New legislation introduced to the N.C. General Assembly in February aims to legalize medical marijuana across the state. House Bill 185 bill passed the House earlier this year and was kicked up to the Committee on Rules, Calendar and Operations of the House. An accompanying bill, Senate Bill 648, recently passed through its first reading and has been assigned to the Rules and Operations Committee.

If the law is passed, people like Brevard resident Kimberly Sisk will see it as a godsend. The chemical properties of the plant are one of the few things, she said, that help her 12-year-old son, Slade, who has cerebral palsy and the seizures that come with it. Slade is essentially bed ridden. He cannot walk, will never be independent and is in constant need of his mother's care.

Cerebral Palsy effects body movement, muscle control, muscle coordination, muscle tone, reflex, posture and balance.

Sisk gives Slade cannabidiol oil (CBD), the non-psychoactive compound found in marijuana. The oil is made from high concentrations of the CBD compound and very low traces of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive compound of marijuana.

For Sisk, a natural approach is favorable to synthetics.

"We just got our CBD oil in the mail," she said recently. "We use Haley's Hope. It comes from Colorado."

CBD interacts in Slade's body through the endogenous cannabinoid system (ECS), the part of the body that regulates homeostasis, having a huge impact on his pain regulation, mood, sleep, appetite, hormone regulation and immune response.

Slade was actually born healthy, but he contracted bacterial meningitis. His seizures did not start until he was about 4, and he now has them nearly every day.

When he was just 3 weeks old, the antibiotics he was on to fight his infection caused him to lose the ability to swallow.

"That's our biggest battle - the epilepsy," Sisk said. "He's been to countless doctors, and with the CBD oil, they can't tell you to try it, dose it or give you any guidelines. There are very few doctors that will even say they will test the blood. I guess they're afraid for their license. Even though it's legal, they still don't want to talk about it."

Sisk drives Slade to Greenville, S.C., to visit a doctor weekly since no local neurologists would even discuss the benefits of CBD oil with her, she said. She had to get a written letter stating that she has tried multiple medications and that CBD would be beneficial. Sisk had to travel to Duke University to get that recommendation.

Sisk said that no matter what North Carolina voters decide, it will still be extremely difficult for anyone who has a need for CBD oil to travel, because of the current state by state differences.

Chief Deputy Eddie Gunter, with the Transylvania County Sheriff's office, said that if a person were traveling in Brevard, for example, from a state where they had a legal medical marijuana prescription and were pulled over or were in an accident, his office would not issue a citation for possession if they were sober.

"Just like any other prescription, it would be in a prescription bottle or other storage container with the prescribed name on it," he said. "If that's the case and it's legal in another state, and they have their prescription for it, then we would not write a citation or make an arrest. It's not legal here, so I'm just not familiar with other state laws that govern it. It's never come up here that I know of."

Marijuana, along with heroin, ecstasy and LSD, is still considered a Schedule I substance by the federal government, despite that CBD oil has been legal in North Carolina since 2014.

A 2016 Gallup poll highlighted that national support for legal medical and recreational marijuana use is up to 60 percent, the highest percentage ever. Support for legal medical use of marijuana is closer to 90 percent with a doctor's supervision, according to a 2014 CNN poll.

The American Medical Association (AMA), the largest organization of doctors in the country, announced in 2013 that as a whole the organization still considers marijuana to be a dangerous drug and a public health concern.

It recommends that the government treat marijuana with a public health approach rather than incarceration.

The AMA has called for further studies of marijuana "and related cannabinoids in patients who have serious conditions for which preclinical, anecdotal, or controlled evidence suggests possible efficacy of the drug."

Sisk said she has been following the issue for years.

"I have heard of remarkable things that have happened with children," she said. "One child had Cerebral Palsy (CP). His dad took him to Colorado. They thought it was the severity of the CP that was hurting him. It was the drugs that were killing him. That's what irritates me the most. Slade used to take 15 mg of Valium every night, and people say it may make your child stoned or be addicted. What do you think these pills are doing to our kids? He's like a zombie after taking these pills."

Sisk admitted that the first time she gave Slade CBD oil she was "scared."

