This sleeping pill turned me into a drug addict in my 60s
For years, I lived happily in the USA with my husband and worked in a hospital job which I loved. However, I left it all behind to return to the UK when my father's Alzheimer's worsened. He wasn't receiving good care and, as his only child, I felt solely responsible for his health and comfort. My husband was dealing with his own family issues in the USA so we made the heartbreaking decision to separate. We still loved each other but had to prioritise our caring responsibilities. For two years, I helped to look after my dad before he sadly passed away.
After his death, there wasn't anything left for me in the UK. As much as I wanted to return to the USA, my husband and I had drifted apart and we had decided to divorce. My green card had expired and I never took citizenship. I could've retired, however I decided to keep working because I loved keeping busy and surrounding myself with people. I moved to Staffordshire and began working as an executive assistant in the NHS, which was demanding but very rewarding.
The beginning of my insomnia
My struggles with insomnia began shortly after I found a lump in my breast in 2015. I was fast-tracked through the NHS and diagnosed with breast cancer. As I went through the surgery, radiation, and treatment process, I felt very lonely and some of my colleagues at work became my vital support system. After a brutal round of radiation, they were there to check in and help take my mind away from the horrors of cancer. Yet still, I couldn't share my deepest fears with them or anyone else – I was terrified I was going to die.
My sleep began to worsen and I'd spend the nights walking in endless circles around my bedroom trying to calm my racing thoughts and force myself to be tired. I'd look out the window or sit in the garden trying to distract myself – I probably know more about the night-time habits of wildlife in my area than anyone else.
Knowing you're the only person awake at 3am is a horrible and isolating feeling. Throughout my entire cancer journey, I took just two days off work – after the surgery. On my radiation days, I'd work in the morning then have my treatment in the afternoon. My consultant said I should rest but I was determined to keep working because I desperately needed to socialise so I didn't feel entirely alone.
On a good day, I'd sleep for four hours. But there were many nights where I didn't get a single minute of sleep. It turned me into a different person. I was grumpy and irritable and had zero patience. I tried to warn my colleagues when I was feeling particularly awful because I didn't want to upset anyone. My thoughts were muddled and I didn't have the energy to do anything besides try to work all day and then return home and spend another night forcing my thoughts to settle and eyes to shut – to no avail.
Seeking professional help
After months of suffering, my insomnia was unbearable and it was almost impossible to complete a full day's work. I'd been trying to juggle too many balls and it felt like everything was finally falling apart. I can't tell you how much online advice I sought and the number of over-the-counter pills I tried but nothing helped. Eventually, I decided to seek professional help.
My doctor was young and newly qualified. She was very kind and understanding and prescribed me with Zopiclone – a hypnotic sleeping pill for short-term insomnia treatment. But she didn't really explain what it was, how it worked, or its addictive potential. That night, I took my first 3.75mg dose and the impact was immediate and incredible. I slept properly and peacefully for what felt like the first time in forever. After just one night, I began to feel more myself – a massive weight had been lifted off my shoulders.
Each night, I took the pill around half an hour before I went to sleep and it nearly always worked. For me, it was the perfect drug. I didn't suffer any side effects and when my alarm went off at 5:30 each morning, I felt alive instead of the grogginess and exhaustion I'd become accustomed to. By this point I'd long been given the all clear for my breast cancer and I had a new lease on life.
Zopiclone shouldn't be prescribed for any longer than four weeks and treatment should be as short as possible to avoid dependency, according to the NHS and Nice. Yet I took the drug every night for four years (albeit in a low dose). During that time, life was great and everything felt incredibly easy. Whenever I ran out of Zopiclone, I collected my new prescription from the pharmacy, no questions asked. I no longer spent my nights plagued by anxiety, walking in endless circles around my room, simply desperate to sleep. I had the energy to meet up with friends. I was finally 'normal' again.
Running out of medication
In 2020, I retired and, shortly after, everything came crashing down. One fateful day, I went to the pharmacy to collect my prescription. My usual medication was on the script however the Zopiclone wasn't listed. I spoke to the pharmacist who couldn't offer an explanation and so I called my doctor who (rather bluntly and unsympathetically) explained it had been pulled off the local prescribing list. 'We'll give you one more month of Zopiclone and that's it,' he told me.
Until that point, it had never even occurred to me that I was addicted to this drug. Because it was helping me and I felt my normal happy self once again, I hadn't given it a second thought. But faced with the looming deadline of my final Zopiclone dose, it finally dawned on me that I'd become completely dependent on this pill. I was an addict.
