Nicola Robinson fights for medicinal cannabis for her father

Nicola Robinson fights for medicinal cannabis for her father

You know her as Nicky Watson - socialite and celebrity party girl who was married to millionaire businessman Eric Watson.

A lot has changed since then for Nicola Robinson, as she's now known. 

She's been hiding from the limelight in Australia, but now she's stepping back into the public eye - and this time, it's for a deeply personal reason.

Nicola's father has Alzheimer's and she has been fighting to get him medicinal cannabis.

"It's a traumatic thing to be looking at your loved one and realise their brain is closing down on them. It's heartbreaking," says Nicola's mother Gail Robinson.

Nicola attempted to illegally import cannabidiol hemp oil into New Zealand from her home in Queensland, but the oil never arrived and her family were sent a letter.

"Basically, we had broken the law, but they [police] weren't going to take any action at that point in time. But if we tried to import anymore, they would," Nicola explained.

There are many different naturally occurring compounds in cannabis and hemp which can be extracted - the most famous of all being THC, which gives you a high.

However cannabidiol, also known as CBD, does not give the user a high, but may have anti-psychotic, anti-epilepsy and possible anti-cancer properties.

The Ministry of Health says THC and CBD are closely related and too similar in the compound make-up, while the Crown Environmental Science and Research agency says THC and CBD are quite different, and that CBD should be a prescription medicine.

"I would walk the end of the Earth to find something that would prevent them from going through what they're going through."

Nicola says anyone who has lived with losing a loved one to Alzheimer's will understand.

"In my heart of hearts I feel it would be profound for him and my priority is to make it available for him," she said.

"They've worked their butts off like most Kiwis all their life - and at this end of their lives, they deserve to be enjoying a beautiful state of bliss."

"It's a crime that it's [medicinal cannabis] not praised and embraced in our beautiful Aotearoa."

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