1Sasha said:

udo said:

.

That is utter nonsens.

Why can't I be interested?

Why can I have the info that this guy could have put in his never to be published memoirs?

Why should I believe the hip myth?

Why can't I connect Chaka and Prince's habits?

Why can't I suspect Kirk?

I am not saying I do all these things but just for clarity: there can be much more than most people here accept to be true.

If his hip was a problem then how do high heels cause that? Why don't women have operations for that by the dozen?

If he had an operation, why did he (appararently) still need pain medication?

I'd say: operate some more to fix this stuff. It's not rocket science.

So can we be sure he was not a recreational user of whatever?

(remember the black album story? remember: `the reason why my voice is so clear`?)

Why can't those things have continued in some form into the years upto 2016?

Of course you won't accept this as a possibility but I do.

You have the same questions I have. If the family would release the autopsy report it would stop speculation. He certainly looked awful in the last five months of his life (compared to just a year earlier), and to have people around him say he was fine - were they blind? Or was the salary worth more than telling the truth? I think if he did have a terminal illness, it might ease the pain some people have been feeling; if he wasn't going to live much longer, it might be easier to accept than to have him labeled as anything, including a drug addict.

I'm in complete agreement with this 1Sasha. Don't have to get into the specifics, but just putting it out there if there was a terminal illness present (or whatever generic term) would probably make his fans better able to move along in the healing process. The info given so far isn't ringing true with people and that's the reason for all the controversy imo.

And before the start up, please don't waste your time nor mine telling me how it's none of my business nor anyone elses. Because......whatever I'VE decided is MY business is NONE of your business and I don't need to hear anything else about it. I'm tired of those who have nothing better to do than poke the monkey Enough already.

[Edited 7/12/16 11:06am]

Indeed...

rogifan said:

I work for an insurance company. I just looked at our preferred drug list to see if Fentanyl was on it. It was; listed under musculoskeletal for pain relief. Interestingly Percocet was not on the list anywhere. I'm still convinced P was using these painkillers for chronic joint pain, probably hips, knees and who knows what else.

Sheila E said that Prince was in a lot of pain......

mailaccount63 said:

The more I step away from Judith Hill's facebook page and re read it with fresh eyes, and consider the posts from the angry manager telling Judith to tell the 'whole' truth, the more I am going back to my original feelings when I heard he was found in the elevator. I think he was on drugs for awhile and i think he was very depressed. What are the odds that after overdosing on pain meds he would collapse in the elevator that he would normally be in for what...15 seconds to get down/up one floor? Judith's post reads like a suicide and if it was anyone other than Prince, It would scream suicide to me. The elevator thing has bothered me since day one. So what law enforcement said there was no evidence. If he left a note, don't you think his aids would have removed it? Or maybe he didn't leave one. Cause of death is self administered drug overdose. Period. No one could possibly know if he did it on purpose. I think he may have been too far gone and not willing to go to rehab. Who knows. Either way, it's sad.

rogifan said:

mailaccount63 said:

Sheila E said that Prince was in a lot of pain......

I'm still amazed at what he did on stage considering he was usually in 4" heels. All of those acrobatics had to take a toll on his body.

According to Sheila E, it did take a toll on his body.

I would rather he still be here... and in flats. I think most of us would. I think it is very sad that he didn't understand/know that.

CROWNS1 said:

The more I step away from Judith Hill's facebook page and re read it with fresh eyes, and consider the posts from the angry manager telling Judith to tell the 'whole' truth, the more I am going back to my original feelings when I heard he was found in the elevator. I think he was on drugs for awhile and i think he was very depressed. What are the odds that after overdosing on pain meds he would collapse in the elevator that he would normally be in for what...15 seconds to get down/up one floor? Judith's post reads like a suicide and if it was anyone other than Prince, It would scream suicide to me. The elevator thing has bothered me since day one. So what law enforcement said there was no evidence. If he left a note, don't you think his aids would have removed it? Or maybe he didn't leave one. Cause of death is self administered drug overdose. Period. No one could possibly know if he did it on purpose. I think he may have been too far gone and not willing to go to rehab. Who knows. Either way, it's sad.

