Priscilla Presley Fearful Her Daughter will Succumb to Opioid Addiction

Lisa Marie Presley opens up about her substance use disorder, and though she’s gone to rehab countless times, her mother, Priscilla Presley, fears that she may follow in her father’s blue-suede-shoes. Lisa Marie is no stranger to opioid addiction – with her father and late ex-husband’s passing from prescription painkillers, she is falling into the same path. Priscilla, Lisa’s concerned mother, voices that she will do everything in her power to help her daughter as she deals with her financial struggles and the divorce from her fourth husband.

Earlier this year, Lisa Marie Presley courageously shared her addiction to pain medication and cocaine in the forward of Harry Nelson’s book The United States of Opioids: A Prescription for Liberating a Nation in Pain. Lisa Marie began her message with “grateful to be alive today,” as she discussed her journey with addiction. She was first introduced to pain medication after the birth of her twin daughters, Finley and Harper, even though it was a short-term prescription, it was enough to make her addicted. As she fell deeper into her addiction a few years later, while she was in court, Lisa Marie reported that she was “abusing cocaine terribly” along with opioid painkillers and alcohol.

In the foreword, she describes her addiction journey as “a difficult path to overcome this dependence and to put my life back together. Even in recent years, I have seen too many people I loved struggle with addiction and died tragically from this epidemic. It is time for us to say goodbye to shame about addiction. We have to stop blaming and judging ourselves and the people around us; that starts with sharing our stories.”

Her father, the King of Rock and Roll – Elvis Presley, died from a heart attack prompted by drug use. He initially took prescription pain pills after being on tour and following a routine schedule. He said that he needed some pills for energy and some to help him sleep at night. However, the prescription pills he received did not serve the purpose he intended. Geneticists are finding that there are “addictive genes” in the DNA that can be passed down to children, and environmental conditions will trigger a dependence on substances. Priscilla’s suspicions of her daughter falling into the same path are valid; in response, she is going to try everything in her power to not lose another love in her life. Lisa Marie is working vigorously to be a better mother for her children and to stay sober and clean. She admitted that she couldn’t keep count of how many times she’s been in rehab, but that this was the last time. She is currently maintaining her sobriety, and claims “[I’m] trying to put my life back together.”