"Every one who went on the Gulf,
unwittingly took part on a massive medical experiment which had
some disastrous side effects. NAPS was not licensed until two
years after the war. Consequently, we were getting an
unlicensed drug to take. Throughout the air and land war,
we were all told by command to take naps tablets. These made
most people very ill.
I returned home form the Gulf on March the 21st
1991. For three months I was okay but by the end of June I began to
notice excessive saliva in my mouth. By the end of August I began to
have trouble with my speech. I went to see the doc and explained my
symptoms but he could find nothing wrong. Over the next few months my
condition continued to deteriorate. The twitching sensation had spread
to both of my arms and speech was becoming very difficult. I was seen
for the first time by a neurologist who told me that my illness was
almost certainly Gulf War Syndrome and on March 22 1993, two years after my return from
the Gulf, the diagnosis was confirmed.
People say I am brave but Sam [wife] is the
brave one. She copes magnificently with everything. This is not an
easy life by any stretch of the imagination but as time goes on I am
getting increasingly worried about what the future holds for Sam and
Hannah [daughter]. I think any father and husband in my situation would
feel the same.
I get annoyed when I hear the press report,
medical experts say that Gulf War Syndrome doesn't exist. They should
qualify that statement by adding that these experts work for the M.O.D..
There is a subtle difference. Surely the most important thing is the
health and welfare of the men and women who put there lives on the line
for their country."
Nigel Thompson,
Naval Petty Officer
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