Ifeoma Ononye 
Hauwa ‘Jaruma‘ Muhammad, the self-proclaimed sex therapist, has spoken about her battle with substance abuse. In 2023, there were speculations that the entrepreneur was under rehabilitation after a video of her looking distressed went viral. Tosin Silverdam, the blogger, had claimed Jaruma was rehabilitated in Abuja for substance abuse. But speaking in an X space organised by NDLEA on Friday, Jaruma revealed that she started to abuse drugs when she came to the limelight. The sex therapist said a close friend invited her for a hang-out and tried convincing her to take marijuana but she refused.
“I once made a video on YouTube discussing something. It was just a plan; I didn’t know the video would go viral and turn me into the Jaruma everyone knows,” she said. “I was trying to get a job and earn a regular income. Being in the spotlight, I made some mistakes. I never got involved in drugs during my secondary school and university days because I was my mother’s only child. One day, a friend who I knew was into drugs (marijuana) invited me to hang out. We were chilling together, and she offered me the marijuana, but I refused, saying I was okay. “She then asked me how I relax since I don’t drink or smoke, mentioning that every celebrity has a way to relieve stress. I told her I can’t do drugs or drink because I’m Muslim. A few days later, I saw them with a balloon, and I wondered what on earth they were doing with it. I had no idea what it was.
She said, ‘Let me show you.’ If I had known what the balloon (hard drug) was, I would have refused it, just like I refused the marijuana earlier because I know what weed (cannabis) is, what codeine is, and all that stuff, so when offered, I can say no.” Jaruma revealed that when she eventually yielded to her friend’s request and inhaled the balloon, her brain function ceased and she started to drool. “I was on the floor, and then my friend said that’s the initial effect, but after I do it one, two, three, four times, I’ll get used to it, and it will become normal, and I won’t be drooling anymore,” she said. “This was something I didn’t know. She gave me the balloon, put it in my mouth, and said, ‘Just inhale it,’ and I did. “So, after I regained consciousness, I left because I was so upset. So, I left and never spoke to her again,” Jaruma narrated.
