CNN: Marijuana Stops Child's Severe Seizures [MUST READ]

Charlotte Figi had her first seizure when she was 3 months old. Over the next few months, the girl, affectionately called Charlie, had frequent seizures lasting two to four hours, and she was hospitalized repeatedly.

Charlotte Figi, 6, has Dravet Syndrome, a rare, severe form of epilepsy

Doctors tried everything they could think of to get her daily seizures to stop
The family decided to try a special type of medical marijuana low in THC.

Her parents say Charlotte is now thriving and seizures have been reduced to one a day. Is marijuana bad, or could it be good for some? CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta spent a year traveling around the world to shed light on the debate.

By most standards Matt and Paige Figi were living the American dream. They met at Colorado State University, where they shared a love of the outdoors. After getting married, the couple bought a house and planned to travel the world.

They did travel, but their plans changed when their first child was born in 2004.

Max was 2 when they decided to have another child. The couple got the surprise of their lives when an ultrasound revealed not one but two babies. Charlotte and Chase were born October 18, 2006.

"They were born at 40 weeks. ... Charlotte weighed 7 pounds, 12 ounces," Paige said. "They were healthy. Everything was normal."

The twins were 3 months old when the Figis' lives changed forever. Charlotte had just had a bath, and Matt was putting on her diaper. "She was laying on her back on the floor," he said, "and her eyes just started flickering." The seizure lasted about 30 minutes. Her parents rushed her to the hospital.

She was 5 when the Figis learned there was nothing more the hospital could do. That's when Paige decided to try medical marijuana. But finding two doctors to sign off on a medical marijuana card for Charlotte was no easy feat. She was the youngest patient in the state ever to apply.

Paige found a Denver dispensary that had a small amount of a type of marijuana called R4, said to be low in THC and high in CBD. She paid about $800 for 2 ounces -- all that was available -- and had a friend extract the oil.

She had the oil tested at a lab and started Charlotte out on a small dose.