That final month was great but when the Zopiclone finally ran out, it felt like I fell off a cliff. My anxious thoughts and sleepless nights quickly returned and, within two days, I was an absolute zombie – struggling to make it through the day. I called and called the surgery, begging for more Zopiclone, but there was nothing they could do. I was frustrated and desperate – it felt like they happily prescribed me with this drug for four years and created the addiction within me, only to cut me off one day for no reason.
I turned to online forums and social media for answers and spoke to other people suffering from Zopiclone addiction but they all felt just as lost and helpless. During one of my worst and lowest moments, I considered knocking on the door of someone I knew who I knew sold weed to see if that might help to knock me out. Everything I did during that time was really embarrassing and not 'me' at all, but I was desperate to regain the feeling that zopiclone gave me.
The worst period of my life
After that, I began to lose all sense of time. It was the worst period of my life – even harder than my cancer battle. I wandered through the wilderness for nearly a year, feeling completely hopeless and alone. Some nights, I was so exhausted that I'd pass out for a little while but it was never restful and always short-lived.
As my struggles worsened, I turned to food. I remember attending a routine check-up that year and being told I was pre-diabetic. I didn't care about my health or what I looked like any more. I was filling up on sugary snacks to try to numb the pain and desperation.
Before this time, I often met up with two of my closest friends from work for a walk and chat. However, as I went through the withdrawals and my insomnia returned, I didn't want to admit my struggles to them and began to isolate myself. I've always been a social butterfly but I didn't have the energy or motivation to see anyone. I felt entirely alone.
Getting my life back on track
Again, I tried countless methods to help me sleep but nothing worked. However, everything changed in 2022 when I reached out to my doctor friend and she recommended a cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) program called Sleepio. It wasn't offered by the NHS in England at the time (although it was and still is in Scotland) however, in pure desperation, I called up the company and managed to secure free access to the program in exchange for detailed feedback. It's a six-week program delivered by a virtual sleep expert – the Prof – who teaches cognitive and behavioural skills to overcome sleep problems. I can't begin to explain how wonderful it was.
I think it worked so well for me because I really wanted it to. I fully committed to the program and, whilst it didn't cure my insomnia, it gave me the tools to tackle the anxious thoughts that fuelled my sleepless nights. After those initial six weeks, I continued with the it for another four months. Now, I get around six hours of sleep each night and – when I occasionally struggle to calm my racing thoughts – I log on and drift off to sleep listening to the Prof's calming voice.
One of the biggest lessons it's taught me is that if you can't sleep, you need to get up. Don't lie in bed for hours on end, letting your thoughts worsen and your anxieties escalate. Get up and do something – whether it's reading a chapter of a book or putting a clothes wash on. As long as you're not looking at a screen, it should help to calm your stress around not being able to sleep. During those early days, I'll admit I got up seven or eight times throughout the night, desperately trying to distract myself – but it worked.
Another important factor is where you sleep – you need to be in a comfortable and stress-free environment. I moved my bed into a different room and immediately I felt more calm and peaceful. Now, I struggle to step foot into that old room because it brings back the horrifying memories of my sleepless anxiety-ridden nights.
CBT (in-person or online) is recommended by Nice as the first-line treatment for chronic insomnia in the UK, yet GPs are over-prescribing hypnotic and addictive sleeping pills instead because – at present – they have no other choice. Yet in Scotland it is fully funded and available to all on the NHS. How can this disparity be right? In my opinion, they're turning more and more people into addicts by handing these drugs out to so many insomniacs.
My battle with insomnia was debilitating. Those sleepless nights were some of the hardest moments of my life and accepting that I was an addict is heartbreaking. I don't want anyone else to go through that. Whilst I'm not completely cured, I'm no longer anxiety-ridden or sleep-deprived. CBT gave me the tools and power to get my life back on track and the Government and NHS need to do everything they can to help other insomnia sufferers in the same way.
Z-drugs FAQs
Under NHS guidelines, patients with insomnia should be offered cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) as a first line of treatment. However, due to a lack of funding, the therapy is difficult for millions of patients in England to access. As a result, the NHS is overprescribing addictive sleeping pills known as z-drugs.
What are z-drugs?
Z-drugs, including Zopiclone and Zolpidem, are 'short-term sedatives prescribed for insomnia or sleep disruption', explains Dr David Garley, GP and director of The Better Sleep Clinic. 'Whilst they don't actually give you sleep, they have a sedative effect which starts quickly, within 20 to 40 minutes.' He says they're helpful for bouts of short-term insomnia, with an ideal prescription length of three to five days. They can ease the pressure of sleep for people struggling with stress, anxiety or bereavement.
