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WHICH HIS FAMILY TOOK OF THEIR
SON MAY BE DIFFICULT TO WATCH.
>> IT IS DIFFICULT TO WATCH
THIS VIDEO OF AN OREGON CHILD
HURTING HIMSELF IN A FIT OF
RAGE.
ELEVEN -YEAR-OLD ALEX AT
SEVERELY AUTISTIC IS
SELF-DESTRUCTIVE BEHAVIOR
BROUGHT ON BY TWO GLORIOUS
SCLEROSIS AT GENETIC DISORDER
THAT AFFECTS ABOUT 50,000
PEOPLE IN THE U.S.
IT CAUSES GROWTH AND ORGANS IN
FOX'S CASE PRIMARILY IN THE
BRAIN, THOSE GROWTH CAN LEAD
TO SEIZURES AND AUTISM.
ALICE CAN'T DRINK IT WITH
WORDS MAKING IT DIFFICULT TO
UNDERSTAND WHAT IS TROUBLING
HIM.
>> INDESCRIBABLE, IT WAS
HORRIFYING.
HE WAS ABLE TO BE ACTING
NORMAL AND ALL OF A SUDDEN RUN
HIMSELF INTO A WALL.
>> IS PARENT TO TURN TO A
CONTROVERSIAL TREATMENT
MEDICAL MARIJUANA TO MANAGE
ALEX'S BEHAVIOR.
>> WHEN YOU'VE GOT NO OTHER
OPTIONS ARE YOU HONESTLY GOING
TO SAY NO?
IT WASN'T ALWAYS THIS WAY
THOUGH.
>> HE WAS ACTUALLY GOING TO BE
JAKE FOR THE LONGEST TIME AND
WHEN HE WAS BORN WE SAW HIM
AND SAID THAT'S NOT JAKE,
THAT'S ALEX.
THE DAY ALEX WAS BORN, JEREMY
AND KAREN BUCKLES WERE FULL OF
HOPE UNTIL SIX WEEKS LATER
WHEN THEIR BABY HAD HIS FIRST
SEIZURE.
>> WE DIDN'T KNOW HE WAS GOING
TO BE AUTISTIC AT THAT TIME.
I THINK HE WAS THREE THE FIRST
TIME HE STARTED HURTING
HIMSELF THOUGH.
>> BY THE TIME ALEX WAS FIVE,
IT WAS INTENSE AND
SELF-DIRECTED RAGE.
ALEX HAD BUT DID ANYTHING HE
COULD, BRACING HIS FOUR HEAD
SO BADLY HIS FATHER SAYS THE
BLOOD WOULD DRAIN UNTIL ALEX'S
ENTIRE FACE WAS BLACK AND
BLUE.
THEY GOT HIM A HELMET,
SWADDLED HIM LIKE A NEWBORN,
TRADE MOOD ALTERING DRUGS, BUT
ALEX'S DAILY VIOLENT BEHAVIOR
BECAME THE EUGENE FAMILIES NEW
NORMAL, WHEN HE WAS EIGHT,
THEY MADE THE HEARTBREAKING
DECISION TO MOVE ALEX INTO A
STATE-FUNDED GROUP HOME.
IT WAS LIKE WE WERE THROWING
THEM AWAY.
LIKE WE WERE JUST GIVING HIM
TWO SOMEBODY ELSE AND SAYING
SORRY, BUDDY, YOU KNOW, YOUR
NOT PART OF THE FAMILY
ANYMORE.
IT WAS PRETTY ROUGH.
>> BUT WAS THERE A WAY TO HELP
HIM?
TO BRING BACK THE SMILING BOY?
ALEX'S PARENTS LOOKED INTO
OREGON'S MEDICAL MARIJUANA
PROGRAM AND A DOCTOR APPROVED
ALEX.
ALEX IS NOW ONE OF ABOUT 50
OREGON CHILDREN WITH A CARD
LIKE THIS AUTISM IS NOT A
QUALIFYING MEDICAL CONDITION
LIKE CANCER OR SEVERE PAIN,
AND ALEX'S CASE, THE SEIZURES
ARE AND AFTER A FEW MONTHS OF
TREATMENT THAT E-ECHO ECHOLS
SAY THEY SAW DRAMATIC
IMPROVEMENTS.
ABOUT THREE TIMES A WEEK HIS
PARENTS GAVE HIM A LIQUID FORM
OF THE DRUG.
OREGON LAW DOES NOT REQUIRE A
DOCTOR TO MONITOR A CHILD'S
MICHAEL MARIJUANA LEAVES.
IN FACT, HIS KNOWLEDGE IS TO
TURN BACK OR CHILDREN'S
HOSPITAL DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT THE
AGENDA TREATMENT UNTIL WE TOLD
THEM.
>> DID IT SURPRISE YOU TO
RETURN SOMETHING LIKE THAT?
>> I CERTAINLY AM VERY MUCH
WITH THEM IN MY DESIRE TO HELP
ALEX ALL OF US WANT TO HELP
ALEX.
>> ALEX'S DOCTOR DIDN'T SPEAK
DIRECTLY ABOUT THE CONTROVERSY
OF USING MEDICAL MARIJUANA ON
CHILDREN THAT THE AMERICAN
ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS IS
AGAINST IT.
A DOCTOR REPRESENTING THE
GROUP SAYS MARIJUANA IS TOXIC
TO CHILDREN DEVELOPING BRAINS
AND THERE ISN'T ENOUGH KNOWN
ABOUT THE LONG-TERM EFFECTS.
>> FOR US, THE LONG-TERM SIDE
EFFECTS THAT ARE UNKNOWN FOR
SOMETHING THAT CAN'T KILL HIM
ARE A LOT BETTER THAN THE
LONG-TERM SIDE EFFECTS OF HIM
BEATING HIMSELF BLOODY.
THE ECHOLS ALSO SAY THEY'RE
NOT ADVOCATING THE USE OF
MEDICAL MARIJUANA FOR ALL
ARTISTIC CHILDREN, BUT THEY
SAY WALK A MILE IN THEIR SHOES
AND THE TREATMENT MIGHT NOT
SEEM SO EXTREME.
>> ALEX'S PARENTS A THEY
VIDEOTAPED HIS EPISODES TO
PROVE THAT HIS INJURIES WERE
SELF-INFLICTED.
THEY CREATED A WEBSITE ABOUT
ALEX'S JOURNEY THAT INCLUDES A
BLOG WITH UPDATES AND WE HAVE