In the investigation into the sudden death of Prince, it has been discovered that he had been using Percocet heavily for the last several years. As part of the investigation, Prince was seen making weekly trips to an area Walgreens to pick up the drugs which contributed to his death. It has been documented that a week before his death, Prince overdosed on Percocet, and that Prince started taking Percocet after a series of on-stage injuries.
Prince would not be the first celebrity that developed a drug addiction yet still functioned, at least to some extent. Margaret Cho just wrote an ode to Anna Nicole Smith , according to the Inquisitr , who died from a cocktail of drugs, including long-term Methadone use, initially used as an attempt to get off of opiates.
An addiction expert explains the uses and risks of Percocet — the painkiller Prince used https://t.co/qfFdu53Bbx pic.twitter.com/TaAEwQx39p
— People (@people) April 28, 2016
TMZ reported that Prince had struggled with a hip injury for years, and he had even had corrective surgery to try to alleviate the pain. Sources close to the family say that Prince started taking Percocet in 2009 when his hip problems first surfaced. Doctors first did surgery on Prince in 2010 to try to stop the pain.
It is suggested that by the time doctors operated on Prince, he was already hooked on Percocet. As the years went on, Prince’s dependence grew even more intense and debilitating. Prince was found dead in an elevator, and an investigation started to try to link who had been prescribing Percocet to Prince for seven years.
Prince reportedly suffered from Percocet addiction, had painkillers in possession at death. https://t.co/nupEKVUbgT pic.twitter.com/VWeIrZ1b4w
— Pigeons & Planes (@PigsAndPlans) April 28, 2016
It’s hard to say which is more surprising, the frequency of the trips to Walgreens to pick up Percocet, or the idea that a superstar on the level of Prince still does his own pharmacy runs without the aid of a personal assistant. TMZ gathered a series of photos of Prince, four times in one week, picking up prescriptions of Percocet from the Walgreens.
Prince’s team told the media that Prince had been suffering from the flu, which is why, they explained, that his private plane made an emergency landing in Moline, Illinois. Prince was hospitalized, but left the hospital after a few hours, which experts are saying was much too soon, and might have contributed to his death. Sources reported that in the days after his hospitalization, Prince “was not doing too well.”
Just days following the emergency landing, Prince was back on stage, telling fans that they shouldn’t worry about him, in a prophetic statement.
“Wait a few days before you waste any prayers.”
ICYMI: #Prince was treated for a percocet overdose the week before he died https://t.co/Fy2bY6bnbb pic.twitter.com/IdzlPIMIJR
— Page Six (@PageSix) April 23, 2016
The Mirror explained that Prince was worn out by his addiction to Percocet, and his entire system was weakened. It is reported that Prince was in very bad shape, and at the very least, should have spent days in the hospital.
“Doctors told Prince his blood count was unusually low and that his body temperature had dropped dangerously below the normal 98.6 degrees to 94 degrees. He was totally iron-deficient, very weak and often disoriented.”
Prince’s ‘overdose drug’ Percocet linked to other celebrity fatalities https://t.co/aZp5fIXLKA
— Daily Mail Celebrity (@DailyMailCeleb) April 23, 2016
Sources say that Prince rarely ate, and when he did, it often came back up. Oddly enough, Prince did not want to stay in the hospital, mostly because of his faith, which is reported as Jehovah’s Witness. Prince preferred to heal himself by prayer, which is conflicted by his chronic use of Percocet.
“God can and will cure me.”
Prince reportedly overdosed on Percocet days before his death: https://t.co/YmD83u0jyW
— Us Weekly (@usweekly) April 22, 2016
Sources close to Prince also revealed that his appearance had also taken a bad turn in the time before his death.
“His face was yellowish, the skin on his neck was hanging off and the tips of fingers were a brownish-yellow.”
Do you think that Percocet addiction is what caused Prince to die so suddenly?
[Photo by Patrick Riviere/Getty Images]