Two years ago, Rachel Keogh's heroin addiction almost cost her her arms (if you're squeamish don't read this article!)
Originally published: 2 February 2008
Watching proud mum Rachael Keogh nurse her newborn son, it’s hard to believe that less than two years ago she faced having both arms amputated, after a decade of drug abuse destroyed her veins.
Her trauma made the headlines when shocking photos of dead flesh on her needle-ravaged arms were released, and troubled Rachael confessed that even the grim prospect of losing her limbs wasn’t enough to deter her from injecting heroin. She was sure she’d die a drug addict and begged for help.
GALLERY: Check out these celebrity lip fillers SHOCKERS!
Celebrity lip fillers - 2018
1 of 58Charlotte Crosby before lip filler
She's no stranger to both surgical and non-surgical procedures, and it's safe to say that Charlotte Crosby is a fan of lip filler.
2 of 58Charlotte Crosby after lip filler
Just LOOK at how full those lips are.
3 of 58Kylie Jenner before lip filler
This reality TV star has had one of the most famous lip filler transformations on the internet.
4 of 58Kylie Jenner after lip filler
Kylie went from average-sized lips to full-on plump in a matter of months.
5 of 58Heidi Montag before lip filler
A bare-faced Heidi pre-any surgery.
6 of 58Heidi Montag after lip filler
Heidi had numerous surgical and non-surgical procedures that changed her face, including lip filler.
7 of 58Scarlett Moffatt before lip filler
Scarlett rose to fame on the show Gogglebox. When she first came on our TV screens here lips weren't as plump as they are now...
8 of 58Scarlett Moffatt after lip filler
While Scarlett denies having lip filler done, saying that the change is all due to lip liner, but her pout looks mysteriously fuller.
9 of 58Stephanie Pratt before lip filler
Made In Chelsea star Stephanie Pratt is definitely partial to a bit of lip filler...
10 of 58Stephanie Pratt after lip filler
Nowadays her lips stay looking uber plumped, all the time.
11 of 58Jennifer Garner before lip filler
Jennifer Garner has always had rather plump lips and a dazzling smile, but it's assumed that she had filler to help hide her gums.
12 of 58Jennifer Garner after lip filler
As a result, Jennifer's smile has changed slightly over time.
13 of 58Lindsay Lohan before lip filler
This star has dappled in several different facial fillers, including lip fillers.
14 of 58Lindsay Lohan after lip filler
Over the years, Lindsay has been under scrutiny for her transforming face and lip shapes.
15 of 58Ellie Goulding before lip filler
Ellie Goulding's lip transformation has been subtle, but we definitely think she's done some tweaking!
16 of 58Ellie Goulding after lip filler
See?! Much more plumped.
17 of 58Blake Lively before lip filler
Blake's lip transformation has been subtle - but when you look at her now the difference is incredible!
18 of 58Blake Lively after lip filler
We reckon she's had very small amounts of filler in her top lip.
19 of 58Bella Thorne before lip filler
Bella Thorne's always had quite full lips, but we guess she wanted them to be even FULLER...
20 of 58Bella Thorne after lip filler
JUST. LOOK.
21 of 58Kendall Jenner before lip filler
Has Kendall followed in her sister Kylie's footsteps and plumped her pout...?
22 of 58Kendall Jenner after lip filler
We think so!
23 of 58Kim Kardashian before lip filler
Kimmy's lips seem to have gradually grown over time...
24 of 58Kim Kardashian after lip filler
Now, they look more plump and even.
25 of 58Michelle Keegan before lip filler
Even Michelle Keegan has had some very subtle lip changes...
26 of 58Michelle Keegan after lip filler
Her lips have become noticeably more plump over the years.
27 of 58Rumer Willis before lip filler
Bruce Willis and Demi Moore's daughter has had a drastic lip-size change over the past few years.
28 of 58Rumer Willis after lip filler
Both her bottom and top lip and now SUPER full.
29 of 58Ferne McCann before lip filler
TOWIE star Ferne McCann's lips have progressively become more plump.
30 of 58Ferne McCann after lip filler
There's no denying that she looks great, though!
31 of 58Katie Price before lip filler
Katie Price documented her lip filler on Instagram (it was a v. gruesome video, by the way).
32 of 58Katie Price after lip filler
Currently her lips look very plump, thanks to the filler.
33 of 58Tulisa before lip filler
Tulisa's stint with lip fillers was rather short-lived, because she suffered an allergic reaction to the fillers. OUCH.
34 of 58Tulisa after lip filler
She's since had them removed because they left her mouth looking puffy and swollen.
35 of 58Naya Rivera before lip filler
Glee star Naya Rivera is suspected to have had lip filler.
36 of 58Naya Rivera after lip filler
There's no denying how much bigger her lips have become.
37 of 58Marnie Simpson before lip filler
Geordie Shore's Marnie Simpson has never hidden the fact that she's had a little help to plump her lips.
38 of 58Marnie Simpson after lip filler
Over time they've DRASTICALLY changed.
39 of 58Lucy Watson before lip filler
When Lucy broke onto the MIC scene she flaunted natural-looking lips.
40 of 58Lucy Watson after lip filler
Now, they seem to be a lot more plump and pouty.