CROWNS1, I pretty much agree with you. I believe he was using for many years, perhaps not what was found on him, he may have worked up to it (pretty sure he was ill, along with the pain)....and I truly believe that man was severly depressed and has been battling it for years, we know anxiety was definitely in the mix. He just seemed "lost" for a few years. I believe he was very lonely but unable to connect with a new person because of his (I believe fading) alliance to religious dogma, public image he pushed about that, coupled with growing more mature and now being "legendary" in status (not currently pursued for cutting edge music).

The elevator thing also bothers me and at first it sounded like suicide but I would like to believe it was not intended. There was something happening with him for sure, what?, we may never know. Did he actally KNOW that an addiction specialist was arriving the next morning to help him or was it more of an ambush set-up? It is all so sad and so unnecessary, if all it was pain due to hip issues, there are remedies for that, unfortunately I believe our man was fighting a lot more than that but for some reason was unable or unwilling to seek help, perhaps it was his control freakiness but I think he just didn't want to appear "weak" and in true need.

CROWNS1 said:

The more I step away from Judith Hill's facebook page and re read it with fresh eyes, and consider the posts from the angry manager telling Judith to tell the 'whole' truth, the more I am going back to my original feelings when I heard he was found in the elevator. I think he was on drugs for awhile and i think he was very depressed. What are the odds that after overdosing on pain meds he would collapse in the elevator that he would normally be in for what...15 seconds to get down/up one floor? Judith's post reads like a suicide and if it was anyone other than Prince, It would scream suicide to me. The elevator thing has bothered me since day one. So what law enforcement said there was no evidence. If he left a note, don't you think his aids would have removed it? Or maybe he didn't leave one. Cause of death is self administered drug overdose. Period. No one could possibly know if he did it on purpose. I think he may have been too far gone and not willing to go to rehab. Who knows. Either way, it's sad.

Mumio said:

1Sasha said:

You have the same questions I have. If the family would release the autopsy report it would stop speculation. He certainly looked awful in the last five months of his life (compared to just a year earlier), and to have people around him say he was fine - were they blind? Or was the salary worth more than telling the truth? I think if he did have a terminal illness, it might ease the pain some people have been feeling; if he wasn't going to live much longer, it might be easier to accept than to have him labeled as anything, including a drug addict.

I'm in complete agreement with this 1Sasha. Don't have to get into the specifics, but just putting it out there if there was a terminal illness present (or whatever generic term) would probably make his fans better able to move along in the healing process. The info given so far isn't ringing true with people and that's the reason for all the controversy imo.

And before the start up, please don't waste your time nor mine telling me how it's none of my business nor anyone elses. Because......whatever I'VE decided is MY business is NONE of your business and I don't need to hear anything else about it. I'm tired of those who have nothing better to do than poke the monkey Enough already.

Udo:

I don't think the "hip myth" was a myth. Sheila E confirmed it almost immediately on TV - a day or two or so - after P's passing. High heels cause that hip/foot pain by throwing off posture in a big way. I went in with my cousin (who USED to wear a lot of high heels - not any more) when she talked to her foot doctor and her hip doctor. Women ARE getting these operations by the dozens - the operating room looked like a conveyor belt the day my cousin had her hip replaced. The doctor had 12 ladies (including my cousin) all lined up and ready to go into his operating room that day. It sure opened my eyes that day.

We aren't sure he had an operation. IF he did have an operation, it probably was not for a hip REPLACEMENT < the scar from that is massive. My theory is: IF he did have surgery previously for his hip, it might have just been to "clean up" bone chips, smooth the joint off, look around, etc. This "smaller" surgery probably would not have needed a blood transfusion. (I am stating this on what I saw my cousin go through.)

Just because you have a joint replacement surgery, it does not mean the pain is 100% gone. It usually is better, but it may not be GONE. And sometimes it works - and sometimes it doesn't. It takes about a year to recover from joint replacement surgery - and even then the pain is not gone 100%. If you are active too much too soon and don't let your body heal up completely, the pain can come back. You have to give those tissues LOTS of time to heal. Another reason I don't think P had replacement surgery is because most joint replacement surgeons would have told P that his days of doing the splits and jumping off pianos were OVER. Usually people with joint replacements are given a long list of activities that they cannot do after the surgery and doing the splits and jumping off pianos probably would have been added to that list by a joint replacement surgeon.

(Google it. Google: joint replacement surgery. Call it up on YouTube, and you will see it IS rocket science. Watch the YouTube videos of some joint replacement surgeries and you will see why those doctors get paid as much as they do.)

I think most people are connecting Chaka's and Prince's habits.