Who is usually offered z-drugs?
Doctors prescribe z-drugs to a range of people suffering with severe insomnia, Dr Garley says. However 'they have to be used with more caution in older patients who can be more susceptible to side effects like falls and confusion'. This is also the case for people with respiratory problems or conditions like sleep apnoea, as it may worsen their breathing. Z-drugs must also be used cautiously for occupational drivers, due to them having a 'hangover effect' which can affect driving performance the next day.
Common side effects of z-drugs?
'Most people just fall asleep,' Dr Garley says, 'although they might feel a bit swimmy or sedated before that happens'. Most of the side effects are associated with the sedation, including feeling sleepy or tired the next day which has the potential to lead to falls or accidents.
However, whilst the benefits of taking z-drugs for a short period of time are well-established, the evidence base wanes for long-term intake. 'They've got a real addiction potential and most GPs prescribe them for longer than the recommended time due to a lack of other resources,' Dr Garley explains. Those who take z-drugs for a long time may need a higher dose as they grow a tolerance and possibly become addicted to the sedatives.
How many people in the UK are taking z-drugs?
Nearly five million prescriptions for z-drugs were issued to almost 770,000 patients in England in 2023-24, according to NHS data.
What are the common alternatives to z-drugs?
Benzodiazepines (such as Diazepam and Lorazepam) are commonly prescribed on the NHS to treat sleeping problems or anxiety. 'They also don't give you sleep, rather they're a sedative,' Dr Garley says. Daridorexant is another drug which has been recently approved by Nice and decreases wakefulness rather than acting as a sedative, which is 'much better'.
The best treatment is CBT for insomnia, known as CBT-I, which is 'talking therapy where you speak with a practitioner about the thoughts and actions influencing your sleep', Dr Garley explains. It has an 80 per cent success rate however isn't widely available, hence why GPs are prescribing pills instead.
As told to Ella Nunn
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The Independent
15 minutes ago
- The Independent
Streeting: We are doing everything we can to minimise patient harm during strike
Wes Streeting has said 'we are doing everything we can to minimise' patient harm as thousands of doctors go on strike over pay. A five-day walkout by resident doctors in England is under way, with members of the British Medical Association (BMA) manning picket lines across the country. The Health Secretary condemned the strike as 'reckless' and said the Government would not allow the BMA to 'hold the country to ransom'. Asked about the risk of patient harm, he told the PA news agency on Friday: 'I'm really proud of the way that NHS leaders and frontline staff have prepared and mobilised to minimise the disruption and minimise the risk of harm to patients. 'We've seen an extraordinary response, including people cancelling their leave, turning up for work, and resident doctors themselves ignoring their union to be there for patients. I'm extremely grateful to all of them. 'What I can't do today is guarantee that there will be no disruption and that there is no risk of harm to patients. 'We are doing everything we can to minimise it, but the risk is there, and that is why the BMA's action is so irresponsible. 'They had a 28.9% pay award from this Government in our first year, there was also an offer to work with them on other things that affect resident doctors – working lives – and that's why I think this is such reckless action. 'This Government will not allow the BMA to hold the country to ransom, and we will continue to make progress on NHS improvement, as we've done in our first year.' Asked about next steps and the continued threat of doctor strikes, given the BMA has a six-month mandate to call more industrial action, Mr Streeting said: 'When the BMA asks, 'what's the difference between a Labour government and a Conservative government?', I would say a 28.9% pay rise and a willingness to work together to improve the working conditions and lives of doctors. 'That is why the public and other NHS staff cannot understand why the BMA have chosen to embark on this totally unnecessary, reckless strike action..' It comes as NHS chief executive Sir Jim Mackey told broadcasters on Friday about his different approach to managing the strike, including keeping as much pre-planned care going as possible rather than just focusing on emergency care. 'So the difference this time is the NHS has put a huge effort in to try and get back on its feet,' he said. 