Our son was sober for 5 years. He contracted cellulitis back in February. His leg swelled to 5+ times its normal size so the docs in the hospital had him on a cocktail of meds, including pain killers. They knew his history but had to put him on the pain meds. Well, yesterday, he was arrested. He had meth and heroin. He had lost a lot of weight with the cellulitis after his 1 month hospital stay. He comes over on Fridays when my husband always fries fish. He seemed normal but I asked him if he was on drugs because of his weight loss and he told me no and that he'd take a drug test. I should have tested him but trusted he was being truthful.
Our hearts are shattered. He called earlier wanting us to bail him out but we told him no. I told him he was the one who made the decision to start taking drugs again and that he has to face the consequences of his poor choices. He threatened to hang himself. I told him that wouldn't solve anything but if he made that choice we were not responsible and we sure as hell would not feel guilty. He hung up. He tried to call again but now, I've turned off my phone. He'll have a hearing next week and hopefully the judge will decide that he can go to rehab before his trial and whatever time he is given.
Anyway, I know firsthand from previous asks that your prayers are powerful. Asking for our son and for our family. Thanks so much!
Bannedin, we asked the doctors and they said his pain was incredible. I think as with all illnesses, people have different experiences. Do I wish they pain meds had never started, absolutely. I have never seen anyone in as much pain as our son was in - his leg was horrific. He came thisclose to losing not only his leg but his life. The docs had to put him in a coma because the infection had spread throughout his body. They were afraid that his brain would swell more. Then, he had a reaction to the antibiotic and developed Stevens-Johnson Syndrome and his skin began peeling from his body. The docs had to begin treating those areas the same way 3rd degree burns are treated. It was horrible.
Medical staff will never use this but intravenous vitamin C (typically 700mg/kg of body weight) will cure cellulitis, sepsis and most other infections in a couple of days. See "Curing the Incurable: Vitamin C Infectious Diseases and Toxins" - by Thomas E Levy.