R.I.P. Heath Ledger

[eternitygoddess]

I think you need to include this statement that was right before:
"Mr. Heath Ledger died as the result of acute intoxication by the combined effects of oxycodone, hydrocodone, diazepam, temazepam, alprazolam, and doxylamine," the office said in a short statement.

Abuse is a term not only used for overdoing it. Your making it sound like he is grinding pills up and triple dosing. It can mean many different things.

I just don't appreciate the speculation. People can accidentally overdose, which is what this is saying.
Go back to my grapefruit comment! Anything can take one over the edge if combined wrong.

Calm down.....

 

[smartarse]

Daily News:
Federal agents launched a probe into Heath Ledger's death Wednesday after authorities ruled he died of a prescription drug cocktail - including an addictive painkiller called hillbilly heroin.
In all, six meds were found in the "Brokeback Mountain" actor's body, and the DEA wants to know how he got them...

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/us_..._drug_cocktail_accident_killed_heath_l-1.html


sources found in his system:

Oxycodone (OxyContin prescription painkiller, potentially addictive, lethal in overdose, especially in combination with Xanax and Valium.
Hydrocodone (Vicodin prescription painkiller, potentially addictive, lethal in overdose, especially in combination with Xanax and Valium.
Diazepam (Valium prescription anti-anxiety drug, potentially addictive, less likely to be lethal in overdose than painkillers, except when taken in combination with alcohol and other drugs that depress the nervous system.
Alprazolam (Xanax prescription anti-anxiety drug, potentially addictive, less likely to be lethal in overdose than painkillers, except when taken in combination with alcohol and certain drugs.
Temazepam (Restoril prescription sleeping pill, potentially addictive, less likely to be lethal in overdose than painkillers, except when taken in combination with alcohol and certain drugs.
Doxylamine (Unisom over-the-counter antihistamine sometimes usedfor insomnia; overdose unlikelyto be lethal.
Source: Dr. Vatsal Thakkar,NYU School of Medicine

*NY Daily News

 

[Zposen]

I will bet money that he was not getting all of these medications from one physician. The problem is that it is the patient responsibility to be honest with his or her doctor. All of these drugs are perfectly safe when used properly. However, people start getting into trouble when combining them together. No physician in their right mind would prescribe a patient two benzodiazepines (valium and xanax) because both are from the same class and perform the same action. It is also impossible for a physician to prescribe someone both vicodin and it longer acting version oxycontin unless you are a cancer patient. So my best guess is that Heath was getting prescriptions from multiple doctors and no one physician was monitoring him and these drugs combined together depressed his respiratory drive which led to his death.

Yet, the death from respiratory failure is slow and maybe if his housekeeper/masseuse had called the ems instead of MK maybe just maybe he might still be alive to check himself into rehab.

 

[Stamoholic]

Yet, the death from respiratory failure is slow and maybe if his housekeeper/masseuse had called the ems instead of MK maybe just maybe he might still be alive to check himself into rehab.

God that's sad... I don't even wanna think about that.

 

[melfreya]

from imdb.com

Ledger Wake To Be Held On His Favorite Beach
A wake for Heath Ledger will be held at the actor's favorite beach on Saturday. His parents Kim and Sally Ledger want to follow a somber ceremony with a celebration on Cottesloe Beach in their native Perth, Australia. Childhood friend Paul Mullert tells The Australian Times newspaper Ledger was "the quintessential Australian, who loved nothing more (than) slipping on a pair of boardies and his (flip-flops) and heading to Cottesloe Beach." The star's friends and family members have begun arriving in Perth for the funeral, including ex-fiancee Michelle Williams and their two-year-old daughter Matilda, and model Gemma Ward - his last love interest, reports PageSix.com. Ledger was found dead at his New York apartment on January 22, aged just 28. Toxicology results released on Wednesday revealed he was killed by an accidental overdose of prescribed medication.

 

[shoesexy]

it does not say abuse!

Yes, it does say abuse. It was abuse of prescription medication as determined by the New York City Medical Examiner, who is an MD.

It does not say he was trying to kill himself. He died of an overdose. Long time prescription medication addicts/abusers can usually tolerate massive doses of the favorite "medication". Most, though, titrate multiple drugs searching to recapture the "perfect" high. It is dangerous, and an all too common way addicts/abusers die.

Although it's not much, it may comfort some to know he most probably passed quietly, peacefully in his sleep.

ok girl, as a mod squad member, you have the responsibility to be an example to the young readers here. what you are saying is preaching ignorance and negativity...

Actually, the greater responsibility to the "young readers" lies in telling the truth about one of the eventualities of addiction---jail, institutions, and death. Heath had struggled with sobriety for some time. It was the problem in his lost relationship. No one here is happy about his death, but perhaps someone, somewhere may learn from it and live.

There's no need to attack the moderators...they're people, too.

