King's Pain: Elvis Presley' MISERABLE' In Final Years Of His Life

Elvis Presley is one of the most iconic personalities in the music industry. Even after passing away 48 years ago, Elvis is still referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "The King."

With that kind of talent, fame, fortune, who would have thought that the music icon spent his final years on Earth in a miserable way?

In a recent interview, Elvis' former private nurse, Letetia Henley Kirk, revealed that the "Heartbreak Hotel" hitmaker had a sorrowful time before he passed away at the age of 42. 

According to Closer Weekly, Kirk met the superstar in 1968 when she treated him at Memphis medical clinic for saddle sores. 

The former nurse said she saw the sadness in Elvis' eyes when his health started to decline in the mid-70s. Since then, she noticed how the singer would look down whenever doctors spoke with him. 

Kirk said that Elvis was impressed with her country ways, so in 1972, he hired her as a private nurse together with her husband to act as security. Soon, Kirk's family found themselves living with the singer in Graceland.

The King's Sorrow

Despite fame and fortune at his fingertips, Kirk said that the music icon was often lonely, especially after he and his wife, Priscilla Presley, went on separate ways in 1973. 

"He was very family-oriented. [He and Priscilla] continued to be very close via the telephone. ... He wanted a companion, but it was difficult for someone of his stature," Kirk revealed. 

In the same year, Elvis found a new love in the arms of 1972 Miss Tennessee Linda Thompson. Kirk said that the King had a very happy relationship with the intelligent and stunning lass. 

But their romance did not last, as the beauty queen eventually left Elvis a year before his death. This was when Kirk witnessed Elvis slowly destroying himself, his career, and everything he built over the years.

Physical Health And Mental Health Decline

The 78-year-old former private nurse said that she tried improving Elvis' health through his diet, but it did not work as he had access to prescription drugs everywhere. 

"His access to medications was overwhelming," Kirk said. 

According to reports, Elvis experienced serious physical and mental health decline in the mid-70s after developing a dangerous dependence on prescription barbiturates.

Kirk claimed that Presley tried to find peace and healing by reading the Bible, but his loneliness overpowered him. 

"He was a very spiritual person. The world thinks he has everything, and yet the happiness isn't there," Kirk said of Elvis Presley. 

"He was miserable because he'd gained so much weight. He knew he was not going to be able to perform like he wanted to."

Besides being Elvis' private nurse, Kirk said he treated the King as a friend and wished she could have done something to make him happier during his final days.

Elvis Presley passed away on August 16, 1977 due to heart attack, which doctors said was brought by his barbiturates addiction. 

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