OxyContin addiction and its aftermath have devastated the lives of many ordinary Americans who took the drug under their doctor's orders. Before their experience with OxyContin, none of them imagined that taking their prescribed medicine could result in a nightmare of addiction. Here are a few of the personal stories of those who have been affected:

		James Bowen broke his back, both legs, collarbone, three ribs, and left ankle when he was hit by a drunken driver in 1990. Multiple surgeries followed. For years after, Bowen managed his pain with Vicodin and Percocet, and never developed any dependency. Everything changed in 2001 when his family doctor prescribed OxyContin for his pain.
Christopher Czarnocki		Christopher Czarnocki, a high voltage lineman, was injured on the job when a heavy cable smashed into his head. It snapped his neck back and damaged a disk in 2000. "The doctors gave me this drug OxyContin," he said. "They kept saying that I would not get addicted." Today Czarnocki says, "Getting off this was the hardest thing I have ever done."
		Dianne Davidoff, a soon-to-be single mother of two, has lived in an Oxy-fueled haze since 2001. The popular painkiller has scuttled her marriage, turned her days into foggy dreams and pushed her to addiction. "I am addicted to the drug and there is nothing I can do about it," she said. "I can't stop taking it. They said it was a wonder drug; not addictive."
		Michael Finke had an addiction to OxyContin that crippled his business. After two years on Oxy, he was getting verbally abusive with everyone and nasty to his customers. One day he told his wife "this [work] is stupid and I'm going to fix this problem." Moments later, he hung a sign outside his office. It said, "Business Closed. %#@! You All."
Bonna Gibson		Bonna Gibson Today, Bonna has little doubt about OxyContin. "It should be taken off the market," she said. "The public ought to be warned about it. And the patient should have the option of being told how powerful it is, so they can decide if they want to take a chance on wrecking their life. It is not fair to be put on something that can wreck your life."
		Emerson Greeson was once a man who embodied the All-American ideal. He was a star athlete in West Texas, a coach on two all-state high school squads, active in his church, a loving husband and a devoted dad. Then OxyContin blind-sided him and sent him on a six-month journey into the pits of suffering usually reserved for street junkies.
		Chelly Griffith was given OxyContin by her doctor for herniated disk pain. "I was told that OxyContin was approved by the FDA and that it was 'mobility in a bottle,'" Griffith said. "I could hardly move at the time, so I said OK." Under OxyContin, she lost weight, became weak and disoriented, suffered bizarre personality changes — and became addicted.
		Rush Limbaugh describes his ordeal with OxyContin: "I first started taking prescription painkillers some years ago when my doctor prescribed them to treat post-surgical pain following spinal surgery... I am still experiencing that pain... I chose to treat the pain with prescribed medication. This medication turned out to be highly addictive."
		Thomas Lucas saw OxyContin gut his creative spirit, threaten his marriage and lead him to addiction. "I had lost the world and gained Oxy," said Lucas, a former Phi Beta Kappa from Hobart College. Recalling his days at the drug's mercy, he said, "Until I got off it, it was a nightmare. I was in a place I never was before — I was half dead."
Deborah Mobley		Deborah Mobley learned she was pregnant while she was taking OxyContin for a medical condition. Like many other OxyContin victims, Deborah could not afford the high cost of a medically supervised detox program. That left her only one option: to suffer through the vicious torments of "cold turkey" withdrawl — while she was still pregnant.
		John Sachs listened to several physicians, including a pain specialist and his then wife, a nurse. All backed OxyContin. "After hearing this from several doctors, you begin to feel like maybe they are right and you are wrong, so I learn to live with this," he said. "I found myself more and more addicted and not able to function if the meds were out."
		William Stelcher was prescribed OxyContin after multiple surgeries for severe back pain. "The OxyContin was by far the worst medication I had ever taken," he said. Once a general manager with a fitness center, Stelcher saw his weight fall from a robust 250 to 167 pounds. "I got thinner and thinner, the medication was killing me," he said.
Ernesto Williams		Ernesto Williams was a high school track star and a respected community leader. Yet, like so many others that have fall into OxyContin's web, Williams knew very little about the opiate. He just trusted his doctor. "To me it was just a medication prescribed by the doctor. Now I have learned that it is highly addictive," he said. "It's a dangerous drug."