No, we don't know if P was/was not a recreational user. But from P's mannerisms and the way he talked about what he believed, I don't think he was a recreational user. I think P did what he needed to do because of the pain. Again, Sheila E confirmed this on TV after P's passing.

I also suspect Kirk. i believe he knows SOMETHING.

I also think there is more to this than we are being told.

I also think if P's family would release the FULL autopsy report it would be better than all of this speculation. I believe they are making a big mistake there, but it is their decision to make. They don't owe it to us.

I think you are allowed to have questions - I think we all are. If someone doesn't want to read these questions, then all they have to do is look away and/or not come on this website and/or thread.

Everyone has a different way of healing - we need to remember and respect that. Please.

mailaccount63 said:

Udo:

I don't think the "hip myth" was a myth. Sheila E confirmed it almost immediately on TV - a day or two or so - after P's passing. High heels cause that hip/foot pain by throwing off posture in a big way. I went in with my cousin (who USED to wear a lot of high heels - not any more) when she talked to her foot doctor and her hip doctor. Women ARE getting these operations by the dozens - the operating room looked like a conveyor belt the day my cousin had her hip replaced. The doctor had 12 ladies (including my cousin) all lined up and ready to go into his operating room that day. It sure opened my eyes that day.

We aren't sure he had an operation. IF he did have an operation, it probably was not for a hip REPLACEMENT < the scar from that is massive. My theory is: IF he did have surgery previously for his hip, it might have just been to "clean up" bone chips, smooth the joint off, look around, etc. This "smaller" surgery probably would not have needed a blood transfusion. (I am stating this on what I saw my cousin go through.)

Just because you have a joint replacement surgery, it does not mean the pain is 100% gone. It usually is better, but it may not be GONE. And sometimes it works - and sometimes it doesn't. It takes about a year to recover from joint replacement surgery - and even then the pain is not gone 100%. If you are active too much too soon and don't let your body heal up completely, the pain can come back. You have to give those tissues LOTS of time to heal. Another reason I don't think P had replacement surgery is because most joint replacement surgeons would have told P that his days of doing the splits and jumping off pianos were OVER. Usually people with joint replacements are given a long list of activities that they cannot do after the surgery and doing the splits and jumping off pianos probably would have been added to that list by a joint replacement surgeon.

(Google it. Google: joint replacement surgery. Call it up on YouTube, and you will see it IS rocket science. Watch the YouTube videos of some joint replacement surgeries and you will see why those doctors get paid as much as they do.)

I think most people are connecting Chaka's and Prince's habits.

No, we don't know if P was/was not a recreational user. But from P's mannerisms and the way he talked about what he believed, I don't think he was a recreational user. I think P did what he needed to do because of the pain. Again, Sheila E confirmed this on TV after P's passing.

I also suspect Kirk. i believe he knows SOMETHING.

I also think there is more to this than we are being told.

I also think if P's family would release the FULL autopsy report it would be better than all of this speculation. I believe they are making a big mistake there, but it is their decision to make. They don't owe it to us.

I think you are allowed to have questions - I think we all are. If someone doesn't want to read these questions, then all they have to do is look away and/or not come on this website and/or thread.

Everyone has a different way of healing - we need to remember and respect that. Please.

Too many people are leaping to this drug addiction angle.

We know that Prince had injuries to hips and knees. This is well documented.

We also know that he had prescriptions to pain medications.

This is not myth.

Now what happened?

Prince missed the Atlanta shows due to flu or withdrawal I am going to say he had the flu.

H1N1 has killed 3 people that I know personally in 2015/2016. If he had the flu and didn't recover the meds that he took to perform that night could have made him expire on the plane. The Narcan wiped his system going into full withdrawal mode which is life threatening. He thought he was OK and he wasn't. The next dose just took him out.

People die from pain meds all the time and they ae not addicted.

muleFunk said:

Too many people are leaping to this drug addiction angle.

We know that Prince had injuries to hips and knees. This is well documented.

We also know that he had prescriptions to pain medications.

This is not myth.

Now what happened?

Prince missed the Atlanta shows due to flu or withdrawal I am going to say he had the flu.

H1N1 has killed 3 people that I know personally in 2015/2016. If he had the flu and didn't recover the meds that he took to perform that night could have made him expire on the plane. The Narcan wiped his system going into full withdrawal mode which is life threatening. He thought he was OK and he wasn't. The next dose just took him out.

