Dr Annabelle Manalo was forced to navigate every mother’s worst nightmare, the birth of a sick child in 2016. From birth, Macario suffered from unrelenting seizures, up to 200 per day. When traditional medication proved unable to control the seizures, Annabelle was forced to consider other alternatives. Ultimately, they decided to perform a surgery to resect 38% of Macario’s brain. 

Following the surgery, Macario was on multiple medications and expected to have a poor quality of life. Unsatisfied with available treatments and unwilling to subject her newborn to toxic medications post-surgery, Annabelle reacted as a scientist and mother. She carefully researched CBD and the various products available prior to making a decision to use CBD as an alternative for her recovering son. Dissatisfied with the transparency of existing products on the market, she created a solution herself – a pure and potent CBD oil with the power to change the course of her son’s life. Thus, Masaya CBD was born. 

Now a happy and healthy toddler, Macario is living proof of the power of science. Annabelle shares his story to advocate for continued progress in the research and development of holistic, plant-based treatment modalities like CBD and other cannabis medicines.