I never liked cannabis.

The smell, the culture, the way it seemed to slow people down – none of it appealed to me. I spent over twenty years dealing with chronic pain using opiates instead, specifically codeine, because it was the least bad option available.

My problems started with a congenital spinal condition, then got worse after a martial arts injury damaged my C4 through C7 vertebrae. The result was intervertebral swelling that pinched the nerves in my neck. Every day brought cramping and pain. It was manageable, barely, with opioids.

Then four years ago, an exercise injury made everything catastrophically worse – the swelling spiked and my nerves and nerve sheath fused together in a feedback loop of inflammation. When I blew my nose my left arm felt like it had exploded, and it was on fire around the clock. Sneezing felt like blowing the arm off entirely. Codeine and even stronger opiates felt like I’d taken nothing at all. I was couchbound for six months – I couldn’t think, I couldn’t function. I would have tried anything so I did, I tried cannabis.

I started where most people start: dispensary products, commercial tinctures, whatever I could find. Most of it was overpriced and underperformed. The edibles were inconsistent. The oils tasted like lawn clippings and did not work. Still I could see the value – with over 2,000 different strains, surely some combination of them could be what I needed?

I realized that if I wanted something that actually functioned as medicine, I would have to make it myself.

Over the following months I went from unable to stand to fully functional. After a year, I don’t need my own medicine anymore because the nerve pain is entirely gone.

Green Heron Labs exists because I had to build it for myself first. If you are here because nothing else has worked, I understand. I was you. Here you will find community, information and most importantly, the medicine you need to manage pain and stop the nerve pain cycle so your body can heal.