'As everybody's been aware, we've had a really tough period, and you really feel colleagues on the ground, local clinical leaders, clinical operational colleagues etc, really pulling together to try and get the NHS back on its feet. 'And we also learned from the last few rounds of industrial action that harm to patients and disruption to patients was much broader than the original definitions. So we've decided to say it needs to be a broader definition. We can't just focus on that small subset of care. 'Colleagues in the service have tried to keep as much going as humanly possible as well, and the early signs are that that's been achieved so far, but it is early doors. 'In the end, capacity will have to be constrained by the numbers of people we've actually got who do just turn up for work, and what that means in terms of safe provision, because the thing that colleagues won't compromise is safety in the actual delivery. But it does look like people have really heard that. 'They're really pulling together to maximise the range of services possible.' Asked about further strikes, he said: 'It is possible. I would hope not. I would hope after this, we'll be able to get people in a room and resolve the issue. 'But if we are in this with a six month mandate, we could be doing this once a month for the next next six months, but we've got to organise ourselves accordingly.' Asked why he was not willing to bump pay from what the BMA calculates is £18 an hour to £22 per hour, Mr Streeting told broadcasters: 'I think the public can see, and other NHS staff can see the willingness this Government showed from day one coming into office to try and deal with what had been over a decade of failure on behalf of the previous government, working with resident doctors to improve their pay and to improve the NHS. 'That's why resident doctors had a 28.9% pay award, and that's why the disruption they are inflicting on the country is so unnecessary and so irresponsible.' He said patients, particularly those who end up waiting a long time for care due to strikes, 'do come to harm, and however much the BMA try and sugarcoat it, what they are fundamentally doing today is forgetting the three words that should be at the forefront of every doctor's minds every day, which is, 'do no harm'.' On whether strikes are going to become the 'new normal', he added: 'As I've said before, the BMA have had a 28.9% pay award from this Government, and we were willing to go further to help on some of the working conditions that doctors face. 'That offer of joint working, that partnership approach, that hasn't gone away, but it does take two to tango, and I hope that the BMA will reflect very carefully on the disruption they are inflicting on patients, the pressures they're putting on their colleagues, and the circumstances in which they are doing so – a 28.9% pay rise and a government that was willing to work with them. 'Those are not grounds for strike action.' It comes after Sir Keir Starmer made a last-minute appeal to resident doctors, saying the strikes would 'cause real damage'. He added: 'Most people do not support these strikes. They know they will cause real damage… 'These strikes threaten to turn back the clock on progress we have made in rebuilding the NHS over the last year, choking off the recovery.' The BMA has argued that real-terms pay has fallen by around 20% since 2008, and is pushing for full 'pay restoration'. The union took out national newspaper adverts on Friday, saying it wanted to 'make clear that while a newly qualified doctor's assistant is taking home over £24 per hour, a newly qualified doctor with years of medical school experience is on just £18.62 per hour'. BMA council chairman Dr Tom Dolphin told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the union had been expecting more pay for doctors. He said: 'Where we were last year when we started the pay campaign, we were down a third on our pay compared to 2008. 'So you've got last year's pay offer which did indeed move us towards (pay restoration), but Wes Streeting himself said that pay restoration is a journey, not an event, implying that there would be further pay restoration to come, and we were expecting our pay to be restored in full – that's our campaign's goal. 'We got part way there, but then that came to a halt this year – we've only had an offer that brings us up, just to catch up with inflation.' Asked what it would take for doctors to go back to work, he said the BMA needed to see 'a clear, guaranteed pathway' to pay restoration. He added that 'it's very disappointing to see a Labour Government taking such a hard line against trade unions'. Resident doctors are qualified doctors in clinical training. They have completed a medical degree and can have up to nine years of working experience as a hospital doctor, depending on their specialty, or up to five years of working and gaining experience to become a GP.
