AIBU to consider private medical cannabis for severe nerve pain?

[IsThisGoodIdeaOrNot]

I have severe nerve pain in my legs and, despite strong pain medication I often struggle to stay awake during the day and equally struggle to sleep at night.

The nerve pain increases from the morning through the day, peaking in the evening and overnight.
I can get to sleep following last evening meds but wake up in the night and often can't get back to sleep

I exercise three times a week on an adapted exercise machine at home. Take magnesium last thing, stick to reading on my kindle when I can't sleep. So I am trying my best to have good sleep habits, but the pain and the tiredness is overwhelming,

I am working full time from home and I have fallen asleep during the day and after work. My husband wakes me up to work, and so I can eat my tea.

I need to find a solution.

I have spoken to a doctor about getting a private prescription for Cannabis with the hope that I could sleep at night and therefore be more alert during the day.
I have to decide whether to get my summary care record from my GP, to send to the doctor to progress the prescription or not.

However the introduction package of dry herb and oil is £170 and they suggest buying a Volcano Vaporiser, which would be £350. This is a lot of money!

I have no idea if this will help or make me worse, being addicted to another drug (already addicted to Opioids that my consultant prescribed), the expense, the legality of it if under the influence whilst working!

Though if I decide to try this, I am thinking evening before sleep or once a month at the weekend to give myself a break from the constant pain. But afternoons at work are so hard trying to ignore my discomfort, forcing a smile and a good attitude whilst working.

Would I be reasonable to try this privates prescription for pain relief or is it a ridiculous idea for a middle aged lady in a wheelchair?

Ps. I already spoke to my GP who suggested a private prescription and aim to speak to my consultant in my next appointment.

Some GPs do. NE England.
My DH's workmate has just begun with flower, vapes and oil for chronic knee pain. NHS prescription. His usage will be monitored closely, he was prescribed it after exhaustive trials with other forms of pain relief didn't work.
It's early days yet but he has said he's able to get some sleep at last.

I'm wrong. I spoke to his mate this afternoon, his GP gave him a letter of referral to a private clinic. He pays for his prescription. Sorry for giving my two pennorth when I obviously didn't have a clue what I was talking about.😳

Also have a look at spinal cord stimulation. Excellent for pure nerve pain .

@Shrinkhole understood. I think MC is something I will try if and when I have exhausted everything else. I have a few explorations happening next month on NHS so something might be revealed that might be treatable with something more standard but if nothing is revealed then alternative treatments is a reasonable option I think. The worse thing about chronic pain is how it messes with your head. It's always there.

I have it prescribed for peri-meno symptoms and find it really useful. I have a vaporiser with flower and use Sativa during the day to help brain fog and Indica at night to calm anxiety and have deep sleep. Interestingly, the Indica packaging is the only one that has the do not drive notice on it. I originally used an clinic with expensive monthly charges (Releaf) before switching to a better value clinic (Medicann). I have used the oil drops in the past but found the dosages unpredictable, for me it can take hours to kick in and can hit hard. Using flower only, it hits within minutes but much more mellow and slowly eases off over an hour or two. I can imagine it would be great for pain relief.

I've found medical cannabis helpful for managing nerve pain. It's great that you've got a prescription and are seeing some benefits. For me, considering options like copd cannabis management has been eye-opening. This approach often involves consulting healthcare professionals, so keep that in mind. It might be useful to discuss it further with your GP to explore how it can fit into your treatment plan.