‘Opiate withdrawal is hard’: Alex Murdaugh says he ate SIXTY Oxy pills a day and spent $60K on drugs weekly
WALTERBORO, SOUTH CAROLINA: Health experts have disclosed the destructive effect of opioid addiction after former US lawyer and now murder suspect, Alex Murdaugh claimed to have consumed 60 pills a day. Murdaugh is currently facing trial for the murder of his wife, Maggie, and son, Paul, in 2021. He said that he initially got hooked on oxycodone following surgery after his college football injury when he received it as a painkiller.
This was just the beginning of his self-destruction though as his substance abuse continued for the next several years and he claimed that he was spending $60,000 per week on the opioid at the peak of his addiction. Many social media users were initially skeptical of Murdaugh's claims about whether someone could actually consume 60 pills a day and still perform his day-to-day duties as a lawyer.
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Health expert gives his opinion
"Tolerance is more important than quantity' when it comes to opioids. You or I would die if I took ten of those because my opioid receptors have no experience," said Dr Tildabeth Doscher, an addiction medicine specialist at the University at Buffalo told Daily Mail. As per research, the harmful effects of severe opioid addiction include emotional swings, unprovoked outbursts, paranoia, and depression, as well as crippling withdrawals.
"It takes more and more and more to counter the withdrawal because once those opioid receptors are full, they start emptying out and cause withdrawal symptoms," Dr Doscher said. "People continue to use and use and use because they’re trying to avoid the pains of withdrawal."
Did he just say... "When you go to the kennel you always end up gettin shot..."
— redrum media (@THERedRumMedia) February 24, 2023
Freudian slip? Did he say something else? WTF? 😳 #AlexMurdaugh #AlexMurdaughTrial #murdaugh #MurdaughTrial pic.twitter.com/uFWPhG5quy
How do opioid drugs work?
Opioid drugs work by binding to opioid receptors located in the brain, spinal cord, and other regions of the body. The drugs remove feelings of pain in a user and induce a feeling of intense excitement and happiness. These drugs are known to be extremely addictive. An individual will slowly intake more and more to reach that state and the body can experience withdrawal symptoms if these cravings are unmet.
As far as Murdaugh is concerned, he allegedly spent $60,000 daily on the pills and was able to get through this dangerous addiction for over a decade. "It just escalates and escalates," he told the court. He claimed that he visited the detox facility three times, the first one being in December 2017. "Opiate withdrawal is, whew, it's hard," Murdaugh said. He described how "you throw up. You have terrible diarrhea. You sweat like you're running a marathon. You can't hold your legs still."
Murdaugh blamed the paranoia induced by his drug use as the reason why he claimed the lives of his wife and son. However, Dr Docher does not buy the story. She says that they are not the type of drugs that lead to these violent outbursts.
"As far as violence goes, no. People will do things that they would have never done otherwise but murdering someone? No. It’s not like PCP or other drugs that make people more prone to violence," she explained. "I'm never surprised to hear they took that and felt normal. I imagine when you take that much, you’re still trying to get the euphoria, the dissociative effects. So if he always takes 50 pills and then one day takes 70, he’s going to feel differently. There’s a stabilizing dose versus an excessive dose."