Coke…It’s the Real Thing

 

Excerpt from The Rockstar Remedy

 

By

 

Dr. Gabrielle Francis

 

 

an excerpt from"The Rockstar Remedy" 

 

 

 

Within a few minutes of entering the backstage of this show, the manager gave me the low down.  The lead singer had been on a coke binge for several weeks.   It had taken its toll on the rest of the band and the tour.  It was now about 3 days since the singer had done any Cocaine, but he was very edgy and having meltdowns on everyone around him.   It was my job to help him relax.

 

  I entered his dressing room and he lay down for his treatment.   He told me that he was extremely agitated and tense all over.  His facial muscles were so tight he was worried he wouldn’t be able to sing well.   I started to massage him and could feel the tension.   As I was working, he reached over to his jeans and pulled out a container with some Coke and a Coke spoon.  He gave each nostril a little snort and lay back down.   I told him that this would counteract all the relaxation of the massage.   He reported that he was suffering from insomnia on this tour and said he needed just a wee bit of blow and coffee to give him energy for the show.   Hum, I wonder why you are having sleep issues?  But what a great remedy...Coffee and Cocaine, the all-natural replacements for sleep!

He made me promise to not tell the band.   He had no idea what was coming for him.

 

“She don’t lie,

She don’t lie,

She don’t lie...

Cocaine.”

  .

-Eric Clapton

 

The show was terrible.   He was exhausted and his voice was hoarse.  The band was furious with him and laid into him for ruining the concert.    He stormed out of the after party early and went back to the hotel.  By the time the band and I arrived at the hotel, he had destroyed his room. Apparently, he got in a fight with his wife on the phone and decided to take it out on the mirror and lamps.   The band was asked to leave the hotel that night and was forced to sleep in the tour buses. The manager and band were furious and began a fistfight with the artist and hotel manager.

 

I was actually secretly happy.  This was the first and only time in all my rock n roll history that I actually saw a hotel room torn up. This really was Rock’n’Roll!  A sigh of relief.

 

The tour ended after the incident.   A Drug Intervention was held a couple of days later with the lead singer.   He was asked to go into treatment by the band, the manager, and his family.   Surprisingly, he agreed.   He admitted himself into a 28-day treatment program to detox from drugs and alcohol.

 

The manager asked me to be part of his post treatment support.   After he left the inpatient treatment, I helped him with Acupuncture for the cravings, Detoxification for the years of abuse, and nutritional support to rebuild what was left of his adrenal glands.  AA and NA were a great support for him.  He took a year off to mend his relationships and get his health back.