"I have always been against drugs and alcohol, and knowing that I had no doctor support, I was scared," she said. "So, I gave it to him and a while later he was looking around and he kept saying 'I feel like myself,' and 'I can see. I can see.' He noticed the wood grain in the floor and the grey in my hair. As time went by, it helped his focus. What happened was it was controlling his partial seizures that would essentially knock him in and out all day long."

Sisk said that with Slade taking the CBD oil regularly, his recent behavior is the most she has seen him looking around and maintaining cognitive skills. It also helps, she said, with the side effects of the other pharmaceuticals he is taking.

Sisk said she believes the only reason a substance like marijuana remains on the Schedule I list is money.

"The pharmaceutical companies don't have a patent on God's work," she said. "They haven't made it into a pill. With those big companies, they're working with the government and they can't tax it. So, they don't want us to have something that will take away from the pain pills and from their markets. You're dipping into rich people's pockets and they don't like that. That's what it all boils down to. They're not representing the people. I think the media portrays marijuana as a vice. Those people are actually hurting us from getting it. I'm all for medicinal purposes."

If the bills in the General Assembly pass, patients with recommendations from doctors would be able to have up to 24 ounces of cannabis and could grow the plant at home. The law would establish licensed dispensaries as a means of providing access for patients.

Some qualifying conditions that would be eligible for medical marijuana under the proposed law include cancer, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis, Crohn's disease, hypertension, AIDS, Hepatitis C, Lou Gehrig's disease, incontinence, osteoporosis, severe migraines, celiac disease and others.

There is no mention of treatment for depressions or anxiety.

In other states, doctors can prescribe medical marijuana for things such as insomnia, rheumatoid arthritis, bipolar disorder, depression and anxiety.

The bill also says that based on data gathered in other states where medical cannabis has been regulated, the legalization will result in about $250 million per year in revenue generation within four years of implementation.

"I remember years ago I had an aunt that had breast cancer," Sisk said. "Someone in the family brought her some marijuana. She was so sick, so nauseous, hairless and crying in pain. In her last days, I remember hearing her laugh and have fun with her family again, and I remember her saying she was so happy that she had found something that helped her. I don't know who these people (fighting marijuana legalization) think they are."

N.C. Rep. Kelly Alexander, who represents District 107 in Charlotte, introduced House Bill 185. He said he is interested in medical cannabis because it works.

"We know with cancer patients who have problems with being able to keep food down and their appetite, it helps with that," he said. "There is evidence that it helps retard the growth of cancer cells. We know cannabis does not have the side effects that opioids do, and with end of life care, we know there are patients using legal opioids that have side affects that lessen their quality of life. For some of them, cannabis could give them equal relief from pain, more mental clarity, and help them engage in social actions with family and friends that are impaired by some of the legal methods of treatment."

Alexander said he doesn't see any downsides and thinks that with licensed distribution centers that would keep track of users there would be a complete system.

"Several years ago, the North Carolina Business magazine did a piece that showed that right now the illegal marijuana business was about $800 million," he said. "If you added the ancillary products, it would be a billion dollar business."

Alexander said that the bill did not include conditions such as anxiety and depression because many people's reactions to the word marijuana makes them think of Cheech and Chong, whose antics consisted of smoking marijuana and engaging in stoner buffoonery.

Alexander said that denying access for medical marijuana for veterans with conditions like posttraumatic stress disorder was causing them to move to other states.

"They have picked up and moved to states where medical cannabis could provide relief," he said. "The CBD oil bill was passed in part due to a person contacting a Republican legislator. If the House can spend time voting on a state cat, we ought to be able to spend some time to debate and vote up or down this very important issue that effects a lot of our citizens."

The Transylvania Times contacted the county's lawmakers in Raleigh, N.C. Rep. Cody Henson and N.C. Sen. Chuck Edwards, for comment. Neither had responded as of going to press.

For Sisk, finding relief for her son is just one issue.

While she qualifies for nursing assistance, she said it is hard to get it in Transylvania County.

She said with his medical needs, the cost to live is enormous.

Sisk said Supplemental Security Income (SSI) rules are strict: if you make more than $735 a month, she would lose benefits for Slade, including Medicaid.

"I would have to marry a rich man who could afford Slade's care, or a man who didn't work whatsoever and didn't have a car," she said. "If we had two vehicles, SSI counts that against you. I can't even get a roommate. You're stuck in the system once you're in there. I would have to win the lottery. We are suppressed every which way we turn."