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Jackson 'pressured' nurse for sleep drug
By Lynn Elber |
July 5, 2009, Sunday
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Print Edition
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Michael Jackson was so distraught over persistent insomnia in recent months that he pleaded for a powerful sedative despite warnings it could be harmful, says a nutritionist who was working with the singer as he prepared his comeback bid.
Cherilyn Lee, a registered nurse whose specialty includes nutritional counseling, said this week that she repeatedly rejected his demands for the drug, Diprivan, which is given intravenously.
But a frantic phone call she received from Jackson four days before his death made her fear that he somehow obtained Diprivan or another drug to induce sleep, Lee said.
While in Florida on June 21, Lee was contacted by a member of Jackson's staff. "He called and was very frantic and said, 'Michael needs to see you right away.' I said, 'What's wrong?' And I could hear Michael in the background ... 'One side of my body is hot, it's hot, and one side of my body is cold. It's very cold'," Lee said.
"I said, 'Tell him he needs to go to the hospital. I don't know what's going on, but he needs to go to the hospital ... right away.'
"At that point, I knew that somebody had given him something that hit the central nervous system," she said, adding, "He was in trouble Sunday and he was crying out."
Jackson did not go to the hospital. He died June 25 after suffering cardiac arrest, his family said. Autopsies have been conducted, but an official cause of death is not expected for several weeks.
"I don't know what happened there. The only thing I can say is he was adamant about this drug," Lee said.
Following Jackson's death, allegations emerged that the 50-year-old King of Pop had been consuming painkillers, sedatives and anti-depressants.
But Lee said she encountered a man tortured by sleep deprivation and one who expressed opposition to recreational drug use.
"He wasn't looking to get high or feel good and sedated from drugs," she said. "This was a person who was not on drugs. This was a person who was seeking help, desperately, to get some sleep, to get some rest."
Jackson was rehearsing hard for what would have been his big comeback - his "This Is It" tour, a series of performances that would have strained his aging dancer's body. Also, pain had been a part of his life since 1984, when his scalp was severely burned during a Pepsi commercial shoot.
"The Incredible Hulk" star Lou Ferrigno, who'd been working out with Jackson for the past several months, said the performer was focused on health.
"When he was with me, he wasn't different. He wasn't stoned. He wasn't high. He wasn't being aloof or speedy. Never talked about drugs," Ferrigno said. "I've never seen him take drugs. He was always talking about nutrition."
Several months ago, Jackson had begun badgering Lee about Diprivan, also known as Propofol, Lee said. It is an intravenous anesthetic drug widely used in operating rooms to induce unconsciousness. It is generally given through an IV needle in the hand.
In recent months, Lee said, Jackson waved away her warnings about it. "I had an IV and when it hit my vein, I was sleeping. That's what I want," Lee said Jackson told her.
"I said, 'Michael, the only problem with you taking this medication,' - and I had a chill in my body and tears in my eyes three months ago - 'the only problem is you're going to take it and you're not going to wake up'," she recalled.
According to Lee, Jackson said it had been given to him before but he didn't want to discuss the circumstances or identify the doctor involved.
Londell McMillan, attorney for Katherine and Joe Jackson, talked about Lee's disclosures last Tuesday on CNN. "It's a hearsay comment. It would be inadmissible anywhere in a court of law," he said.
"I also wonder why anyone would make a comment about something that they don't have much knowledge about. They didn't see the drug administered. It's again because of the Michael Jackson factor."
Lee said he drew his own distinctions about drugs versus prescription medicine. "He said, 'No, my doctor said it's safe. It works quick and it's safe as long as somebody's here to monitor me and wake me up. It's going be OK'," Lee said.
Cherilyn Lee, a registered nurse whose specialty includes nutritional counseling, said this week that she repeatedly rejected his demands for the drug, Diprivan, which is given intravenously.
But a frantic phone call she received from Jackson four days before his death made her fear that he somehow obtained Diprivan or another drug to induce sleep, Lee said.
While in Florida on June 21, Lee was contacted by a member of Jackson's staff. "He called and was very frantic and said, 'Michael needs to see you right away.' I said, 'What's wrong?' And I could hear Michael in the background ... 'One side of my body is hot, it's hot, and one side of my body is cold. It's very cold'," Lee said.
"I said, 'Tell him he needs to go to the hospital. I don't know what's going on, but he needs to go to the hospital ... right away.'
"At that point, I knew that somebody had given him something that hit the central nervous system," she said, adding, "He was in trouble Sunday and he was crying out."
Jackson did not go to the hospital. He died June 25 after suffering cardiac arrest, his family said. Autopsies have been conducted, but an official cause of death is not expected for several weeks.
"I don't know what happened there. The only thing I can say is he was adamant about this drug," Lee said.
Following Jackson's death, allegations emerged that the 50-year-old King of Pop had been consuming painkillers, sedatives and anti-depressants.
But Lee said she encountered a man tortured by sleep deprivation and one who expressed opposition to recreational drug use.
"He wasn't looking to get high or feel good and sedated from drugs," she said. "This was a person who was not on drugs. This was a person who was seeking help, desperately, to get some sleep, to get some rest."
Jackson was rehearsing hard for what would have been his big comeback - his "This Is It" tour, a series of performances that would have strained his aging dancer's body. Also, pain had been a part of his life since 1984, when his scalp was severely burned during a Pepsi commercial shoot.
"The Incredible Hulk" star Lou Ferrigno, who'd been working out with Jackson for the past several months, said the performer was focused on health.
"When he was with me, he wasn't different. He wasn't stoned. He wasn't high. He wasn't being aloof or speedy. Never talked about drugs," Ferrigno said. "I've never seen him take drugs. He was always talking about nutrition."
Several months ago, Jackson had begun badgering Lee about Diprivan, also known as Propofol, Lee said. It is an intravenous anesthetic drug widely used in operating rooms to induce unconsciousness. It is generally given through an IV needle in the hand.
In recent months, Lee said, Jackson waved away her warnings about it. "I had an IV and when it hit my vein, I was sleeping. That's what I want," Lee said Jackson told her.
"I said, 'Michael, the only problem with you taking this medication,' - and I had a chill in my body and tears in my eyes three months ago - 'the only problem is you're going to take it and you're not going to wake up'," she recalled.
According to Lee, Jackson said it had been given to him before but he didn't want to discuss the circumstances or identify the doctor involved.
Londell McMillan, attorney for Katherine and Joe Jackson, talked about Lee's disclosures last Tuesday on CNN. "It's a hearsay comment. It would be inadmissible anywhere in a court of law," he said.
"I also wonder why anyone would make a comment about something that they don't have much knowledge about. They didn't see the drug administered. It's again because of the Michael Jackson factor."
Lee said he drew his own distinctions about drugs versus prescription medicine. "He said, 'No, my doctor said it's safe. It works quick and it's safe as long as somebody's here to monitor me and wake me up. It's going be OK'," Lee said.
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