People die from pain meds all the time and they ae not addicted.

.

Slow reaction times when finding a body are suspicious.

No prescription (known) for regulated drugs is suspicious.

No known prescription.

Flu is a side effect of whatever made his body weaker.

Narcan was a medication used to save him.

If it was so bad to him that should have been a warning signal.

That signal was not strong enough as he took his stuff again. (pain or not)

He did not count with the sensitivity change after using narcan, he did not consult a doctor (!), he did not consult anyone else.

He just helped himself. He just died.

.

If you believe that people die from pain meds all the time then you must be in the USA.

Dieing from pain meds should not be 'normal' and be very suspicous.

Did they die because they too too much of the pain medication?

Did they die because they had a condition that made them die?

Pain meds are not used as much outside of the USA as they are used inside of the USA.

So please adjust your perspective and context accordingly.

udo said:

muleFunk said:

Too many people are leaping to this drug addiction angle.

We know that Prince had injuries to hips and knees. This is well documented.

We also know that he had prescriptions to pain medications.

This is not myth.

Now what happened?

Prince missed the Atlanta shows due to flu or withdrawal I am going to say he had the flu.

H1N1 has killed 3 people that I know personally in 2015/2016. If he had the flu and didn't recover the meds that he took to perform that night could have made him expire on the plane. The Narcan wiped his system going into full withdrawal mode which is life threatening. He thought he was OK and he wasn't. The next dose just took him out.

People die from pain meds all the time and they ae not addicted.

.

Slow reaction times when finding a body are suspicious.

No prescription (known) for regulated drugs is suspicious.

No known prescription.

Flu is a side effect of whatever made his body weaker.

Narcan was a medication used to save him.

If it was so bad to him that should have been a warning signal.

That signal was not strong enough as he took his stuff again. (pain or not)

He did not count with the sensitivity change after using narcan, he did not consult a doctor (!), he did not consult anyone else.

He just helped himself. He just died.

.

If you believe that people die from pain meds all the time then you must be in the USA.

Dieing from pain meds should not be 'normal' and be very suspicous.

Did they die because they too too much of the pain medication?

Did they die because they had a condition that made them die?

Pain meds are not used as much outside of the USA as they are used inside of the USA.

So please adjust your perspective and context accordingly.

I am in agreement that this should not be a normal phenomenon however this has become very normal in the USA. That's why there is a huge movement to stop the availibility of these drugs.

The mystery here is how did he get access to the meds.

You don't just die 'accidentally' from fentanyl.

fortuneandserendipity said:

You don't just die 'accidentally' from fentanyl.

This.

Nikki8Darling said:

I've read so many pages of discussion and like everyone else I am still in mourning. First an introduction, I've been a member for 13 years. Never posting, only reading from time to time. I am educated on opioid addiction and recognize that he was addicted. No judgement because all addicts have pain. Emotional, mental or physical that they are self medicating. Moving on... I want to discuss the hip issue as I haven't seen this shared yet. I wish I could remember the year but I can't it was somewhere in the mid to late nineties and was my second Prince concert in Cleveland, Ohio. The date before ours is the date where it was reported that he broke his hip, maybe in St. Louis or Detroit.., but we were notified that because of his injury that our concert date would be rescheduled and it was for several weeks not months but somewhere in the 3 to 5 week range. The reports were he was getting his hip replaced. So weeks later he resumed the tour and Cleveland was first up. For those of you that go to most of his concerts this was the concert where he had what seemed like 24 foot woman's legs as a stage prop that he would perform and dance in between them. He opened the show with a song then stopped and apologized, saying that he rarely if ever cancelled or rescheduled concerts but that he would make it up to us. Then he kicked off another high energy song and he jumped onto the grand piano and leapt into the air and landed on the floor into a split and popped right up. Now, I am the fan who literally the second that he begins I'm transported, I'm in Prince world, where my mother, husband, children... no one can take me out of that transport until he leaves the stage. I had floor seats and was standing in row 11. When I saw him jump and land my heart stopped for a second. My 1st thought was: %#$^ are crazy? There's no way you are healed from hip surgery to be flying off of pianos! My 2nd thought was: my God what kind of drugs did they give you to not feel the pain hip surgery and a stage split must cause? So I think he had multiple hip injuries and likely multiple surgeries over the years that he never let heal properly with incredible pain that was likely masked with painkillers. I also think there were likely other illnesses in the last 2 years as was reported in the "na" of other conditions from the examiners report. And as much as we all want to know, it really isn't our business. The family may have even requested that it be kept quiet and we'll have to respect that. [Edited 7/9/16 10:03am] [Edited 7/9/16 10:07am]