Daily Mirror
15 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Striking doctors accuse Wes Streeting of a 'slap in the face' of trade unions
Angry doctors on picket lines demand Government increases their pay but Health Secretary Wes Streeting refuses to budge on 'unnecessary, reckless strike action' Thousands of doctors are out on strike today in a bitter pay dispute with the Government. Resident doctors across England are walking out for five days, demanding Labour commits to pay 'restoration', after over a decade of below-inflation deals under previous Tory governments. The British Medical Association has organised main regional picket lines for around 50,00 striking doctors at NHS sites in the North East, North West, Midlands, east of England and across the South. Dr Kelly Johnson told of her anger at Health Secretary Wes Streeting's opposition to the strikes. Speaking outside St Thomas' Hospital in London where she works, she said: "Every union has the right to strike. It feels like a slap in the face to say that we are doing something that is unjust. Just because we're doctors doesn't mean we can't come out and strike and protest for what we think is right." Speaking outside Leeds General Infirmary, paediatrics registrar Cristina Costache said: "Reducing the waiting list is a really good target but you're going to reduce the waiting list if you increase the numbers of posts, if you give better pay so the jobs don't leave for another country." Dr Ben Cowdry, posted on social media site X the crab emoji which has been adopted by a faction of resident doctors to represent not taking a backward step in their industrial dispute. He said: Today's picket at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. £22.67/hr is not an unreasonable ask. Doctors have subsidised the NHS for far too long. Perhaps Wes Streeting needs reminding that the power to stop these strikes lies squarely with the government.' Picket lines are being staged at Manchester Royal Infirmary, Royal Sussex County Hospital, Southampton General Hospital, Leeds General Infirmary, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Hull Royal Infirmary, Bristol Royal Infirmary and Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital. The BMA points to pay erosion since 2008 saying real terms salaries are down 20% since then according to the Retail Price Index measure of inflation. The Government's preferred measure of inflation, the Consumer Price Index, shows average resident doctor salaries down 5% since 2008 but ministers point out they have been increasing in real terms in recent years. The latest deal for 2025/26 consisted of a 4% uplift plus £750 "on a consolidated basis" - working out as an average rise of 5.4%, before inflation. Speaking outside the Bristol Royal Infirmary, Dr Fareed Al-Qusous, 26, said: "But the most recent pay uplift represents a 1% real terms uplift. At that rate it would take roughly 20 years to restore a 21% pay erosion. 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However this covered a period of high inflation following the chaos of the short-lived Liz Truss government. Mr Streeting has insisted the 5.4% they received for 2025/26 is the highest in the public sector and all the Government can afford right now. The Royal College of Nursing is balloting its members over a 3.6% pay award. Mr Streeting said: "I'm really proud of the way that NHS leaders and frontline staff have prepared and mobilised to minimise the disruption and minimise the risk of harm to patients. We've seen an extraordinary response, including people cancelling their leave, turning up for work, and resident doctors themselves ignoring their union to be there for patients. I'm extremely grateful to all of them. "What I can't do today is guarantee that there will be no disruption and that there is no risk of harm to patients. We are doing everything we can to minimise it, but the risk is there, and that is why the BMA's action is so irresponsible. "They had a 28.9% pay award from this Government in our first year, there was also an offer to work with them on other things that affect resident doctors - working lives - and that's why I think this is such reckless action. "This Government will not allow the BMA to hold the country to ransom, and we will continue to make progress on NHS improvement, as we've done in our first year." It comes after NHS England chief executive Sir Jim Mackey told broadcasters about his different approach to managing the strike, including keeping as much pre-planned care going as possible rather than just focusing on emergency care. Asked about next steps and the continued threat of doctor strikes, given the BMA has a six-month mandate to call more industrial action, Mr Streeting said: "When the BMA asks, 'what's the difference between a Labour government and a Conservative government?', I would say a 28.9% pay rise and a willingness to work together to improve the working conditions and lives of doctors. That is why the public and other NHS staff cannot understand why the BMA have chosen to embark on this totally unnecessary, reckless strike action.." It comes as NHS chief executive Sir Jim Mackey told broadcasters on Friday about his different approach to managing the strike, including keeping as much pre-planned care going as possible rather than just focusing on emergency care. Other NHS sites where striking doctors are gathering are the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle, Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham, Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth, John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford and Addenbrooke's hospital in Cambridge. Melissa Ryan, co-chair of the BMA's resident doctor's committee, said she and other medics regularly receive job offers from hospitals Down Under. Ryan, a paediatric trainee working in Nottingham, told the Mirror: ' Australia sends me messages on social media saying 'come and work for us — we'd pay you better, you'd work less hours and the weather is better.' We have had new doctors, coming through, make those choices to leave because it's very stressful in the NHS but also because our pay is just not competitive and it's a global market for doctors.' Ryan, 45, continued: 'The problem is it's the patients who will miss out — we're already short staffed, we can't afford to lose a single more doctor to oversees work. What we need is for the Government to recognise the value of doctors, to reverse our pay erosion, actually come and talk and give us an offer and then I wouldn't need to be out here on strike, I could be back at work.' NHS leaders are urging the public to keep coming forward for care during five-day walkout and to turn up for appointments unless informed it has been cancelled. Charities warn industrial action will inevitably lead to cancellations in treatment and negatively impact patients, particularly those with less survivable cancers like lung, liver, and brain cancer. One person posted on social media site X - formerly Twitter - told how his elderly mum's appointment for today had been postponed He said: 'She's been waiting 18 months in agony and unable to walk. Is it in your code of ethics for her to be lying in pain until the new appt in February? I'd sack the lot of you… I tell you what if you don't like it go and get another job, stop being so cruel to people in desperate need of help, who have no quality of life while waiting for care.' It comes on the day other NHS workers followed resident doctors in rejecting the Government's pay deal, in a move that could lead to strikes further down the line. The GMB union said its thousands of health workers, including ambulance crews, voted by 67% against the 3.6% pay award offered for 2025/26 in England. It has written to Health Secretary Wes Streeting calling for an urgent meeting. Rachel Harrison, GMB national secretary, added: "We await his reply with interest." The GMB represents about 50,000 health workers including 20,000 in the ambulance service.
