I’m 33 and I’ve never tried marijuana. Never smoked a joint, never tried an edible, never even sampled CBD oil. But you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who is a bigger advocate for marijuana legalization.

Kinda weird, right?

Andrew was talking to some men the other day and the subject of medical marijuana legalization came up. One guy said, “I think people who support medical marijuana just want to let their kids smoke pot.”

Hang on. First off, medical marijuana comes in lots of forms, just like most medications: oils, edible forms, tablets, even a tea infusion. Even if it were legal, no one would be letting their child smoke it.

Now, let me school you on what this person who supports medical marijuana wants. Hint: It’s not to let my kid smoke pot.

Imagine having a young child with a chronic, genetic disease that pharmaceutical medications can’t help. There’s no treatment, and there’s no cure, the condition leads to huge complications like liver failure and blindness, and doctors have said your child might die from this disease. Imagine knowing that this condition leads to seizures, but your child can’t take most seizure medications because they can make her condition worse. Imagine knowing she is in pain from headaches and muscle hypotonia, but many prescription and OTC painkillers can make her condition progress faster, leading to permanent regressions and worsening health.

Imagine there’s a possible drug that could alleviate some of her symptoms, help ease some of her pain, maybe lessen the severity and quantity of seizures if she begins to have them. The drug comes from an easily-cultivated plant, and unlike so many drugs derived from plants (opiods, ephedrine, quinine and so many more) doesn’t seem to have any major side effects. But this drug is illegal where you live.

What in the world would you do? 

I’ll tell you what I’m doing, and what other parents of kids with mito are doing: I’m fighting for the legal right to try any method that might help my child. No matter what.

Maybe medical marijuana would help Evelyn. Maybe it wouldn’t. But since nothing else can help her, why wouldn’t I try? How could I call myself a loving parent if I didn’t seek any available method to help her?

My home state of Oklahoma is voting on State Question 788 on June 26. If you’re in Oklahoma, VOTE YES ON SQ788. If you’re still not convinced, I’d love to talk to you. I’d love to know why you’d oppose giving my girl the chance to try.