About PeopleJam | Ad Network | Company Blog | Interested in joining PeopleJam as a Business Partner?
Copyright 2008 PeopleJam, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of use | Feedback
BlogBLOG DETAIL
Heath Ledger OD'd on meds prescribed by MD's, not street dealers.
Reports recently confirmed that Ledger overdosed on the prescription drug Ambien , antidepressants and pain killers. Ambien is a nonbenzodiazepine as opposed to a benzodiazepine (e.g., Klonipin, Xanax), but is equally dependency forming and abusable. It's meant to be used as a short-term treatment for insomnia for this very reason.
It's easy enough to whip the masses into a hysteria about the horrors of drug addiction, pushers selling illicit substances to kids and lives destroyed, but what about a far more sinister issue? The medical industry and FDA, which, by and large, are in bed with big PHARMA.
When medical doctors prescribe dependency forming medications irresponsibly, they are just as culpable as any thug on the street pushing their wares. In fact, they're worse than street dealers because they're supposed to be learned, trustworthy professionals.
I don't know if Ledger was an addict. He never appeared in the media like Spears and Lohan, as a celeb spiraling out of control. News reports indicate that he'd struggled with insomnia for some time.
Chronic insomnia can lead to secondary depression, irritability and feelings of helplessness and hopelessness. Perhaps Ledger was suffering from depression or simply just wanted to sleep and made a fatal error in judgment. I think the most important questions are who prescribed the Ambien, for how long and did he or she explore non-narcotic treatment options for sleep disorders?
Add To:
If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to our newsletter and we'll keep you updated with fresh new content.
Subscribe to Comments
Subscribe to Comments
comments
It is amazing that we throw street level drug dealers in jails and allow corporate pharmaceutical companies to deal and peddle their drugs to the masses. Someone tell me how Viox can be prescribed, but yet in many places someone goes to jail for a couple grams of pot??
Or how about my new favorite: Restless Leg Syndrome?
Finally something that can stop my restless legs, even though I may have side effects of massive sexual urges, uncontrollable gambling, etc!!!! What is going on?
You are prescribed one medication, then another to reduce the side effects of the first. I have many friends whose back or headache problems have actually gotten worse and graduated to being addicted to pain killers.
Of course there are great doctors out there, and we all have some responsibility to ask the questions before shoveling in the pills, so make sure you do your research before popping the pills.
Remember Doctors PRACTICE medicine, so be careful of that new wonder drug.
Hi Tara,
As someone who has worked very closely with the FDA, including service as an adviser to the Commissioner, I caution everyone from projecting the pharmaceutical industry's ills on a government agency that, in my opinion and experience, does the nation and world more good than evil. To be sure, there are "interdependencies" that often create havoc on how well a bureaucratic agency can effectively guard the public's health. Moreover, there is the so-called "iron triangle" (government, special interest lobbyists, and industry) that is difficult to control, let along break.
This said, let me add to the discussion a seemingly forgotten concept called "personal responsibility." It doesn't take much to realize that there are side effects associated with even the very "best" of remedies (even those that non-narcotic) and that there will be (and should be) consequences that come with our actions. Pointing "blame" to others, including "evil corporations," does little to empower people and actually tends to marginalize their capacity to make thoughtful decisions about how to live THEIR lives. As much as I am a fan of Heath Ledger and grieve his loss, I also feel strongly that he bears personal responsibility for his choices, especially those that led up to his unfortunate fate. Yes, it is a tragedy. At the same time, I can only hope that people learn AND grow from Heath's example. In this way, his life and death will have even greater meaning. Let's celebrate and honor Heath's death by demonstrating that we can make a positive difference in our own lives and in the lives of others.
Alex Pattakos, Ph.D.
Author of Prisoners of Our Thoughts
Center for Meaning
223 N. Guadalupe St., #243
Santa Fe, NM 87501 USA
505.988.5235
alex@prisonersofourthoughts.com
In fact, I strongly encourage EVERYONE to question what their doctors or homeopathic healers prescribe. Even "natural" remedies can have dangerous side effects and interactions. Don't blindly accept substances just because they come from a doctor and have been approved by the FDA doesn't mean they're safe. Many drugs have been approved by the FDA that are dangerous. You read stories all the time about class action lawsuits. And yes, I believe in corporate malfeasance. The pharmaceutical industry is no exception. I personally know MDs who have no idea what they're prescribing. It's whatever the drug sales reps have given them free samples of that month. Ultimately, I'm responsible for what I put into my body, but I ask questions and do my homework. I encourage others to do the same rather than have knee jerk reactions to the "drug epidemic" to which the media panders and society itself has created.
This is a really sad example of drug misuse. I have heard of other examples where people seem to think that if it is over the counter or something they get prescribed from a physician, it is safe. Anyone can go to online "vitamin" shops or regular stores and get all sorts of dangerous pills as well. I wish everyone would take more seriously what they put in their bodies and question why they need it in the first place! After attending a medical college, I have a totally different outlook on pharmaceutical companies and physicians alike. You are right Tara, there are MDs that are not 100% aware, which is one of the sad situations in health care today. And Jason's example is great - you can get help for RLS but you might suddenly have all of these remarkable urges. So as opposed to sitting there with a tingling feeling in one's leg - it is better to be a gambling nymphomaniac?
Hi Tara,
We're in total agreement! Before I close, however, let me refer for a moment to my mentor, the world-renown psychiatrist, Dr. Viktor Frankl (author of Man's Search for Meaning, one of the most important books of modern times). To Dr. Frankl, freedom without responsibilty is an oxymoron. In his own words, "Freedom is not the last word. Freedom is only part of the story and half of the truth. The positive aspect of freedom is responsibleness. That is why I recommend that the Statue of Liberty on the East Coast be supplemented by a Statue of Responsibility on the West Coast." We all want "freedom" yet don't always remember that it comes with responsibility. This notion is critically important, not only in light of Heath Ledger's untimely death but also in light of this being an election year. Let's not forget that, ultimately, we reap what we sow whether we like it or not. We should therefore all do what you say ("ask questions and do our homework"), not only in relation to the influences in our personal lives but also in our "collective" lives.
Alex Pattakos, Ph.D.
Author of Prisoners of Our Thoughts
Center for Meaning
223 N. Guadalupe St., #243
Santa Fe, NM 87501 USA
505.988.5235
alex@prisonersofourthoughts.com
www.prisonersofourthoughts.com
No kidding, Jason. The drug sub-culture have always known how to minimize and maximize drug interactions (e.g., heroin and cocaine, Klonipin and Methadone, etc.) Pharmaceutical companies basically do the same thing nowadays. This is especially rampant with psychiatric medications. You wouldn't believe some of the psychopharm cocktails my former patients were prescribed. They were walking chemistry experiments. . . . On the other hand, our society tends to seek the easy, quick fix that their pills promise. Sometimes I wonder if Pharma designs their drugs to have side effects so that they can sell more drugs, but then that would make me a paranoid conspiracy theorist. I'm not anti-prescription medication. I've seen instances where taking a mood stabilizer or an anti-depressant has dramatically changed an individual's life for the better. I'm just weary of the hypocrisy in the way we villify drug dealers when the government sanctioned dealers are really no better.