Nigerian actress Ufoma McDermott has revealed how she battles with kidney disease, which stems from years of unknowingly abusing painkillers.
During an interview with media personality Chude Jideownwo, the Nollywood actress spoke on her experience with kidney disease over the last 12 years and urged other people to prioritise their health.
She said, “I really wish everyone would understand how important health is. My brother was diagnosed late on stage four and he had to go straight into dialysis and had complications. I was diagnosed a lot earlier so I’ve lived on medication for almost 12 years now.”
The actress, who has been on medication for her condition for nearly 12 years, reflected on the impact of drug abuse on her family, stating that her late brother was diagnosed with kidney disease at an advanced stage and faced severe complications during dialysis.
She explained, “When my brother passed away I ran to my cardiologist. I was scared, and my parents were scared. Is this genetic? We had to trace the kidney disease and we learned it was from drug abuse.”
“I’d always grown up with migraines, headaches and eye aches, and I never wore my glasses because they made me look like a geek. I wouldn’t wear them and then I’d take painkillers for my migraine.
“I never took ordinary painkillers, I took strong painkillers because I wanted the pain to go away. At a point, I had painkillers in my wallet and I could give people,” she added.
McDermott learnt that her condition was not genetic but simply a side effect of long-term painkiller abuse.
“The doctor told me I was exposed to certain behaviours, and my brother was exposed to the same thing, but it doesn’t mean it’s genetics.
“I didn’t know I was abusing drugs and I was first diagnosed with high blood pressure at 26, and I didn’t even know what that was,”
