A woman from Birmingham has shared her harrowing journey from a polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) diagnosis at age 16 to a devastating heroin addiction that cost her up to £1,000 a day. Caitlin Atkins, now 32 and a mother of one, says her addiction began with legitimate painkillers prescribed for her condition.
From Prescription Pills to Heroin
At 16, Caitlin was diagnosed with PCOS and admitted to hospital, where she was given tramadol for the first time. She also began taking codeine phosphate to manage her pain. Within months, she was consuming her monthly prescription in just two to three days. 'I would pop them like sweets,' she recalls. 'I had built up such a tolerance that taking the tablets wouldn't even do anything, they'd just make me feel normal.'
By 2015, at age 21, her tolerance had escalated to the point where she turned to heroin. A friend introduced her to the drug, and it quickly led to crack cocaine use. 'It was through crack cocaine and heroin I began hanging around with not very nice people. I'd have black eyes and issues with dealers and it was absolute chaos,' she explains.
The Toll of Addiction
Caitlin begged family members for money and used her benefits to fund her habit, feeling 'numb and broken.' The opioid crisis in the UK is significant, with latest ONS figures showing a 21% increase in drug poisonings from opiates over the last five years. The NHS warns that codeine and tramadol are addictive and should be reviewed regularly. In 2021, it was estimated that over one million people in England were prescribed opioids for more than three months, risking long-term dependence and health issues.
A Desperate Move and a Relapse
In May 2017, seeking a better life, Caitlin moved to Lanzarote. But her addiction worsened. She took up to 56 co-codamol tablets a day, obtained from a private doctor. 'I moved over there to change and better my life. But I came back more addicted to drugs than I was when I left,' she says. Her family had to fly out to bring her home after a hostel worker warned her mother she would die. She was sedated for the return flight.
Despite completing a twelve-week rehab course in 2021, Caitlin relapsed. However, in 2022, she fell pregnant. That pregnancy became her turning point. 'This is a whole life that is going to be impacted by the decisions I make,' she remembers thinking. Her son, she says, 'changed my whole entire life.' She has not used drugs since becoming pregnant.
Hope for Others
Now clean, Caitlin encourages others struggling with addiction to seek help. 'There is a way out and there's hope, seek help and go there,' she says. Her story highlights the link between chronic health conditions and opioid addiction, and the path to recovery.