I find myself flinching when I see video of him doing the splits or jumping off the piano or speakers now. Love how you described being in the 11th row and being transported to Prince world. Had those seats, stood in them and never sat down. Prince world was a very nice place.

udo said:

fortuneandserendipity said:

udo said:

RachB65 said:

fortuneandserendipity said:

You don't just die 'accidentally' from fentanyl.

From what i have read u can indeed die accidentally from fentanyl in very small amounts if combined with another drug(s). And the cause of death would be attributed to the fentanyl alone because without it there wouldnt have been an overdose... Besides that, there are many people who have died not knowing they were taking fentanyl because its been cut into and/or sold as heroin as well as made into pill form sold as Percosets..In fact this is something that has been recently plaguing Minnesota...These would qualify as accidental deaths...Also, after withdrawing from opiates and then taking even a small dose of Fentanyl can cause an OD..This too can b described as accidental if the intent was not suicide. Your post was a bit uninformed...

.

I beg to differ a bit.

Especially when one would have survived an OD and when one would have received treatment for that (narcowhatever), people (doctors!) would have explained to them (the patient) what has happened, wnat they (the patient) should do and what they (the patient) absolutely cannot do.

With a person like Prince who has a sort-of-P.A. called Kirk that is two minds carrying around that information.

At such a time the legitimacy of the `medication` that caused the OD would have been questioned by sane people.

.

The point that you bring in (fentanyl cut into heroin etc) makes the case for 'recreational' accident stronger. This implies that the 'medication' did not come via regulated channels.

RachB65 said:

Please show me a link from a reputable source about a slow reaction time after finding Prince. From the reports ive read when his assistants found him they were loudly distraught and Dr Kornfeld's son immediately called 911

.

Here is one data point: http://www.co.carver.mn.u...nt?id=7349

The dispatch time is the 911 call time.

The audio is available.

The person calling was not the regular PP personnel.

They would have known the address of PP. (hell, even I know it)

They would have come in before 09:43.

udo said:

RachB65 said:

Please show me a link from a reputable source about a slow reaction time after finding Prince. From the reports ive read when his assistants found him they were loudly distraught and Dr Kornfeld's son immediately called 911

.

Here is one data point: http://www.co.carver.mn.u...nt?id=7349

The dispatch time is the 911 call time.

The audio is available.

The person calling was not the regular PP personnel.

They would have known the address of PP. (hell, even I know it)

They would have come in before 09:43.

Yes the person who called 911 was Andrew Kornfield, the son of Dr Kornfield. Keep up.

udo said:

RachB65 said:

fortuneandserendipity said: From what i have read u can indeed die accidentally from fentanyl in very small amounts if combined with another drug(s). And the cause of death would be attributed to the fentanyl alone because without it there wouldnt have been an overdose... Besides that, there are many people who have died not knowing they were taking fentanyl because its been cut into and/or sold as heroin as well as made into pill form sold as Percosets..In fact this is something that has been recently plaguing Minnesota...These would qualify as accidental deaths...Also, after withdrawing from opiates and then taking even a small dose of Fentanyl can cause an OD..This too can b described as accidental if the intent was not suicide. Your post was a bit uninformed...

.

I beg to differ a bit.

Especially when one would have survived an OD and when one would have received treatment for that (narcowhatever), people (doctors!) would have explained to them (the patient) what has happened, wnat they (the patient) should do and what they (the patient) absolutely cannot do.

With a person like Prince who has a sort-of-P.A. called Kirk that is two minds carrying around that information.

At such a time the legitimacy of the `medication` that caused the OD would have been questioned by sane people.

.

The point that you bring in (fentanyl cut into heroin etc) makes the case for 'recreational' accident stronger. This implies that the 'medication' did not come via regulated channels.

Step away from TMZ. If the investigation had all of this then it would be over, but truth it's not which means more is going on, so stop pointing fingers. It's boring.

morningsong said:

Step away from TMZ.

.

?

.

If the investigation had all of this then it would be over,

.

