Real life: ‘Smoking cannabis helps me bond with my unborn child’

When Sammy Warnes was diagnosed with an extreme form of morning sickness, she was left bed-bound and unable to work.

But after searching for help online, the 30-year-old controversially discovered that smoking cannabis could ease her debilitating symptoms.

Desperate, she was willing to try anything.

Now, Sammy, from Leeds, has dubbed it a “miracle cure” and is determined to encourage other suffering mums-to-be to try cannabis, despite it being an illegal class B drug.

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Sammy says, “Smoking cannabis when pregnant might sound shocking, but it’s the only way I’ve been able to get through my pregnancies.

“Cannabis is already being used to treat lots of conditions – from epilepsy to sickness caused by chemotherapy.

“Certain specialists are even legally able to prescribe it. We all just need to be a little more open-minded.”

It’s reported that up to three in every 100 women suffer from extreme morning sickness, known as hyperemesis gravidarum (HG).

The condition causes sufferers to be sick many times a day, and they’re often unable to keep down food or drink.

Famously, the Duchess of Cambridge was diagnosed with HG during each of her three pregnancies.

Sammy, who is currently carrying her fourth child, had two easy pregnancies with her eldest daughters, now 13 and 11.

But when she was eight weeks pregnant with third daughter Arabella*, in 2016, she started being sick regularly.

She recalls, “At first, I thought it was food poisoning – even a sip of water would make me throw up. But when it continued for more than two days, I went to my GP, who diagnosed me with HG.

“He prescribed me anti-sickness medication, but it only relieved the symptoms for about 20 minutes.

“I had to give up my job in catering because I couldn’t be around all the food, which meant we had to live off the money my partner earnt.

“And I couldn’t look after my children, because I was being sick all the time. Pregnancy is meant to be a special time, but I was completely miserable.”

Sammy went to her GP several times, who continued to prescribe different anti-sickness drugs – but nothing worked.

At 14 weeks pregnant, she was so dehydrated she was taken into hospital, where she was put on a drip.

She says, “Thankfully, the baby was fine, but being admitted to hospital was the last straw. When I came home, I started searching online for alternative ways to treat HG.

“On every forum and Facebook group I found, I read about expectant mums who were smoking cannabis. They said it had relieved the symptoms immediately – and all their babies had been born perfectly healthy.

“Those who’d tried CBD oil or supplements said it didn’t work in the same way.

“I must have spent hours reading articles about using cannabis for HG. While some studies showed cannabis could cause low birth weight, these studies were also testing mothers who smoked cannabis with tobacco while pregnant.

“There was little evidence to suggest that cannabis alone could cause harm to the unborn child. In fact, the drugs the doctors had prescribed me seemed to have more side effects.

“I spoke to my partner at the time, who had seen how much I’d suffered, and he agreed I should give it a go.

“If I thought that cannabis could harm my baby, I’d never have tried it – but there was very little to suggest it would.”

Sammy ordered the cannabis online. She paid £10, and a small package arrived in the post a few days later.

She says, “I’d only ever smoked cannabis as a teenager on holiday in Amsterdam, so I was surprised by how easily you could get hold of it.

“I rolled the cannabis into a cigarette paper without tobacco, and took a few puffs. Within seconds, the sickness and nausea feelings disappeared.”

Sammy continued to smoke cannabis every morning until she was 25 weeks pregnant, by which time her symptoms had gone.

She says, “I just had a couple of puffs every morning – never a whole joint, and that lasted me throughout the day. The only effect it had on me was to relieve my symptoms – I definitely wasn’t high.

“I didn’t tell any friends or family or even my midwife what I was doing, as I’d read stories online about social services being called.

“Arabella was born perfectly healthy – in fact, she’s always been advanced for her age. She was potty-trained by 15 months, and she’s one of the brightest in her nursery class.”

Sammy found out she was pregnant again in August 2019. When she started being sick, she told her current partner, Gary, 32, that she’d smoked cannabis during her last pregnancy.

Seeing how unwell she was, Gary was happy for her to smoke again.

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Sammy recalls, “The HG was much worse this time – I lost half a stone in a week because I couldn’t keep any food down.

“Again, the medication doctors prescribed didn’t work, so my only option was to smoke cannabis. This time, I told some friends and family.

“They were horrified at first, but when I showed them my research – and told them I’d done the same thing with Arabella – they supported my decision.”

Now, Sammy is determined to raise awareness of the effect smoking cannabis can have on HG symptoms.

She says, “Because cannabis is illegal, no one wants to talk openly about the positive impact it can have on health conditions such as HG. But it transformed my pregnancies.

“Before, I was miserable, stuck in bed, and willing the nine months to fly past. But now, I can enjoy being pregnant and bonding with my unborn child.

“I don’t plan on having more children, but if I did, I wouldn’t think twice about smoking cannabis when pregnant again.”