Meet the Owner
My name is Kathryn Halberstadt and I am the owner of East Texas CBD. I started East Texas CBD in Ben Wheeler, Texas to provide others in my area a place to find high quality, handmade, affordable CBD products. We still make every CBD product by hand.
I have lived with Cerebral Palsy all my life, but I never let it stop me from achieving my goals. I was able to go to college and earn a masters degree in Educational Technology. I also became an elementary school teacher in Hawai'i. I never expected life to throw me another curve ball.
During my 9th year teaching, I was diagnosed with a rare nerve disorder called Trigeminal Neuralgia. This disorder causes extreme shocks of pain on the right side of my face. The doctor prescribed medication and I thought 'ok, this is manageable, no big deal'. If only I had known how wrong I was. First of all, even on medication, I was still experiencing random episodes of pain. Each event resulted in a trip to the emergency room to get yet more medication to stop it. These were frequent, at least one a week. Second, the medication was having some unintended side effects. I was hearing noises, having trouble speaking (using the wrong word, not being able to recall a word, etc), becoming extremely drowsy, and making my mobility issues much worse. Due to these side effects, I had to leave the classroom. I could no longer be a teacher.
I was heartbroken, but I was determined to get my life back. I was able to get surgery for my nerve condition. I had to leave Hawai'i to get the surgery, however. After the surgery my husband and I move out to Ben Wheeler, TX. The surgery worked! I was pain free without any medication for 18 months. I began volunteering at the local Elementary school, life was good. At the end of the school year however, the pain came back. I had to go back on medication and could no longer volunteer at the school.
Doctors here recommended a monthly injection to help with the pain. I started it and it worked! I was still needing the medication, but at an extremely lower dose. The lower dose meant less severe side effects and an improved quality of life. Everything was good until I was forced to change my medical insurance plan. The new insurance plan had a large co-pay for the monthly injections, which are considered out-patient surgery. Since I could not afford the new cost, I was forced to stop the injections. I then had a life-changing conversation about CBD with my doctor.
My doctor and I talked about CBD and after he told me what he knew, I decided to try it. I found some CBD oil and gummies that I was comfortable taking, and quickly learned that gummies were my favorite. I was able to keep my medication dose down without the injections. The only problem facing me now was getting a steady supply and cost.
I couldn't find any local suppliers at the time, and paying shipping as well as for the product was getting expensive fast. I did some research and found out how to make my own CBD gummies and got myself some raw CBD and got to cooking. A friend of mine suggested making extra gummies and selling them. She allowed me to post an advert in her business and I earned enough from that to rent my booth at First Monday Trade Days, where we still up every month.
Live your best life again with East Texas CBD's fast and effective products infused with the natural power of CBD.