My cocaine bender left me BLIND – I had ‘devil eyes' for months and was chased by a man with a bible
Dave Mullen snorted his first "naive" line of the Class A drug on his 17th birthday after being offered it in a pub.
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The former carpet fitter admitted he got a taste for it, sniffing it while drinking on football away days and lads' holidays.
But the occasional dabble quickly spiralled into an addiction by 19, that at his worst saw him sink 15 pints a day and snort thousands of pounds worth of cocaine in seven-day benders.
A shocking photo taken in August 2021 shows Dave with bloodshot eyes after waking up from a coma in ICU following a drug -induced psychosis.
His eyes remained red for months afterwards. And they were so startling that when he went back to work, completing a job in an old people's home, a man chased him with a bible fearing he was the devil.
Despite almost dying, Dave admits he only managed a few months sober before falling back into his dangerous habits for three more years.
It was only after a hospital trip in March 2024, when doctors said he could die, that he decided to quit and begin his path to sobriety.
Dave is now 15 months sober from alcohol and drugs and says he's finally been able to escape the "prison" he'd lived in for 15 years.
The content creator is now sharing his story to warn others about the dangers of substance abuse.
Dave, from Salisbury in Wiltshire, said: "Cocaine goes hand-in-hand with alcohol and at a weak or naive moment as I was young [17], someone offered me a line and I took it.
"I would get some [cocaine] for the weekend football and before long this turned into an addiction; it wasn't for enjoyment anymore.
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"I was going on holiday to Ayia Napa at 17 and it was like The Inbetweeners 'lads on tour' - it was just relentlessly pushed down your throat as soon as you hit an age.
"At 19 I noticed it had become an addiction. It was clear not only to me but my friends and people around that I had a bit of a problem with it."
Things only got worse over the next few years, which Dave puts down to " mental health episodes".
"I would go through periods to escape my mental health and I would just go out for five, six, seven days and I would just be gone," he added.
"I always found a way to put myself in a situation where I could get cocaine for free or very cheap, but the amount I would do would be thousands of pounds worth."
While addicted to cocaine, Dave says he lost friends and struggled to keep a job.
When he ended up in hospital in August 2021, he says people thought this was his turning point as he was so close to death - but it took another hospital trip to be the wake-up call he needed.
Dave, now 34, said: "In my case, those photos I've shared where I ended up in intensive care was not my turning point.
"This was a result of a four or five-day bender. I ended up going into a drug-induced psychosis and I completely lost my mind.
"I was completely blind; I had no vision.
"Six weeks later my eyes were still bloodshot and my eyes were like this for two months."
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Since going sober, Dave has swapped his cocaine addiction for the gym and has set up a TikTok page (@darkdays2brighterways) to document his sobriety journey.
He says he has been left with a lot of mental trauma following his years of drug use but a constant runny nose is his only physical set-back so far.
In the future, he hopes to set up a support group under the name Dark Days 2 Brighter Ways to help others suffering with addiction.
How cocaine destroys your health, face and life
The nose
One of the most recognisable signs of cocaine overuse is a collapsed nose.
The drug is snorted via the nose. Because it is a vasoconstrictor, meaning it narrows the blood vessels, blood flow is reduced.
As the nasal tissue becomes starved of oxygen in the blood, it becomes damaged.
FRANK, a national drug advisory service, says: 'Over time, snorting cocaine damages the cartilage in your nose that separates your nostrils.
'Heavy users can lose this cartilage and end up with one large nostril and a misshapen nose.'
Users may also have difficulty with breathing and damage to nasal passages can also lead to chronic sinus infections.
The mouth and facial deformity
Chronic cocaine use doesn't only affect the nose - it can also harm the roof of the mouth or the hard palate, causing palatal perforation, according to UK Addiction Treatment Centres.
Palatal perforation can lead to severe issues, such as difficulty speaking or voice changes, problems with eating and drinking and higher risk of infections due to the open gap between the nose and mouth.
With the potential loss of nose cartilage, destruction of nasal tissue and sinuses and the mouth, the face may change shape with chronic cocaine use.
Use of the drug can also cause the face to bloat and eyes to become bloodshot.
Mental health
Regular use of cocaine can dampen a person's mood.
It can make them feel depressed, run down, anxious or paranoid, FRANK warns.
It says: 'Cocaine can bring previous mental health problems to the surface too, and if a relative has had mental health problems, there might be an increased risk for you.'
Infections
Constant cocaine use will weaken your body's immune system.
This makes it harder to fight off any infection - or blood-borne diseases that may occur when sharing needles.
Heart
The heart comes under a lot of pressure from cocaine use.
It increases blood clots, which in turn can lead to heart attacks, pulmonary embolisms, strokes and deep vein thrombosis.
'It can also cause inflammation and death of the heart muscle, deterioration of the heart's ability to contract, as well as aortic ruptures, angina and permanently increased blood pressure,' says the Priory Group.
Life-ruining
The impact of cocaine use goes beyond obvious health issues.
It can cause social withdrawal, financial problems, loss of job or reputation and risky behaviour, such as unsafe sex or driving when high.
If you or someone you know is struggling with cocaine use, seeking professional help is crucial to prevent further harm.
Try visiting Talk to FRANK, the NHS website, Narcotics Anonymous or Cocaine Anonymous.
Dave said: "I want to spread awareness as it really did ruin my life.
"[In March 2024], I was told I was going to die again and something about walking out of that hospital alone - I said I didn't want to do this anymore.
"I was trapped in a life that was a prison with no enjoyment.
"I would have walked out of the hospital and gone straight to the pub but I thought to myself, 'I'm not going to have a drink today'.
"Fifteen months later and I'm here. I have a TikTok account and I still haven't looked back.
"I feel completely reborn and I'm now excited for my future.
"I don't think we're educated enough about the dangers of these drugs or alcohol.
"We're told drugs are illegal but in this day and age, no one really pays attention to the law.
"I think my story and the pictures in particular show that it's dangerous.
"I don't want cocaine to be so normalised and acceptable in society."
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