Michael Jackson allegedly ‘begged’ for drugs to aid sleep
Posted on July 1st, 2009 by AustinAdding further detail to the picture that is now emerging of Michael Jackson’s day-to-day life, a nurse and nutritionist hired to help him prepare for the concerts in London says the singer was addicted to pain relief and anti-insomnia pills, and it was ruining his life.
The nurse, Cherilyn Lee, says Michael repeatedly asked her for Diprivan – a sleep drug so potent it’s used in operating theaters as an anesthetic. But on June 21 she got a worrying call from one of Michael’s assistants, “He was frantic and said, `Michael needs to see you right away!’ From the conversation it soon became clear the singer had obtained the drug, or a clone, from one of his legion of doctors. Lee advised immediate hospital treatment but the singer never complied. “I don’t know what happened. But he was adamant about this drug,” she told AP reporters.
Since Michael’s untimely death last Thursday, claims of drug use have been almost incessant, but Lee insists the Michael she knew was no junkie, “He wasn’t looking to get high. This was a person who was just desperate to get some sleep – to get some rest.”
As part of his preparations for the 02 concerts in London, Michael had been working out with champion bodybuilder, Lou Ferrigno, who also has no recollection of MJ using drugs, “He wasn’t stoned. He wasn’t high. He never talked about drugs, he was always talking about nutrition.”
As a recreational drug, Diprivan would be virtual suicide – just a tiny amount above the right dosage can stop the recipient’s breathing — or cause shallow pulse. Michael had been asking Lee to provide it for months, but she always declined, “I said, ‘Michael, the only problem is I’m worried you’re going to take it, and you’re not going to wake up,” she recalled. But she felt pretty certain he got it elsewhere.
Following the loss of the singer last week, Lee, 56, a registered nurse and nurse practitioner, says she chose to speak out to defend his reputation, and his three children from a torrent of cruel allegations. “I think it’s so wrong for people to say these things about him,” she said. “He was a wonderful, loving father who wanted the best for his children.”
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