North Wales Chronicle
20 minutes ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Striking doctors tell of ‘poor pay' and difficult working conditions
Resident doctor Kelly Johnson said Health Secretary Wes Streeting's opposition to the strikes felt like 'a slap in the face'. Speaking outside St Thomas' Hospital in London, where she works, she told the PA news agency: 'Every union has the right to strike. It feels like a slap in the face to say that we are doing something that is unjust. 'Just because we're doctors doesn't mean we can't come out and strike and protest for what we think is right. 'When doctors decide to take strike action it's always portrayed as though we're being selfish, but we're here as a body to help the public day in, day out, to work hours that don't even end sometimes. 'Here we are just trying to get what's right for us so we can do our best to serve the public.' Around 30 doctors and supporters gathered outside Leeds General Infirmary (LGI) on Friday morning, waving placards and cheering as passing cars beeped horns in support. Cristina Costache, who is a paediatrics registrar at LGI and a PhD student, said: 'It's a very difficult decision to make always, because I love my job and that's the reason I went into it. I get depressed if I'm not in work. My heart is always at work. 'But I also care about my colleagues and my profession. 'I'm seeing more and more gaps as registrars. There's always a gap on the paediatric registrar rota. We end up having to cover the job of another paediatric registrar, of even two other paediatric registrars. 'My SHOs (senior house officers) also have gaps, so I sometimes have to cover their job as well as my registrar job. That's not safe and that's not okay. 'The reason that happens is that they're poorly paid. If you're poorly paid, why would you want to come in on your free time when you know you're going to be on nights the next day and then so three or four nights in a row?' Dr Costache said she left Romania due to the poor health infrastructure and lack of investment. She said: 'It's really sad to have seen in the last nine years, since being here, how the NHS is heading that way. Hence, I'm a trade unionist because I feel like I want to tell people, please don't do what has happened there. 'It can be really scary and really bad, and you don't want to be in that place.' Dave Bell, a retired nurse and member of the campaign group Keep Our NHS Public, stood in solidarity with striking doctors outside St Thomas' Hospital. 'Britain's doctors are the backbone of our NHS,' he said. 'If you ask anyone who's been to a hospital, they'll tell you those staff work their socks off.' He called for urgent 'pay restoration', adding: 'We need to value those doctors and restore their pay to what it was 15 years ago.' But he acknowledged the difficulty of strike action within NHS teams. 'I took strike action once when I was a nurse – of course it causes tensions. You're working hard, and if medical staff walk out, it gets even harder for those still in.' Despite this, he said unity is crucial, adding: 'In the long run, people have got to work together – the unions too. It can be overcome.' Some patients at St Thomas' Hospital voiced their support for the doctors. Jo Irwin, 72, who was attending the London hospital for a blood test before surgery for a hernia, said she had 'no hesitation' in backing the walkout. 'I am fully behind the strikes and the public should be as well,' she said. 'Without these doctors I would be dead. They are looking after sick people. I am very angry about it. 'They should get all the money they want and more than (Prime Minister Sir) Keir Starmer and his cronies.' Mohammed Dinee, 42, from Brixton, also backed the industrial action after being admitted recently with back pain. 'Today I had a physiotherapy appointment, it was fine, no complaints,' he said. 'But I got admitted the other day for back pain – you could feel it. It was difficult to get an MRI scan. 'They're strained, being inside St Thomas' you can see it. I fully support them.' Speaking outside the Bristol Royal Infirmary, Dr Fareed Al-Qusous, 26, a year three academic foundation doctor, said resident doctors had 'the most severe pay erosion compared to all the other sectors'. 'The private sector's pay has caught up with 2008 levels, the finance sector has gone up by 4%, whereas doctors' pay has gone down by 21%,' he said. 'We want to be realistic about things, we want to be pragmatic, we don't want it all in one year, we don't want it over two years. 'We want a multi-year pay deal, a guarantee that pay will be restored.'