So the theory could be true but nobody is talking and they found no other evidence (fingerprints on medication etc).

udo said:

morningsong said:

Step away from TMZ.

.

?

.

If the investigation had all of this then it would be over,

.

So the theory could be true but nobody is talking and they found no other evidence (fingerprints on medication etc).

If you don't know who TMZ is by now then I can't help you.


My If Kirk or the PA are the main focus then the investigation would be over, they know where Kirk is, they know where the PA is, they've gone through PP and got the computers, files and stuff (and though Prince may have been a genius I'm sure it wasn't in computer coding) so they've had time to read through all material, they've gone through Walgreens computers, they have all of Dr. Michael Todd Schulenberg's medical records on Prince, they know where the doctor is, they have the ME report. All of this has been known to the investigators for months now and yet silence. Why? I don't know and neither do you. But I'm willing to go out on a limb here and say that it's way more than the PAs got Prince the meds. So I'm sure you can feel comfortable enough to stop saying that.

[Edited 7/18/16 15:15pm]

udo said:

muleFunk said:

Too many people are leaping to this drug addiction angle.

We know that Prince had injuries to hips and knees. This is well documented.

We also know that he had prescriptions to pain medications.

This is not myth.

Now what happened?

Prince missed the Atlanta shows due to flu or withdrawal I am going to say he had the flu.

H1N1 has killed 3 people that I know personally in 2015/2016. If he had the flu and didn't recover the meds that he took to perform that night could have made him expire on the plane. The Narcan wiped his system going into full withdrawal mode which is life threatening. He thought he was OK and he wasn't. The next dose just took him out.

People die from pain meds all the time and they ae not addicted.

.

Slow reaction times when finding a body are suspicious.

No prescription (known) for regulated drugs is suspicious.

No known prescription.

Flu is a side effect of whatever made his body weaker.

Narcan was a medication used to save him.

If it was so bad to him that should have been a warning signal.

That signal was not strong enough as he took his stuff again. (pain or not)

He did not count with the sensitivity change after using narcan, he did not consult a doctor (!), he did not consult anyone else.

He just helped himself. He just died.

.

If you believe that people die from pain meds all the time then you must be in the USA.

Dieing from pain meds should not be 'normal' and be very suspicous.

Did they die because they too too much of the pain medication?

Did they die because they had a condition that made them die?

Pain meds are not used as much outside of the USA as they are used inside of the USA.

So please adjust your perspective and context accordingly.

I've had a hard time finding this information, but I wonder what Prince's specific beliefs were regarding medical care. I know about the JW and blood transfusions. What I'm more curious about is if anyone knows what the extent of his beliefs were regarding how much God could cure illness versus how much medical intervention Prince believed was acceptable. I also wonder how much his desire to stay private may have hindered him from seeking help because he didn't want that kind of publicity. I also wonder if he viewed addiction as a disease or if he felt it was a character flaw type of issue which might make him feel that there was "something wrong with him." Thoughts?

206Michelle said:

udo said:

.

Slow reaction times when finding a body are suspicious.

No prescription (known) for regulated drugs is suspicious.

No known prescription.

Flu is a side effect of whatever made his body weaker.

Narcan was a medication used to save him.

If it was so bad to him that should have been a warning signal.

That signal was not strong enough as he took his stuff again. (pain or not)

He did not count with the sensitivity change after using narcan, he did not consult a doctor (!), he did not consult anyone else.

He just helped himself. He just died.

.

If you believe that people die from pain meds all the time then you must be in the USA.

Dieing from pain meds should not be 'normal' and be very suspicous.

Did they die because they too too much of the pain medication?

Did they die because they had a condition that made them die?

Pain meds are not used as much outside of the USA as they are used inside of the USA.

So please adjust your perspective and context accordingly.

I've had a hard time finding this information, but I wonder what Prince's specific beliefs were regarding medical care. I know about the JW and blood transfusions. What I'm more curious about is if anyone knows what the extent of his beliefs were regarding how much God could cure illness versus how much medical intervention Prince believed was acceptable. I also wonder how much his desire to stay private may have hindered him from seeking help because he didn't want that kind of publicity. I also wonder if he viewed addiction as a disease or if he felt it was a character flaw type of issue which might make him feel that there was "something wrong with him." Thoughts?

Don't know Prince's specific beliefs, but from what I've read, pre-JW he wasn't crazy about going to doctors. Looks like he had a pretty good dentist though so, I don't know.