Socialite and TV celebrity Tara Palmer-Tomkinson surprised many people back in 1999 when it was revealed that she needed to enter rehab to receive treatment for cocaine addiction. In a recent interview with The Jeremy Kyle Show, she talked about how she grew up in a home where nobody even smoked cigarettes, considering herself an anti-drugs type of person even when she was spending a small fortune on her cocaine habit. Tara has been free of drugs for almost fifteen years but says that even the thought of drugs is enough to terrify her these days.
The Cocaine Problems of Tara Palmer-Tomkinson
Cocaine is the only drug that Tara Palmer-Tomkinson has ever abused. She says that she was not the type of person who would normally go anywhere near any type of addiction substance but agreed to try it because she wanted to impress a man she was in love with. He offered her some cocaine and she just said yes. Tara found that she really enjoyed the euphoria and confidence she experienced when she was using the substance, so she began taking it more regularly. It was not long before she was lying and behaving irrationally in order to maintain her habit.
Tara’s physical and mental health began to decline because of her addiction problems. The lowest point came when she convinced herself that she was about to die. She became obsessed with focusing on her heartbeat as she felt sure it was about to stop. Living with this level of anxiety was unbearable so, in 1999, Tara decided to enter rehab in order to get help for her addiction.
Tara Palmer-Tomkinson Returns to Rehab
The news that Tara returned to rehab a couple of years ago was kept quiet because she did not go back because she had relapsed. She started to struggle because of the stress of being in the public eye, so needed some help dealing with the anxiety in her life. Tara knew by then that there would be no way that drugs could give her the mental freedom she yearned for, so she returned to rehab where she knew she would find the help she needed. It was a very mature thing to do and showed that she valued her sobriety highly.
Tara has done a great deal of good for the recovery community since breaking away from her cocaine addiction. She understands that practically anyone could end up with this type of problem, and her empathy meant she wants to help. This is why she is always eager to support drug charities in the UK.
How Can a Non-Drug Person Become Addicted?
It is a myth that drug addiction only happens to a certain type of person. Tara Palmer-Tomkinson is a great example of somebody who would normally be considered unlikely to develop this type of problem, yet it still happened. It is true that some people are more likely to fall into addiction than others are because they may put themselves in positions where it is more likely to happen. The reality is that it only takes one weak moment for the seeds of addiction to be planted.
One of the most common ways that people who are normally anti-drug abuse fall into addiction is through the misuse of prescription drugs. What typically happens is that the person is prescribed a strong drug (for example, opiates) for a valid reason, but he or she starts to enjoy the side effects of this substance. The individual in this position may start to take the drug for recreational purposes rather than the reason for why the substance was prescribed in the first-place. It is a slippery slope from here to addiction, and it can happen to anyone.
In the case of Tara Palmer-Tomkinson, it appears she fell into cocaine use due to peer pressure. Trying something once can feel like a harmless thing to do at the time but the problem is that, with a substance like cocaine, it is possible to develop a passion for it after just one try.
