High-profile Sydney publicist Roxy Jacenko knew she had a problem with the painkiller Nurofen Plus when she was eating them by the handful but chose to ignore the danger.

"You don't need to be a rocket scientist to know that you should consume pain relief according to the directions on the packet but, in this industry I'm in and the pressure that I'm under, I chose to be ignorant," she said.

"I ignored the directions and just took it. Did I realise the damage I was doing to my innards? No, I didn't. But I was fully aware I was taking a lot more than the prescribed dose."

In 2009, the owner of Sweaty Betty PR was taking up to eight tablets at once many times during the day because they helped her relax and manage her workload.

"I was under so much pressure – it was my refuge," she said. "I felt calmer and able to take on so much more, that was until I was doubled over in pain and was carted off to hospital."

One day she was driving her Range Rover down Ocean Avenue in Woollahra to see her parents when the damage caused to her stomach by the ibuprofen in the drug had her in agony.

"I have never, ever experienced pain anything like it," she said.

"I stopped in the middle of the road with all the traffic behind me. It was like my insides had exploded."

While she did not undergo a formal treatment program, she has sworn off the medication and takes responsibility for the damage she caused to herself.

"I was the one who chose to misuse it," she said. "The pharmacy around the corner in Alexandria stopped selling it to me."