It’s claimed Liam Payne began “smoking heroin” at the height of his drug addiction.
The late One Direction singer, who died in Argentina last year, was open about his battles with drug and alcohol abuse prior to his death but never revealed the specifics of the narcotics he consumed when he was using.
Maya Henry, who was engaged to Liam before their split in 2022, has now opened up about her relationship with the dad-of-one and revealed “initially, it was the drug use and addictions that tore us apart” and claimed her ex “became someone unrecognisable – so different from his sober self” when on drugs.
In a written statement shared with Rolling Stone magazine, Ms Henry claimed: “This was someone I loved very much. Initially, it was the drug use and addictions that tore us apart. Anyone who has been with an addict understands how difficult that is. While I loved him deeply, he did things that hurt me in ways I’ll never fully understand, and he continued to hurt me years after we broke up. On drugs, he became someone unrecognizable — so different from his sober self.”
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Getty Images for Elton John AIDS)
The same publication reports a source close to Ms Henry alleging that by the time Liam and Ms Henry ended their engagement the full extent of the late singer’s drug addiction was discovered by his former fiancée. The source claims: “It was normal for Liam to do cocaine, ketamine, MDMA, and pharmaceutical pills (Xanax and pain pills). Then he got into smoking heroin.”
Liam died aged 31 on October 16 after falling from the third-floor balcony of a hotel in the Argentine capital Buenos Aires. He had been staying in the country with girlfriend at the time Kate Cassidy who flew back to America prior to his death. Five people have been charged in Argentina in connection with the death, three with manslaughter and two with supplying cocaine. The British musician died from “polytrauma”, meaning multiple traumatic injuries.
Speaking on the Diary of a CEO podcast with Steven Bartlett in 2022, Liam said: “I was worried how far my rock bottom was going to be. Where’s rock bottom for me? And you would never have seen it. I’m very good at hiding it. No one would ever have seen it.”
Asked if he ever had “moments of suicidal ideation”, Liam replied: “Yeah. There is definitely some stuff I have never spoken about to do with it. It was really, really severe. There were a few pictures of me on a boat and I was all bloated out and I call it my pills-and-booze face.
!My face was 10 times bigger than it is now. The problem was, the best way to secure us was to lock us in our rooms, and what is in the room? A mini-bar. So I had a party-for-one that seemed to carry on for years. It was wild but the only way you could get frustration out.”
In July 2023, Liam was admitted to rehab for 100 days in a Louisiana clinic after he hit “rock bottom”. During his stay at the centre, he focused on art and poetry and had very little contact with the outside world. Addressing his fans in a video, he admitted: “Turning the phone back on was a little bit scary. I’ve been trying to learn to get to know this new guy…”
He also spoke about the controversial comments he made on YouTube star Logan Paul’s Impaulsive podcast, apologising for how he spoke about his former bandmates. He explained at the time: “I took shots at everybody else… came across as really big headed. I want to apologise for that…that’s definitely not me.”
Liam also revealed that his One Direction pals “really stood by” him during the difficult period of his life. He said: “There is a point when you hit rock bottom and you realise you have got to do something different as whatever you are doing right now isn’t working for you. I was in bad shape up until that point.”
Liam’s funeral, held in November in Buckinghamshire, was attended by Cheryl, the mother of his son Bear, and fellow One Direction stars Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson, along with his family and friends. After his band went on hiatus he launched a successful solo career, releasing his debut solo album LP1 in December 2019, which included the songs Polaroid and Strip That Down featuring Quavo, as well as the track For You with Rita Ora.
*Frank offers confidential advice about drugs and addiction (email frank@talktofrank.com, message 82111 or call 0300 123 6600) or the NHS has information about getting help.
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Source: Mirror
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