Heath Ledger's Accidental Overdose - Discussion Thread (Was: Breaking News)

[RossInIllinois]

Lets not feel this outcome is good. He still died as a drug abuser. It makes no difference that they were perscribed meds folks.

[moremojo]

I think that that was the intended implication of the word "abuse" in the report--that the drugs were used in an irresponsible way or at least in a way (or to a degree) for which they were not intended. It need not reflect in any way on Heath's character, or diminish the tragedy of his death.

[souxi]

Lets not feel this outcome is good. He still died as a drug abuser. It makes no difference that they were perscribed meds folks.

But it wasn,t intentional Ross. That,s not a very nice thing to say, especially now.

[Lumière]

Lets not feel this outcome is good. He still died as a drug abuser. It makes no difference that they were perscribed meds folks.

I don't see why it is necessary to label it.

To add to this..
My point is, it wouldn't make a difference if he had died of anything other than prescribed meds..
IMO, the point is - there is a family out there who is grieving the loss of a son, father, brother...

I think this is my last word on this.  *sigh*

[mvansand76]

Lets not feel this outcome is good. He still died as a drug abuser. It makes no difference that they were perscribed meds folks.

First of all, nobody here feels the outcome is good. Second, it was an accidental overdose. Thirdly, it makes a huge difference if it's drugs prescribed by a doctor or crack/heroine. That's three objections to your comment that I find highly disturbing.

[louisev]

In light of the sensational gossip of the tabloid sites and news outlets trying to get "proof of Heath's cocaine and/or heroin habits" it is in a way a relief that he was "only" using sleeping pills and pain killers and anti anxiety meds, to many of us, and considering that many of us feel an acute sense of indignation about the implications that he threw his life away irresponsibly as a junkie, and we are taking the small comfort that he did not OD on heroin or coke - because frankly, the tabloids would never let anyone hear the end of it, as in the case of River Phoenix and the speedball.  Some who never even knew the name River Phoenix learned it when that sensational story hit the press, and many of us have been cringing with anxiety about what the autopsy revealed.  By comparison, it is better news than feared, and think that is all any of us are saying.

[chefjudy]

  I, for one, will never believe that Heath did this on purpose nor do I believe he "abused" the meds - let's just
agree that it is an unfortunate situation and all of us lost something, perhaps Heath and Matilda lost the most

[opinionista]

Lets not feel this outcome is good. He still died as a drug abuser. It makes no difference that they were perscribed meds folks.

There are a lot of reports, even statements made by Heath himself, that he suffered from insomnia. If you look at it, all drugs found in his system were downers. So, I think he was just trying to get some sleep, and when nothing worked he took desperate measures. So, let's not judge him. There's a big difference IMO between being a drug abuser and someone trying desperately to sleep. I have suffered from mild insomnia due to stress and it is pretty bad. Fortunately, a valeriana works for me, and even so I have to be careful. I don't even want to think about what is it like to have chronic insomnia like Heath reportedly did.

[Verona]

Well, as someone who also sometimes takes a combination of different medications on any given day, I suppose I should also call myself a "drug abuser." And if I should be found dead tomorrow from a deadly cocktail of, say, Benadryl, Advil, Tylenol PM and anti-seizure drugs because I had allergy problems which led to a headache which led to the inability to sleep, and I had no choice but to take my seizure drugs... well, I guess my family and friends will just have to accept the characterization that I "abused drugs."

My name is Verona, and I am a junkie.

[louisev]

Also, let's not presume to be the coroner here.  Clearly his family was told, based upon their statement, that he was not full of pills, but that the combination of prescriptions had killed him.  And in the case of those "zepam" things (which I found out I am allergic too) we do NOT know how much was too much or how much he took.  And I think it is safe to say that if he had known taking that combination would kill him, he would not have done it.  I have had the misfortune to know several people who have overdosed deliberately on prescription drugs, and in each case they swallowed a bottle of pills, i.e. 25 to 50 pills, and ended up getting their stomach pumped after being dragged to a doctor.  THAT is a deliberate overdose.