Inquiry into the misuse/abuse of benzodiazepines and other forms of pharmaceutical drugs in Victoria : final report / Drugs and Crime Prevention Committee.

  • Victoria. Parliament. Drugs and Crime Prevention Committee.
Date:
2007
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Inquiry into the misuse/abuse of benzodiazepines and other forms of pharmaceutical drugs in Victoria : final report / Drugs and Crime Prevention Committee. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    26/524 (page 4)
    An account of this family’s ‘journey through hell’ is worth quoting at length if for no other reason than reinforcing the fact that it is not only the families of heroin or amphetamine users who have to face the secondary consequences of drug addiction: Members of the committee, in August 1994 family life as we knew it disappeared forever when our 18-year-old son Tony!® was involved in a single-car accident on a local country road. The severity of Tony’s injuries led to him being flown to Melbourne, where he remained for the next six months. His injuries included a fractured pelvis, a badly broken ankle, a severely damaged foot, three broken fingers, a damaged valve to his heart, a fractured vertebra and multiple cuts and abrasions. Two days after being in Melbourne, Tony began to suffer renal failure and was admitted to the ICU, where he remained on the brink of death for eight days. Little did we know that the pain relief being administered to Tony in those early days would lead to a life of unmanageable addictive behaviour that would spiral in and out of control for the next 13 years, and possibly for the rest of Tony’s life. Sadly, it was not only Tony who was affected by this tragic accident but all of his family. Even in the early days after the accident, Tony demanded more and more painkillers, which were freely administered on request. In the end, | think it was given simply to shut him up. There were times when | even intervened and fought for more on his behalf, as it is not easy as a mother to sit by your son’s bed as he cries in pain. Was it addiction and craving, even at that early time? We will never know. But as time marched by, we became more and more suspicious. Perhaps it was addiction beginning to manifest itself in him... Tony had several operations....He was finding the pain in his foot continually hard to bear and lived on a variety of painkillers to help him through the day. From memory, at this stage they were mainly Panadeine Forte and similar. There was always a box on hand. He consumed them like Smarties. ...We hoped for a miracle, but it was short-lived. The demands for pain-relieving medication drove the doctors and nurses insane. Things became so bad after one particular operation that a nurse rang to inform me that Tony had a drug problem — newsflash! — and we were summoned to Melbourne to meet his doctors to work out a plan of attack. We had lost our first round in our efforts to break the cycle and demonstrate to the doctors that Tony had a serious problem. We came home disgusted. When he was finally discharged from the hospital, he was given a show bag of goodies to see him on his way, much of which was consumed on his way home. These included a variety of substances, including benzos and opiates. He was to have further operations on his foot, none of which gave much improvement but certainly added to his addiction being a more serious problem than ever, as he was taking painkillers daily at this stage. The behaviour pattern went from bad to worse. We did deals with him and took control of his daily medication, which rocked from oxies to benzos, all mind-altering stuff. He knew it but was unable to stop. The amounts he could tolerate were unbelievable. Doctors were still prescribing boxes of Serepax that would last one or two days. He even cut a deal with a chemist once: a bottle of red for some benzos. We were powerless. In summarising, we must all be aware that pharmaceuticals are more dangerous and insidious than street drugs. This disease is not selective as it occurs in rich and poor families, the educated and the uneducated. It is believed there is a predisposition to substance abuse and also evidence that suggests it may be hereditary. Tony is a beautiful, soft, gentle-natured person. He is currently waiting to do a detox program, as he has been for the last five months. He lives in a backpackers’ [hostel] in Ballarat, as we could no longer manage him at home.!! 10 Tony is a pseudonym used to protect the identity of the son. 11 ‘Mr and Mrs Brown’, Evidence given to the Drugs and Crime Prevention Committee, Inquiry into the Misuse/Abuse of Benzodiazepines and Other Forms of Pharmaceutical Drugs in Victoria, Bendigo, 29 May 2007.