Scott Purdy, 23, claims that a painkiller drug, Pregabalin (also known as Lyrica) turned him homosexual and killed his interest in his former girlfriend and he plans to stay on the drug because he fears he will ‘go back to being straight’ if he stops using it. Appearing in a recent interview on ITV’s This Morning Scott explained the situation and he also told presenters he had previously been bi-curious in his teens but did not enjoy the experience. Scott has been taking the painkiller after a go-karting accident in 2012. He was prescribed the drug after breaking his foot in the accident. He also said being on the drug made him more ‘open and not bothered what people think or say'.

“All I craved was male attention, so I thought it was a bit weird and stopped taking it just in case,” said Scott. “As soon as that happened my sexual attraction towards my ex-girlfriend went back up and I was more intimate and cuddly, and it was normal again. But the pain started building back up and so I started taking Pregabalin again”. He says that he is happy that he is back on the drug and says that the fear of not taking it, will him go back to who he was and doesn’t want that. Scott now hopes to find love with a man on dating sites, said, “Before the accident I would go out, enjoy life and I had quite a few girlfriends.” After the drug, Scott claimed that he started giving less cuddles and attention to his girlfriend.

Scott reiterated he had never had similar feelings before he started using the drug. He said, “I never had any desire for men before this and I never looked upon men like ‘I want you’. It was so out of the blue, especially as I experimented at a younger age and didn’t want it then.” When he declared it openly on Facebook about a week and a half ago, his friends found it bizarre and didn’t see it coming and came across as a great shock.

This Morning’s Dr. Ranj Singh said the drugs could not ‘turn someone gay’ but more likely reduced anxiety in Scott allowing him to come to terms with his sexuality. He affirmed that the drug helped him in express what was already there. The doctor, who is also gay, added drugs can have side effects including increasing or reducing sexual desire. Dr. Singh also recommended Scott to take the medication to ‘maintain’ his sexuality and added he may end up ‘not needing it anymore to be happy’. Scott is unemployed and currently lives with his housemate in Louth, Lincolnshire.

Pregabalin is manufactured by Pfizer – the pharmaceutical giant which also makes Viagra used to treat sexual dysfunction in men. A spokesman for Pfizer said, “When prescribed and administered appropriately as per the approved label, pregabalin is an important and effective treatment option for many people living with chronic neuropathic pain, generalised anxiety disorder and epilepsy.” He also recommended that while taking medicine if one experiences unexpected side effects, you should immediately report these to your healthcare provider.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 19, 2018 11:01 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).