BRADENTON, Fla. — When music legend Prince died in April from an overdose of fentanyl, it looked like just another example of celebrity excess. But his death is more a cautionary tale for some of his peers: aging baby boomers.
After decades of energetic stage performances in his trademark high heels, the 57-year-old superstar treated his aches and pains the same way millions of other middle-age Americans do: with powerful prescription opioids.
Prince’s subsequent addiction to those painkillers shows the peril facing a generation of baby boomers trying to manage pain from surgery, physical trauma and chronic or periodic illness.
Ranging in age from 51 to 69, boomers are at the stage of life when it’s common to develop long-term pain. That can put them at greater risk for dependence, addiction and possible overdose from prescription opioids, experts say.
Oxycodone and hydrocodone are two of the most common prescription opioids involved in overdose deaths.
As they grow older, boomers are likely to develop multiple ailments and to see several doctors who prescribe them different medications simultaneously — often without realizing it. When those drugs interact, they can cause adverse effects such as accidental poisoning, said Siobhan Morse, the director of research and fidelity at Foundations Recovery Network, which operates drug treatment facilities in several states.
Nearly 15,000 people suffered fatal overdoses on opioid pain medications in 2014, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 40 percent — or nearly 5,900 — were 50 or older. That’s almost an elevenfold increase since 1999.
Dangerous mix
Prescription drug abuse by those ages 50 to 59 has been increasing, along with illicit drug use among people ages 50 to 64, Morse said.
But mixing street drugs or alcohol with prescription meds could cause older users to overdose or die even if they consume at lower levels, she said.
“The older you get, the more compromised your systems are,” Morse explained.
Boomers whose drug problems began many years ago also are more likely to feel isolated and stigmatized by their problem. That can delay or keep them from seeking treatment.
Kelly Pierce of Bradenton, who’s 52, was in his 30s when he began using prescription opioids to deal with back and eye injuries suffered in a work-related fall. Within two years, he was addicted to painkillers.
“If you didn’t get pills from the hospital or from a doctor, then you’d buy them off the street. And they’re very expensive and you spend all your money on them, because otherwise you’d be sick. Plus, in pain too,” Pierce said.
After he moved to Bradenton, Pierce got an apartment next to a methadone clinic run by Operation PAR, an addiction and mental health service provider. He enrolled in the program in 2009 and began weaning himself off the opioids with daily doses of methadone, an opioid that reduces withdrawal symptoms from heroin and other narcotics.
Several years ago, Pierce relapsed and became dependent on prescription opioids he’d begun using for painful dental problems. He re-enrolled in the methadone program and has worked his way down to just 10 mg of methadone per day. He plans to leave the program when he reaches 5 mg.