CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. — Medical marijuana is relatively new in New York State. As of Jan. 30 of this year, the State Department of Health says more than 43,000 patients in New York are certified to use it.
A Cheektowaga woman who was skeptical about switching from pain pills to medical marijuana at first now swears by it.
"You fill it up to one milliliter three times a day," explains Danielle Merchant.
Medical marijuana is now part of Danielle Merchant's daily routine, but getting here wasn't easy. Danielle's health problems started when she was a teenager.
"I had a 19-inch tumor that had grown from the base of my brain down my spinal cord," says Merchant.
The tumor left Danielle paralyzed on her left side. She had surgery to remove it and regained mobility. Several years later, she had a spinal fusion, but her pain returned in 2009. Doctors gave her two options: a permanent breathing tube or pain management.
She went with pain management.
"At that point in my life, it saved me. Absolutely," says Merchant.
"And, you were going to Dr. Gosy," asked 2 On Your Side’s Kelly Dudzik.
"I was going to Dr. Gosy, and with his guidance, and with the PA that I was assigned to, she was a godsend. She really was. She was not a drug pusher. Never had been. She just wanted me to try to live life to the best of my ability," explains Merchant.
Danielle was dedicated to following her pain management plan, and the pills worked for a while.
"Eventually, I got to the point where I don't want to say I was strung out, but it wasn't helping," says Merchant.
Danielle's husband, Brad, passed away in December of 2016, and she continued to see her physician assistant.
"She said to me in February, you look the worst that you've looked in the seven years that I have known you. I said, you're right. I said, I haven't slept in months. I sleep in 20-minute increments. The pain is just out of control," says Merchant.
That's when Danielle's PA mentioned a new pain management option: medical marijuana.
“She really, really was very much wanting me to try it," says Merchant.
"What did you think about that option when she first brought it up?" asked Dudzik.
"No way. I told her I'll take your paper, and I went in the car and I cried, and I said I can't do this. People are going to think I'm a pot head. People are going to think I'm a doper," she says.
After two months, Danielle got certified to become a medical marijuana patient. She waited two more months before filling her prescription.
"They promised me that if I gave them four weeks of what they said, I will be a different person. And it's hard to believe that because you do that regimen of pills for so long that it's actually hard to believe that something as simple as a dropper in my iced tea cup three times a day stopped it," says Merchant.
"How does this compare to all of the pills you were on?" asked Dudzik.
"I am totally pain free. Totally pain free. I am not taking one pill," says Merchant. "This is a miracle."
The only drawback for her is the price. Since the pain forced her to quit her job and go on social security disability, Danielle is on a tight budget. The vape pens for headaches and the bottle cost about three-hundred dollars a month altogether, ten times the cost of all of her pills.
As 2 On Your Side’s Michael Wooten reported earlier this month, the cost of medical marijuana is out of reach for some patients, including David Miles, who ends up taking just a fraction of what he's prescribed.
“It is a matter of food or medicine in many months. I've taken to buying about every six months what I should use in about two weeks," says Mills.
Danielle says she hasn't experienced any side effects. In fact, she recently lost 170 pounds.
"This has just saved my life. In the oddest way, it saved my life. It really did. It gave me the energy to lose the 170 pounds. It gave me the strength to mourn the death of my husband. It's just done so many good things for me," she says.
"What's next for you? What plans do you have now that you wouldn't even have entertained before?" asked Dudzik.
"Now, I think having the fog lifted and being me, I'm able to finally explore this second half of my life. I think that's it's going to be fun and challenging and I'm not young, but I'm not old and so I think for me, the possibilities are somewhat endless," says Merchant.
Danielle wants to go back to work part time. She says she feels well enough now and misses interacting and chatting with people.