When Jonathan Zaid was 14, he was diagnosed with a rare disorder known as new daily persistent headache.
“It causes a 24/7, totally treatment-resistant daily headache,” he says.
In the years after his diagnosis, Zaid says, he tried dozens of prescription drugs and a number of therapeutic treatments to relieve the headaches.
None of them proved to be a permanent solution.
In time, he dropped out of school and withdrew from social activities.
Now 22, Zaid is back in school, at the University of Waterloo.
He’s also keeping his headaches in check – and he says it’s all because of medical marijuana.
“It was really a blessing, finding it,” he says.
“It helps my sleep, it helps my focus, it helps my mood and overall it helps my pain.”
Zaid says he’s not the only one benefiting from his use of marijuana.
He thinks there’s a benefit to the health care system as a whole, because the $20 or so he pays per day for marijuana is less than the cost of the combination of medications he was taking previously.
Seeking help with that cost, he submitted a claim through his student health plan.
It took several months, but he eventually got the green light from the University of Waterloo Federation of Students and Sun Life Financial.
A spokesperson for Sun Life says medical marijuana is not normally an eligible expense in their standard plans, but is considered if a request for an exception is made.
Zaid has started an advocacy group aiming to make it easier for students to get access to and help paying for medical marijuana.
“I hope this sets a precedent where other students who need medical cannabis … can get coverage,” he says.
