA makes the November ballot! https://alexneedshelp.com/octa-makes-the-november-ballot https://alexneedshelp.com/octa-makes-the-november-ballot#comments Sat, 14 Jul 2012 02:53:57 +0000 http://www.alexneedshelp.com/?p=817 Continue reading "OCTA makes the November ballot!"]]> Check it out, straight from the state’s website:

7/13/12 Signature verification complete. Petition contained 88,887 valid signatures, or 58.53% of the 151,870 signatures accepted for verification. Qualified to the ballot for the November 2012 Election.

Looks like circulators did a MUCH better job in the final push than early on, because the petition “throw-out” rate went down from 11.5% to a mere six percent. Well done, guys! We still have to get a vote passed, but this is still an incredible step.

]]>
https://alexneedshelp.com/octa-makes-the-november-ballot/feed 2
The OCTA signature drive is over, and… https://alexneedshelp.com/the-octa-signature-drive-is-over-and https://alexneedshelp.com/the-octa-signature-drive-is-over-and#comments Tue, 10 Jul 2012 04:32:37 +0000 http://www.alexneedshelp.com/?p=803 Continue reading "The OCTA signature drive is over, and…"]]> The Oregon Cannabis Tax Act turned in just under 168,000 signatures, which is getting Oregonians pretty excited. We only need 87,213 valid signatures to get on the November ballot, and in 2010 we missed the mark by a huge number, so this is pretty good news.

Unfortunately, my math says we’re not guaranteed to get on the ballot – at best, we’ll barely pull it off. Read below for a full explanation, but my math says we’re going to be about 400 signatures short.

I hope I’m wrong, but only time will tell. The state has up to 30 days to give us a “yay” or “nay” on this one.


The math:

We turned in 107,992 signatures in May, of which only 55,869 were counted as valid. For some reason, the status of initiative 9 on the Oregon initiative status page calls this a 58.47% validity rate. It seems they only accepted 95,556 signatures for validation, and based their rate on the valid signatures out of that pool. This tells me that of the ~108k signatures submitted, 11.5% were dismissed out of hand due to a problem with the signature sheet itself. That is to say, the circulator forgot to sign, or missed the date, or something like that, causing the entire sheet to be rejected.

Anyhow, we end up with an actual validity rate of 51.734%, well below the 58.47% reported. At that rate, we’ll end up with 86,832 signatures, or 381 signatures short.

Obviously it’s impossible to just rely on the math – this number could be way off given even a small change to the circulators, signers, or even those counting the petition sheets. But no matter how you look at it, we’re far from winning this battle.

]]>
https://alexneedshelp.com/the-octa-signature-drive-is-over-and/feed 1
Act now to stop prohibition! https://alexneedshelp.com/act-now-to-stop-prohibition https://alexneedshelp.com/act-now-to-stop-prohibition#comments Wed, 14 Mar 2012 01:34:44 +0000 http://www.alexneedshelp.com/?p=771 Continue reading "Act now to stop prohibition!"]]> In Colorado, a measure to legalize marijuana for adult use is going to be on the ballot. Is it absolute freedom and perfection? No, but vote for it if you live in Colorado. It looks like a darn good bill to me.

In Washington, another measure is going to be on the ballot. It’s got some concerning per se DUI law written into it, but I still urge people to vote for it. Why? Because that per se DUI law will likely go into effect eventually, as it has in so many other states

In California, there were a few ballot measures in need of signatures to get on the ballot. Unfortunately, the deadlines are too close, and it is being suggested that efforts be targeted to the Repeal Cannabis Prohibition Act: http://repealcannabisprohibition.org/ or http://www.facebook.com/RCPA2012.

The Oregon Cannabis Tax Act still needs a ton of help and the deadline approaches fast. If you live here, help out!

Sign the petition to support President Molina’s efforts to discuss legalization in Central America. Put Biden in his place by stating that we have no business telling Mexico, Colombia, Guatemala, or any other country how to deal with the drug problem that we have created.

As always, make sure your elected officials know how you stand on things like HR 2306, and consider letting them know you consider this issue important enough to not vote for them if they don’t support it.

