Liam Payne was in possession of a prescription seizure medication before he died dubbed ‘super Valium’ that’s increasingly abused, according to experts.
Argentinian police say they found white powder in Payne’s room as well as tin foil, empty champagne glasses and a smashed TV, after the singer fell to his death in Buenos Aires on Wednesday.
They also found a medicine called clonazepam — a drug which is used to control epilepsy, involuntary muscle spasms and anxiety disorders.
The tablets, sold under the brand-name Klonopin, are extremely addictive and can lead to severe intoxication if combined with alcohol.
Hotel staff told the emergency services about ‘an aggressive man who could be under the influences of drugs or alcohol‘ who was ‘smashing up his room’ minutes before he died.
Liam Payne was in possession of a prescription seizure medication dubbed ‘super Valium’ that’s increasingly abused by young people, according to experts
Research suggests a rising number of people are abusing clonazepam — which is also knows by ‘street names’ K-pins and Super Valium — in order to get high
Argentinian police say they found white powder in Payne’s room as well as tin foil, empty champagne glasses and a smashed TV, after the singer fell to his death in Buenos Aires on Wednesday. They also found a medicine called clonazepam
Hotel staff told the emergency services about ‘an aggressive man who could be under the influences of drugs or alcohol ‘ who was ‘smashing up his room’ minutes before he died
Research suggests a rising number of people are abusing clonazepam — which is also knows by ‘street names’ K-pins and Super Valium — in order to get high.
In the US, the number of people admitted to hospital for clonazepam abuse has nearly doubled since 2004.
And in the UK, addiction centres say clonazepam addicts are a now a ‘regular occurence’.
However the dangers of the drug are well-known — Fleetwood Mac legend Stevie Nicks publicly chronicled her eight-year battle with clonazepam addiction.
She was first prescribed it to help her overcome cocaine addiction and assured it was safe.
Nicks told US Weekly in 2001: ‘Klonopin turned me into a zombie.’
She also described it as a ‘horrible, dangerous drug,’ and said that her eventual 45-day hospital detox from the medication felt like ‘somebody opened up a door and pushed me into hell’.
The dangers of the drug are well-known — Fleetwood Mac legend Stevie Nicks publicly chronicled her eight-year battle with clonazepam addiction. Pictured in 2019 with Harry Styles on her induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Nicks described it as a ‘horrible, dangerous drug,’ and said that her eventual 45-day hospital detox from the medication felt like ‘somebody opened up a door and pushed me into hell’
Girls actress Lena Dunham also struggled with addiction to the clonezapem.
The screenwriter became increasingly dependent on the drug in 2017, which she was prescribed due to the stress she experienced while filming the last series of Girls.
‘Those images of me at the last premiere, skinny and hollow-eyed, that was 100 per cent my appetite and my body just shutting down in response to that,’ Dunham told
The drug is part of a group of addictive anti-anxiety drugs known as benzodiazepines, which also includes alprazolam, also known as Xanax, and diazepam, sometimes sold under the brand name Valium.
The drugs have also been implicated as a factor in the deaths of other stars including Heath Ledger, Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston.
Experts say patients often crush up the tablets and snort them in order to get high.
Girls actress Lena Dunham became dependent on the drug while filming the last series of Girls, a time she described as being like a ’50-car pileup’
‘Those images of me at the last premiere, skinny and hollow-eyed, that was 100 per cent my appetite and my body just shutting down in response to that,’ Dunham said
‘We see regularly people addicted to benzos like clonazepam,’ says Lee Fernandes, a mental health and addiction specialist at the UK Addiction Treatment London Clinic.
‘Often, they start taking it for anxiety and quickly get hooked.
‘I’ve seen patients who got a week’s prescription from their doctor, and immediately became addicted. They ended up buying more on the black market.
‘It’s incredibly difficult to come off, because it triggers these awful withdrawal symptoms.’
Clonazepam is a central nervous system depressant, which means it slows down activity in the brain.
Users often describe a ‘high’ which feel relaxing and sometimes euphoric. However, combining it with alcohol can dangerous.
Research suggests the combination can lead to extreme drowsiness, hospitalisation and even death.
Experts also say that coming off the tablets can lead to extreme anxiety and sleep loss. Some patients even experience physical withdrawal symptoms including headaches, stomach pain, vomiting and tremors.
Clonazepam is sold under brand names including Klonopin and Rivotril — and is known by street names including K-pins and Super Valium
Users often describe a ‘high’ which feel relaxing and sometimes euphoric. However, combining it with alcohol can dangerous
On the social media website Reddit, dozens of people have posted about their struggles with clonazepam addiction.
‘How long do Klonopin withdrawals last?’ wrote one user on a forum dedicated for people who suffer with panic attacks.
‘It’s day six of being off Klonopin and the withdrawal symptoms are kicking my ass,’ they added. ‘I’m dissociating really badly and my anxiety is out of control.’
Another Klonopin user turned to an addiction forum on Reddit for advice, asking: ‘how do I cope with the anxiety and sleeplessness after tapering off?’.
However, others on the website spoke about how good it made them feel.
‘I wish I could take Klonopin every day,’ wrote one person. ‘Clonazepam is amazing, it makes me feel normal,’ wrote another.
In the past, Liam Payne has spoken out on his struggles with alcohol and substance abuse.
Speaking in 2021 on Steven Bartlett’s Diary of an CEO podcast, Liam made a tragic remark about hitting rock bottom
Liam Payne praised Russell Brand for helping him get sober: ‘We went to Alcoholics Anonymous meetings together’ he said
In July 2023, he revealed he had spent 100 days in rehab after hitting ‘rock bottom’ — a phrase he’d previously used two years earlier to describe his mental state during a strikingly frank interview on the Diary of a CEO podcast.
The 31-year-old, who has an seven-year-old son, Bear, with his ex-partner Cheryl Cole, also admitted to being ‘pissed quite a lot of the time’.
He also previously revealed that he suffered from anxiety and agoraphobia – described by the NHS as a fear of being in situations where escape might be difficult.
‘I would never leave the house and I do sometimes suffer with it a bit in the sense that I’ll get days where I just don’t want to leave my house,’ he told Esquire Middle East magazine in 2019.
