Opioids ruined my life..they are deadly & an epidemic

A MAN prescribed Fentanyl for pain relief while suffering emotional distress today warns Northern Ireland about the perils of opioids which he says have ruined his life.

Desie Roberts’ world spiralled into despair as he fell into the grip of addiction to prescription drugs.

Now 59 he says he has been left suicidal and explains he was so desperate to come off the medication, he went cold turkey, a decision he believes he was lucky to survive.

Desie, from Ballyholme, Co Down, says after months of first taking Actiq, he suffered a severe personality change leaving him unable to concentrate or connect emotionally with other people including family members.

He also suffered a series of health problems associated with taking the extreme strength opiod.

Desie said: “Actiq was the start of the end for me.”

He added as well as suffering from pain and anxiety he developed a number other problems and after being taken off the drug he was put on Fentanyl.

Desie said: “I know Fentanyl is believed to be 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine and 30 to 50 times more potent than heroin.

“Now I swing between being like a zombie and someone who is hyperanxious and cannot get a thought straight in my head.

“I have been told that the damage I have suffered to my brain is not something that will heal or repair.

“So this is me. I’m a mess and I feel constantly desperate and alone in all of this.” Today Desie lives alone, estranged from his wife, unable to hold down a job.

He explained: “I want to warn people about taking prescription drugs and particularly opioids. My life is all but over.

“The only reason I keep trying is because I’ve a beautiful young daughter who deserves to have a daddy in this world, even a sick one.

“Until I was prescribed these opioids I had everything, a loving family, a good job, a happy and bright future but now I’m a shadow of the man I once was.

“I had been in pain after abdominal surgery and struggling emotionally too when I was initially prescribed opioids.

“If I’d had any idea that they could have or would have ruined my life, I would never have gone near them.

“I’ve found out that I was given a drug that is normally prescribed for pain in patients with end stage cancer.

“I had pain after surgery but I wasn’t dying, I was anxious but I wasn’t at the end of my life and I certainly didn’t need to be knocked out and turned into a zombie. When I asked for help to come off the drugs, I ended up going cold turkey because I was told there was no safe way to do that so I decided there and then to do it myself.

“I literally stopped taking the medication and that nearly killed me. I really did think I might die but I just wasn’t prepared to carry on living the life I had been.”

Desie said he wants the public to research medication before they start taking them, and avoid the nightmare his life has become. He added: “I know that we’re meant to trust the medical world and I believe doctors do care and do their best.

“But these synthetic opioids are deadly and they’re an epidemic that I’ve got caught up in.

“Opioids have ruined my life. I will never recover, I know that now. I keep going for the sake of my daughter.

“I just want people to do their research on what they’re prescribed and at least know the risks of the medication.

“If I’d had any idea of what I was getting into, I would never have taken any of it because it’s ruined my life.”