]]>
https://alexneedshelp.com/act-now-to-stop-prohibition/feed 1
Thanks, Treating Yourself, reddit, and family https://alexneedshelp.com/thanks-treating-yourself-reddit-and-family https://alexneedshelp.com/thanks-treating-yourself-reddit-and-family#comments Fri, 20 Jan 2012 19:42:49 +0000 http://www.alexneedshelp.com/?p=728 Continue reading "Thanks, Treating Yourself, reddit, and family"]]> The past two months have shown a big surge in traffic to the site, and a TON of supportive comments and emails.

Last month I made a big post on Huffington Post, and got a lot of traffic, but it turns out it was more due to a share on Reddit than anything else. So to all the fine people on r/trees, thanks! If you haven’t seen r/trees, it’s a great place for 420-friendly people to exercise their right to free speech, something cannabis consumers too often feel they can’t (or shouldn’t) do.

This month, Alex’s story appeared in Treating Yourself and we got another huge surge of traffic, and I’ve been trying desperately to keep up with the emails and comments, but I’m falling behind. All the same, it’s a small price to pay for giving Alex’s situation more exposure.

In addition, it appears my sister has done another Facebook bomb, bringing in a bunch of people as well. So thanks, sissy!

Here’s hoping this traffic can legitimize cannabis in at least a few people’s minds who would otherwise have been against it, or thought medical use was a joke.

]]>
https://alexneedshelp.com/thanks-treating-yourself-reddit-and-family/feed 2
Vote for Ron Paul? https://alexneedshelp.com/vote-for-ron-paul Mon, 16 Jan 2012 01:08:35 +0000 http://www.alexneedshelp.com/?p=720 Continue reading "Vote for Ron Paul?"]]> I’m now a registered republican so I can vote for Ron Paul in the Oregon primaries. I’m not saying I’ll vote for him if he gets the nomination (so no political commentary, please), but I think he would bring issues up that too few Americans are considering. The drug war is by far the biggest issue that needs to move into the spotlight.

People throughout the world need to ask themselves:

  • Why is it we make an addict’s compulsion illegal instead of treating the problem properly?
  • Why not spend our money treating people instead of putting them in jail?
  • Why not regulate the supply of dangerous drugs, like we do with alcohol and tobacco?
    • Meth would never be as dangerous as it is without prohibition — it’s being made in more dangerous ways each time we shut one down
    • Look at the dangers of K2, or “fake pot” some time. That has actual dangers associated with it, and would not exist if pot were legalized — it was created to legally get a pot-like high!
  • Why not sell and tax the drugs like we do alcohol and cigarettes?

Sure, we need gargantuan warning signs, and perhaps even regular consultations for people who voluntarily choose heroin and the like. Yes, we need safeguards in place. But there is absolutely nothing good about prohibiting drugs. Ron Paul has the balls to say this to the American people. None of the other candidates does (though Gary Johnson would at least talk about cannabis). Whether the people like what they hear or not, they will hear it if Paul gets the nomination. Some of them will have no choice but to consider it. Some people will convert, because enough thought on the matter and we realize prohibition is just wrong, period.

I know it’s tough to consider legalizing all drugs, but everybody should at least think it through. In the end, cannabis is really the one we need to get off the controlled substances act to help kids like Alex. Decriminalizing the rest would, in my opinion, help the country and help countless addicts, but they are not my priority right now. If cannabis gets to Alex regularly, I’ll change my focus.

]]>
Interesting, informative video https://alexneedshelp.com/interesting-informative-video https://alexneedshelp.com/interesting-informative-video#comments Mon, 12 Dec 2011 03:44:17 +0000 http://www.alexneedshelp.com/?p=706 Continue reading "Interesting, informative video"]]> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qa0nLdVJiIg (and see their site, http://cannabisinternational.org/)

Talks some about the science, the controversy, and specifically some of the newer information about the medical value of high-CBD cannabis. Sounds like “Canatonic” might be a good choice for Alex based on the new information I’m learning, and putting it into a glycerin tincture.

Thanks to everybody at Huffington Post who replied to my comment and helped me discover this information. I have little hope of getting Alex dosed in his home, but whenever we see a major shift in thinking, I’d rather have the information necessary to give Alex what he needs immediately.

]]>
https://alexneedshelp.com/interesting-informative-video/feed 2