During the height of the wrestling’s boom in the 80’s, wrestlers were using drugs to bulk up, to fight pain and generally just to make it through the day. It was seen as some sort of normality, as much as any part of a wrestlers life. The wrestlers felt untouchable; winning championships, getting fans and women. Nothing could take them down. Nothing apart from addiction.
The number of wrestlers deaths that have been cut short due to drug overdoses or effects bought on by drugs is scarily high. A mere Google search can unearth all the suicides, heart attacks and other such diseases. It’s utterly heartbreaking to see talent like Eddie Guerrero and four of the five Von Erich’s cut short due to the allure of drugs. Painkillers to kill the pain of injuries, their strength the relief addictive, steroids to get the desired figure to be put on top and cocaine because who could deny the love of feeling like a King? Wrestlers did it all and many in a lethal cocktail.
You only have to look at The Dynamite Kid to see how bad steroid addiction could be, once he even held a shotgun to his ex wife’s face. Kurt Angle even said on the Stone Cold Podcast – “if you had a prescription, you could get away with it.” wrestlers frequently used this loophole to take drugs that management would be okay with, taking incredibly vast amounts just to function. The gimmick from the ring was a lifestyle many indulged in, partying like mad and sleeping with as many women as possible.
In the ring, they were untouchable wrestling made them God’s, outside the ring was a much darker story. Kept awake by pain, wrestlers would take Soma (a muscle relaxant) in order to sleep, awake and dealing with pain, Oxycodone was the only way for them to cope. Before the death of Eddie Guerrero, there was no stringent wellness policy in place, so any wrestler could get away with pretty much anything. Deaths came thick and fast. Bam Bam Bigelow, Test, Curt Hennig, Crash Holly, Road Warrior Hawk, Luna Vachon, Miss Elizabeth were just some names who died from drug overdose or heart attacks due to prolong drug use.
WWE as a company were involved in a massive steroid trail in the early 90’s with Vince McMahon being tried for purchasing anabolic steroids for wrestlers. Hulk Hogan even testified against Vince, due to the case being riddled with errors and the underwhelming Hogan testimony, Vince was acquitted. There was a drug testing policy put in place, but this was just for show and nothing seen that serious. So with drugs seemingly okay with management, it was easy for stars to become hooked. It was no wonder stars were dying so alarmingly frequently.
It wasn’t just drugs that were a problem. Alcoholism was also a major problem, stars like Jake “The Snake” and Razor Ramon had serious drinking problems that affected their in ring performances and daily lives. It was a grim time for the wrestlers, sure they were beloved but addiction always slunk it’s way into everything they did.
Times have thankfully changed, since a better wellness policy has been introduced. Substances that were one considered a lifeline are now forbidden, the wrestlers look a lot healthier and happier. Wrestlers of today are a lot less likely to die of drug overdoses or drug related problems, it’s a much better time for WWE.
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