41 of 58Anna Faris before lip filler
Anna Faris debuted this pout in 2000.
42 of 58Anna Faris after lip filler
The House Bunny actress wrote in her book Unqualified that she has previously tried out lip fillers, but views it as a 'mistake'.
43 of 58Stephanie Davis before lip filler
When a young Steph broke onto the TV scene, she flaunted thinner lips than she has now.
44 of 58Stephanie Davis after lip filler
Her recent Instagram pictures show her with a more plump pout.
45 of 58Lauren Goodger before lip filler
46 of 58Lauren Goodger after lip filler
47 of 58Megan Fox before lip filler
When Megan first broke onto the Hollywood scene she was a fresh-faced beauty.
48 of 58Megan Fox after lip filler
Now, she's still as beautiful as ever, but we suspect that she's done some tweaking to her lips.
49 of 58Megan Barton-Hanson before
There's been lots of talk about Love Island contestant Megan Barton-Hanson's lip fillers. Here's her before she went onto the ITV show.
50 of 58Megan Barton-Hanson after
Megan's transformation has been quite drastic - her lips seem much larger now.
51 of 58Louise Thompson before
Here's Made In Chelsea's Louise Thompson back in 2012, flaunting natural-looking lips.
52 of 58Louise Thompson after
While Louise hasn't admitted to having lip fillers, it's no secret that they look drastically larger. Hmm...
53 of 58Rosie Williams before
Love Island's Rosie Williams seemed to have pretty plump natural lips back in the day...
54 of 58Rosie Williams after
But they definitely looked bigger during her Love Island debut.
55 of 58Laura Anderson before lip filler
Love Island's Laura Anderson has admitted to having lip fillers done at The Consultant Clinic on London's Harley Street.
56 of 58Laura Anderson after lip filler
Post-filler, Laura's lips looked more plump and larger. Whilst in the Harley Street clinic, she also opted to have cheek fillers and liquid rhinoplasty.
57 of 58Christina Aguilera before lip filler
Christina Aguilera first broke onto the scene with a naturally thin top lip, which has gradually got more plump throughout her music career.
58 of 58Christina Aguilera after lip filler
Whilst Xtina has not admitted to having lip fillers, there has been a dramatic difference in the shape and size of her lips over the years.
Incredibly, she’s now turned her life around after quitting drugs and has become a mum for the first time.“I’m over the moon,” says Rachael, 28, who lives in Dublin. “It was my dream to get clean, and I never thought I’d become a mum. I’m still in shock.”
Rachael was raised by her grandparents, as her mum was only 15 when she was born.
Shockingly, her drug use started at the age of just 12, when she began smoking cannabis and drinking with friends. Her schoolwork suffered and she was expelled.
Rachael’s family hoped it was a phase, but she progressed to sniffing aerosols, taking LSD and then on to ecstasy. She smoked heroin for the first time at 13, and became addicted within weeks.
“I did it to fit in,” she says. “But I also liked it because it gave me confidence.”
By the time she was 15, Rachael was injecting heroin daily, and despite her family finding out and putting her into rehab, she never stayed clean for more than a few months. She funded her £120-a-day habit by shoplifting and stealing money.
Her arms were slowly rotting
Two years ago, it became painfully apparent to Rachael how low she’d sunk. One day, she spent 14 hours stabbing at her body as she tried to find a vein to get drugs into her system – but after more than 10 years of abuse, all her veins had collapsed and the flesh in her arms was slowly rotting.
Doctors warned Rachael her arms would have to be amputated if she carried on injecting – but that wasn’t enough to make her quit. “I was too caught up in my addiction to stop,” she says. “I’d inject into my feet, my groin and even my neck out of sheer desperation.”
Rachael eventually made the decision to quit drugs for good in summer 2006, after spending a week in jail for shoplifting. “I felt dead inside,” she recalls. “I was existing, not living. I was riddled with shame and couldn’t look people in the eye. I was tired of living like that and realised I wanted a new life for myself.
In October 2006, Rachael began a six-week detox programme to gradually wean her off drugs.
“I never had a moment where I thought I wouldn’t be able to do it,” she says. “I simply couldn’t afford to be negative.”
'I was existing, not living... I wanted a new life for myself'
After going through painful withdrawal symptoms, Rachael went into rehab for two months to learn how to live a drug-free life.In spring 2007, she was accepted on to an access course at Dublin’s Trinity College to study psychology, philosophy, history and law.
Picking up the pieces
Rachael also began dating musician Patrick McMonman, 31. “Everyone was telling me that I needed to be clean for two years and get my life back on track before even thinking about starting a relationship, but I fell madly in love,” she says.
And – just before she began her studies last September – Rachael discovered that she was expecting a baby. “To be honest, I didn’t even think I’d be able to fall pregnant,” she says. “I was sure I’d wrecked my body with drugs. So when I missed a period and took a pregnancy test, I was amazed to find it was positive.”
In November 2007, the couple moved into a flat together in Dublin city centre, and last month Patrick was at Rachael’s side as she gave birth to their son.
Both Rachael and Patrick were overjoyed. “I just cradled him in my arms and started crying. It still feels unreal,” says the proud new mum. “It’s a miracle I got clean and that I’ve been able to have a perfect little boy.”
By Victoria Raymond