“My skin was living blood”: Grandson of Grandpa Anésio reveals childhood drama with severe dermatitis

“I noticed people were afraid to touch me.” It is with this sentence that Caio Fiorídias, grandson of the iconic Grandpa Anésio, begins to reveal the invisible marks left by a childhood of pain, isolation, and resistance. 

In episode #40 of Deusa Cast, the podcast from Portal Sechat, he shares a touching story: “all of this was making me a very strong human being”. And it is this strength that overflows in every word of his.

Since childhood, Caio has lived with severe episodes of atopic dermatitis. They were not simple skin patches, they were open wounds, uncontrollable itching, layers and layers of skin that fell apart at the touch. 

“My mother swept the house three times a day and came out with the dustpan full of skin,” he recalls, his voice filled with memories. At 16, it reached such a critical point that the skin could no longer regenerate. "My ear was stuck. I was living atrophied, I only applied aloe vera on my body. It was living blood," Caio told during Deusa Cast.

However, the scars were not limited to the physical. Social exclusion and bullying also marked his journey. “The ‘scabby’... the ‘mangy’... I heard it all. But I learned to defend myself, to explain, to resist. I understood that I either fell into that hole or learned to deal with it,” he said.

Read also: Cannabinoids in the treatment of atopic dermatitis: therapeutic potential and perspectives
 

It was only after adolescence that cannabis entered his life. And with it, came the light. “I started going out in the sun. Simple thing, but I couldn't do it. My skin was gradually returning to normal. The cannabis treatment gave me quality of life, gave me freedom”.

Caio also describes how the plant had already transformed his grandfather's life, one of the greatest symbols of the fight for cultivation and medicinal use in Brazil, and now, continues to help generations. 

“Cannabis is care. It is reconnection. It didn't just heal my skin. It helped me look at others with more empathy. The pain of others is never less just because it is different from mine. Nothing to me can be the end for you,” reflects Caio.

In Deusa Cast, his words echo as an urgent reminder: it is necessary to make room for pains that are not visible. And also for solutions that are still stigmatized.

Watch the full episode #40 of Deusa Cast, with Caio Fiorídias, and learn more about the strength behind the pain and how cannabis can be a path to relief, care, and new beginnings.