Vera Twomey-Barry from Aghabullogue. co. Cork pictured with her daughter Ava, who suffers from Dravet's Syndrome. Pic. Daragh Mc Sweeney/Provision

Vera Twomey has announced that her daughter Ava is now "pharma free" and using forms of medical marijuana instead.

Ava (8) suffers from a severe form of epilepsy called Dravet's Syndrome, which at one point caused her to suffer 16 seizures in just 36 hours.

Vera and her daughter travelled to the Netherlands last summer so Ava could receive cannabidiol (CBD) oil and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) oil to help alleviate the symptoms.

Towards the end of 2017, Ava was granted a special licence which allows her to receive cannabis treatments at home in Aghabullogue, Co Cork.

Taking to Facebook, Vera said they are "scared and excited" about Ava's future without medical treatment.

"In the last number of weeks Ava has become officially pharma free. We were scared and excited at the same time to know what it would bring," she said.

"The last couple of photos of Ava I think speak for themselves and as it happens so does Ava as she is singing the beginning of nursery rhymes now more and more."

Vera continued that her daughter, who uses CBD and THC, is anticipating the return to school this September.

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"Her health and well being is now solely being treated by medical CBD and medical THC.

"Happy and healthy as we can be we move forward better and brighter and looking forward to getting back to school."

Vera made national headlines with her determined campaign to secure access to medicinal cannabis in Ireland for her daughter.

The Cork mother became a high profile campaigner for access to medicinal cannabis treatments by undertaking a walk from her Cork home to Dublin to protest outside the Dail.

In April, Ms Twomey received news that her daughter's cannabis treatments, which costs up to €12,000 a year, would be funded by the state.

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