CHRIS KIRKLAND has revealed he took the “equivalent of six shots of heroin a day” during a battle with addiction.
The former England goalkeeper, 42, admits he “should have died” from taking Tramadol – a powerful painkiller.
He was addicted to the painkillers for a decade before seeking help.
Tramadol is now set to be banned from football as WADA adds it to their list of banned substances.
Kirkland has admitted he was close to taking his own life before going into rehab and has since been supported by his wife Leeona and teenage daughter Lucy.
Speaking to The Athletic, he revealed details of his battle with addiction.
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He explained: “I found out when I went into rehab that I was taking the equivalent of six shots of heroin a day.
“It is an evil, evil drug. It nearly killed me, and should have killed me.
“At the start, it gives you a good feeling. It makes you feel happy, if you have anxiety or anything like that.
“I was using it for pain, yes, but I was using it for anxiety more than anything. But it messes you up mentally. I knew after three months that I was in trouble, that I’d become reliant on it.
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“In the end, you build up such a tolerance to it, it doesn’t really do anything. It’s just that your body needs it, because you’re addicted.”
Kirkland revealed last year that he had been addicted to Tramadol for a decade after taking them to manage a back injury during his playing days.
He had first sustained the injury in Liverpool training before the problem resurfaced after joining Wigan in 2006.
After falling behind Ali Al-Habsi in the pecking order at the Latics he moved to Sheffield Wednesday in 2012, but struggled to cope with the change.
Kirkland found himself having to get up at 5:30am to head to training, missing his daughter’s plays and stressing about a contract clause that could have seen him released for missing three consecutive games.
To make sure he would meet his contract criteria he believed he should take more painkillers, explaining: “I thought I’ll never get addicted.
“I’m strong enough to only take them when I need them but it got a grip of me, my body needed it more and more and I became dependent on them.
“The first season was manageable. The second season I was on them a lot every day, more or less. Leeona didn’t know.
“I kept them in the car, hidden, took them on the way to training.
“I was sneaky. That’s what addiction is. Anything to get my hit.”
Speaking to i about the withdrawal symptoms he said: “I wouldn’t wish those seven, eight days on anyone. I had hallucinations, constant sweats, cold, vomiting, aching and I cramped all over my body.
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“I didn’t sleep for five or six days, basically. Leeona slept in the room next door to me because I was tossing and turning and she came in to check I was still breathing properly.”
The former Three Lions star made 189 Premier League appearances during his career for Liverpool, Wigan, Coventry and West Brom.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
