Nigerian nurse reveal how drug addiction almost destroy her life

Nigerian nurse reveal how drug addiction almost destroy her life

BBC

“If I never take Pentazocine dat time, I go just dey vex anyhow.

“I go dey get light headache, I fit dey get chills. My brain go just dey remind me say my body need dis tin o.”

Dis na wetin one Nigerian nurse Maggie (no be her real name) tell BBC Pidgin afta she don finally succeed in fighting drug addiction wey almost destroy her life.

Maggie na registered nurse wey get family.

She still dey try go back to di way her life take be before di drug addiction.

And she tell BBC Pidgin say if she never take Pentazocine, she go dey vex wit pipo.

Na only wen she take am her body dey come down, she add.

Drug abuse na big health palava wey dey affect mental health across Nigeria.

Authorities for di west African nation don also set laws to try stop dis concern.

Maggie dey inject di drug for her vein so tey all her veins kon collapse and she no see vein to inject am again.

“I kon move to my muscle. I use am for my bum bum.

“I get abscess, so I kon switch to my thigh just to inject and get dat feeling,” Maggie tell BBC Pidgin.

She lost many tins sake of drugs

Maggie tok say her addiction to drug cause am a lot, and one of dis na her job wey she lose for hospital.

She say di second tin wey she lose na her education sake of say di drug no allow am complete her programme for Nigerian University.

“Sake of say I dey inject di drug for my thigh, I no kon fit use my leg dey walk normal again.

“So my two knees dey stiff, I dey house now. If no be Pentazocine I for dey work dey do oda tins,” she tok.

How di drug addiction start

Di woman tok say di first time she use Pentazocine na afta her ectopic pregnancy surgery.

And na doctor prescribe am for am to help am relieve di pain.

Wen Maggie get accident, she remember say Pentazocine na pain killer.

And she begin use am witout doctor prescription and get used to alias addicted to am.

Nigerian nurse reveal how drug addiction almost destroy her life

BBC

Her journey to redemption

Di woman tok say she realise say she no fit stop di drug addiction by herself.

Na im make her contact National Drug Law Enforcement Agency and tell dem wetin she dey face.

“I dey go dia office every week. Na dia dem begin do counselling for me,” Maggie tok.

But Maggie go back to drug afta dis counselling.

However, she begin rehabilitation again and kon finally recover for di year 2019.

Maggie say she blame herself say she bin use Pentazocine without doctor prescription.

And she also blame di pharmacists wey dey sell am for am.

“If to say I no see di drug, I for no continue to dey use am.

“So I blame myself, I kon blame pharmacy wey dey sell am for me,” di woman tok.

“Di shame wey I don suffer sake of hiding dis tori don too, so I decide to share am,” Maggie reveal.

Now she dey go around her community dey give health talks

Wetin be Pentazocine?

Pentazocine na drug wey dem dey use relieve moderate and severe pain.

Dem fit also use am before surgery or wit general anaesthetic.

Pentazocine dey among di group of medicine wey dem dey call narcotic analgesics.

And na prescription drug – meaning say you no suppose buy or use am without doctors prescription.

E dey act on di central nervous system to relieve pain.

Wen pipo use narcotic medicine for a long time, e fit cause dem to depend on di drug.

Wetin NDLEA Act tok about drug?

Di NDLEA Act tok say any pesin wey dey in possession of cocaine, heroine or oda similar drugs dey guilty of an offence.

And dem fit chop prison sentence wey no dey less dan 15 years and wey no go exceed 25 years.

Di Act no tok about di possession of medicine like Pentazocine and di addiction of such medicine.

But health authorities for Nigeria don advise pipo neva to use medicine without doctor prescription as dis kind tin dey dangerous to dia health.

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The British Broadcasting Corporation