Ufuoma McDermott Has Been Fighting Kidney Disease For 12 Years

Actor Ufuoma McDermott has revealed that she has been battling kidney problems due to years of constant abuse of painkiller drugs unknowingly.

In a chat with Chude Jideonwo, the “Merry Men” actor said she has been struggling with her health for the past twelve years and wishes that “everyone would understand how important health is.”

She also revealed that her “brother was diagnosed late on stage four and he had to go straight into dialysis and had complications. I was diagnosed a lot earlier, so I’ve lived on medication for almost 12 years now.”

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After loosing her brother, she was scared and had to consult a cardiologist to find out if it was genetic, but she was told that it was not genetic but rather a consequence of taking strong painkiller medications.

“When my brother passed away, I ran to my cardiologist. I was scared and my parents were scared; is this genetic?” she narrated.

“We had to trace the kidney disease, and we learned it was from drug abuse.”

McDerrmott said she was exposed to painkillers because she suffered “migraines, headaches, and eyeaches, while growing up and “never wore my glasses because they made me look like a geek.”

“I wouldn’t wear them, and then I’d take painkillers for my migraine.

“I never took ordinary painkillers; I took strong painkillers because I wanted the pain to go away.

“At a point, I had painkillers in my wallet and I could give people.”

She also recalled the doctor saying that she was “exposed to certain behaviours, and my brother was exposed to the same thing, doesn’t mean it’s genetics.”

“I didn’t know I was abusing drugs, and I was first diagnosed with high blood pressure at 26, and I didn’t even know what that was.”