What happens when the system you trusted… walks away?

In today’s episode, I sit down with Debi Wimberley — a former oncology professional who went on to live with one of the most severe chronic pain conditions imaginable.

For years, Debi was prescribed high-dose opioids to manage her pain.
Then, almost overnight, that support was removed, with no real plan, no transition, and no safety net.

What followed wasn’t just withdrawal.
It was a complete unraveling… and then a rebuilding.

This conversation explores what it looks like to navigate pain, autonomy, and healing when you’re forced to take your health into your own hands — and how the plant became part of that process.

This isn’t a simple “before and after” story.
It’s complex. It’s messy. And it’s incredibly important.

What We Cover

• Debi’s early work in oncology — and first exposure to the plant before the ECS was even discovered
• Living with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) — one of the most severe chronic pain conditions
• Long-term opioid prescribing and what high-dose use actually looks like
• The abrupt withdrawal of care during the opioid crisis — and what that means for patients
• Why regulation without education creates harm
• Navigating cannabis with no clinical guidance
• Trial, error, and real-world patient experimentation
• Understanding the endocannabinoid system in practice
• Reducing polypharmacy (25+ medications)
• The shift from outsourcing health → reclaiming body autonomy

A Note on This Episode

This episode discusses chronic pain, opioid use, and medical system failures.

Debi’s story is her own lived experience.
It is not a universal outcome, and it’s not a substitute for personalised medical advice.

If you’re navigating medication changes or chronic health conditions, please seek support from a qualified healthcare professional.

Resources & Further Learning

• Endocannabinoid System basics https://effectivecannabis.com/about-effective-cannabis/

You can find Debi @debwimberley

🌿 Support the Podcast

If this episode resonated with you… and you want to support the work behind Canna Curious:

You can buy me a coffee
(or realistically… help fund more conversations like this)

"Send us a message"

Support the show

Connect with Kyla de Clifford
Instagram: @cannacuriousaus
TikTok: @cannacuriousau
YouTube: @cannacurious

If you enjoyed this episode, please follow, share, and leave a review - it helps the podcast reach more curious minds just like you.

Production: Sovereign Creator • https://sovereigncreator.io

Disclaimer:
We are not doctors, and this is not medical advice. Everything shared here is based on our personal lived experiences and the stories of others. Always speak with a qualified healthcare professional before making any changes to your health or wellness routine.

This episode is a little more personal than usual.

Today, I’m sitting down with my daughter, Ruby and we’re having a conversation I’ve been quietly avoiding for a while.

Because while I spend my life educating people about the plant…
Ruby had an experience that changed her relationship with it completely.

We talk about:

• what it’s like growing up with a parent in this space
• the stigma that still exists (especially in younger years)
• her first experiences with cannabis
• and the moment everything shifted after a difficult “greening” experience

But this isn’t just about one night.

It’s about what came after the anxiety, the fear of it happening again, and how that feeling can linger long after the plant has left your system.

We also explore:

• why edibles can hit differently (and sometimes unexpectedly)
• the importance of dose, timing, and environment
• how CBD can be used as a harm reduction tool
• and what honest, open conversations about drugs actually look like in real life

This episode isn’t here to convince you of anything.

It’s here to show the nuance that the plant isn’t one-size-fits-all, and that education, safety, and self-awareness matter more than anything else.

If you’ve ever had an experience that didn’t feel right…or you’re navigating this with your kids, your friends, or even yourself this conversation is for you.

IN THIS EPISODE

• Growing up around cannabis: stigma, secrecy, and shifting perspectives
• First experiences with the plant (and expectations vs reality)
• What “greening out” actually feels like
• How one experience can lead to ongoing anxiety
• The difference between THC and CBD (in real-life terms)
• Why edibles require a completely different approach
• Harm reduction: what we wish more people were taught
• The gap between school education and real-world drug use
• Navigating this as both a parent and a young adult

A NOTE FROM KYLA

This one stretched me.

It’s one thing to talk about the benefits of the plant it’s another to sit across from your daughter and hear how it impacted her in a way you didn’t expect.

If this episode resonated with you, share it with someone who might need it.

You can find more conversations like this at Canna Curious — where we explore the plant with curiosity, not assumption.

"Send us a message"

Support the show

Connect with Kyla de Clifford
Instagram: @cannacuriousaus
TikTok: @cannacuriousau
YouTube: @cannacurious

If you enjoyed this episode, please follow, share, and leave a review - it helps the podcast reach more curious minds just like you.

Production: Sovereign Creator • https://sovereigncreator.io

Disclaimer:
We are not doctors, and this is not medical advice. Everything shared here is based on our personal lived experiences and the stories of others. Always speak with a qualified healthcare professional before making any changes to your health or wellness routine.

In this episode of Canna Curious, Kyla sits down with Grace Ker to explore her deeply personal journey with endometriosis and fibromyalgia, a story that began at just 13 years old and unfolded into years of chronic pain, medical intervention, and self-advocacy.

Grace shares what it was like to:

• Be dismissed in early medical appointments
• Navigate multiple treatments, including hormonal therapies and surgery
• Enter medical menopause as a teenager
• Experience chronic, debilitating pain that conventional treatments couldn’t resolve
• Later develop fibromyalgia following burnout and physical stress

The conversation also explores how alternative approaches including Chinese medicine and plant-based therapies played a role in symptom management, and how Grace learned to trust her intuition in a system that often didn’t listen.

This episode is as much about emotional resilience as it is about physical health — touching on identity loss, grief, and what it means to rebuild your life when your body changes.

Key Topics

• Early onset endometriosis and symptom dismissal
• Chronic pain and the limits of conventional treatment
• Medical menopause in adolescence
• Fibromyalgia onset and full-body pain
• Opioids vs alternative approaches
• The role of the nervous system in pain perception
• Plant-based medicine and symptom regulation
• Self-advocacy in healthcare
• Grief, identity, and chronic illness
• The importance of education and body literacy

🌿 Resources & Links

• Grace Ker on Instagram: @spencergreen
• Recommended Chinese Medicine Practitioner: Richard Best, Chinese Medicine House of Natural Health Hendra
• Support the podcast: Buy me a coffee!

From Kyla

This episode really stayed with me.

There’s something about hearing a story like Grace’s that reminds you how many women are navigating pain quietly… and how often they’re told it’s normal.

It’s not.

And conversations like this are how we start changing that.

"Send us a message"

Support the show

Connect with Kyla de Clifford
Instagram: @cannacuriousaus
TikTok: @cannacuriousau
YouTube: @cannacurious

If you enjoyed this episode, please follow, share, and leave a review - it helps the podcast reach more curious minds just like you.

Production: Sovereign Creator • https://sovereigncreator.io

Disclaimer:
We are not doctors, and this is not medical advice. Everything shared here is based on our personal lived experiences and the stories of others. Always speak with a qualified healthcare professional before making any changes to your health or wellness routine.