Who Is Rick Simpson?
📷 Greencamp
There are some very famous Simpson's out there, such as the likes of Homer, Marge and Bart. Rick Simpson is the one the world doesn't know about but should. No, he isn't Homer's 3rd cousin. He is a Canadian medical marijuana activist who will be a household name in years to come and for those who don't know it, here's his story.
In 1997 at the age of 47 Rick was an engineer in a Canadian hospital. He worked in a poorly ventilated room covering asbestos on pipes with aerosol glue. Whilst on a ladder the toxic fumes caused a temporary nervous shock leading him to collapse and hit his head on the floor. Knocked unconscious, upon waking up he managed to call out for his colleagues to take him to the emergency room.
From this moment on he suffered from dizzy spells and a ringing in his ears known as Tinnitus. The medication prescribed to him by his doctor had little effect and made his symptoms worse. Having seen a documentary on medicinal cannabis he promptly asked his doctor about it, who refused to consider it as an alternative treatment. At this moment the seeds of distrust were planted. Rick went on to grow cannabis plants himself, whilst extracting his own oils which he ingested orally and the Tinnitus subdued. The oil became known as Rick Simpson oil or RSO for shorthand.
Jumping forward to 2003, 3 suspicious lumps appeared on Ricks' arm. He promptly went to see his doctor who ran a biopsy and did confirm he had Basal cell carcinoma, a form of skin cancer.
29 years prior Rick had heard through the radio of a study being done on mice where THC had killed off cancer in mice. At this moment he decided it was worth a try. Applying a concentrated oil, which had a very high THC percentage, on bandages which he then placed over the growths and left on for 4 days. As optimistic as he was he can't have been expecting for the growths to have completely disappeared, only 4 days later.
He went with this incredible news to his physician who refused to acknowledge cannabis as the treatment that had removed his growths. He also went to cancer institutes who wouldn't listen. At this moment Rick realised the gravity of what he discovered and took matters into his own hands. He started growing on his own land and the rest is history.
Rick Simpson does not sell the oil. He only provides information on its benefits and the method how to make your own RSO. Rick did not even patent the oil or the method he used to produce the cannabis oil because he felt that this is knowledge everyone should have. He launched Phoenix Tears back in 2004 where he shared his recipe for free.
Even after having his home raided multiple times and having over 2600 plants taken away by the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) he continued to produce the oil and help others.
To this day he continues to spread the word of his findings. In 2008 a filmmaker called Christian Laurette made a documentary film called 'Run from the cure' detailing Rick Simpsons' story. This is available on YouTube and has over one million views. Without this film, god knows where the medicinal cannabis industry would be today.
Rick Simpson also has two e-books entitled 'Phoenix tears - the Rick Simpson story' and 'Phoenix tears - Rick Simpson oil, natures answer for cancer' which are must reads for anyone interested in this movement.
"If children were given tiny doses of oil each day like a supplement, diseases like cancer, MS, and many other conditions could be eliminated entirely" - Rick Simpson.
With enough research we could verify this statement, it undoubtedly has some incredible health benefits, with enough research we will find out the full potential of this plant.
The only two websites Rick Simpson is affiliated with are www.pheonixtears.ca and www.simpsonramadur.com.