 

[adorefaith]

Ledger farewelled in emotional service

Saturday Feb 9 19:26 AEDT

Heath Ledger has been farewelled in an emotional and moving hometown memorial service attended by some of Hollywood's biggest stars.

Ledger's former partner actor Michelle Williams, Oscar-winning actress Cate Blanchett, supermodel Gemma Ward, Australian actors Bryan Brown, Michael Caton, Rose Byrne, Shane "Kenny" Jacobsen and Joel Edgerton and footballer Ben Cousins attended amid tight security in Perth.

They joined family, school friends and politicians at the memorial for the 28-year-old actor, who was nominated for an Oscar for his role in Brokeback Mountain.


Before the service, Ledger's father Kim told reporters his family appreciated the outpouring of grief from around the world.

It's a pretty sad time and we're finding it difficult to cope by ourselves, let alone cope with everybody around the world," Mr Ledger said.

"Having said that we do really appreciate the outpouring and the emotional support from all over the world, which, suffice to say, we're luckier than most families, most families that are in our position, our grieving position, don't have that kind of support.

"So thank you all very much.

"That's all I've got to say."

Williams and the actor's family drove in an escorted convoy of four black vehicles to the memorial service at Penrhos College, a private girls' school in the south Perth suburb of Como.

The couple's daughter Matilda was not with her emotional mother, who, clad in a cream dress, was supported into the building by Ledger's older sister Kate.

Mourners, who had to show identification to get into the service, were given a program that read: "This room is filled with the love we all felt for a great friend who will be missed by all of us.

"We want to thank those of you who took care of him and participated in his beautiful life."

One of the mourners said the service was emotional, moving and at times funny as it celebrated Ledger's life.

Blanchett "gave a funny moving eulogy about their times spent together", the woman said.

Kate Ledger spoke beautifully about her childhood with Ledger and how close she felt to her younger brother, she added.

Ledger's parents Kim Ledger and Sally Ledger Bell also paid tribute to their son.

Mourners watched family montages and a montage about Matilda, Ledger's two-year-old daughter with former fiancee Williams.

The service heard some of Ledger's favourite music including the song The Times Are A Changing by Bob Dylan.

His family and Williams left by a side entrance before going to Fremantle Cemetery, where it is understood they held a small, private cremation service while the other mourners gathered for a wake at a popular beachside restaurant in Cottesloe.

The memorial came after two farewells in Los Angeles, one a 1,000-strong, star-studded tribute for Ledger.

Ledger was found dead in his Manhattan apartment on January 22.

The New York Medical Examiner's Office ruled Ledger died from an accidental overdose of prescription medications.

Despite rampant speculation, plans for Ledger's funeral remained a closely-guarded secret - when Kim Ledger spoke to reporters for the first time since he read a statement to the press on the day his son died.

"I know that a lot of you have travelled from all around the world to take footage of as much as you can of our ceremony for Heath," Mr Ledger said.

While arrangements were made for the media to photograph mourners arriving and leaving the ceremony, Mr Ledger said the family wanted to grieve in private.

"I just ask you if you wouldn't mind to respect our privacy," he said.

"The funeral will be very, very private. There will only be 10 people there, immediate family and nobody else."

Those who attended the 90 minute memorial service included directors Phillip Noyce and Neil Armfield. Armfield, who directed Ledger in the Australian film Candy, also spoke at the service.

Actor David Wirrpanda and band members from Eskimo Joe also attended the memorial which began with a didgeridoo performance by local musician Levi Islam.

Williams, a 27-year-old Montana-born actress, met and fell in love with Ledger in 2004 on the set of their career-changing film, Brokeback Mountain.

Ledger and Williams were both nominated for Oscars for their Brokeback Mountain roles, became inseparable and celebrated the birth of Matilda in October 2005.

Their engagement, however, was called off last September.

Ledger's family issued a warning against mixing prescription drugs after US authorities found the actor died of an accidental overdose.

Toxicology tests, released in the US on Wednesday, revealed Ledger had consumed a powerful mix of five prescription painkillers and anti-anxiety pills and an over-the-counter antihistamine.

ninemsn

 

[christina126]

Kind of OT question, but are Heath's parents divorced? They always refer to his mom as Sally Ledger Bell so I didn't know if that was her new marrried surname.

 

[adorefaith]

yes..i'm fairly sure that they are ^

 

[bern70]

Yes they are, and they are both remarried

 

[Working Girl]

The pictures of Michelle and the family at the beach are soo beautiful.

 

[smartarse]

wow post #1307 his sister looks like Michelle.

No doubt Heath was incredibly talented, brilliant and an exceptional actor of his generation. He was a nice, humble, loyal of a man. An absolute doting father for those who have witnessed him with Matilda in NYC and elsewhere. Unfortunately, he did have personal demons he struggled with. I personally think he never meant to end it this way (no suicidal tendencies).

I really feel sorry for his parents, sister, Matilda and Michelle. To put them through this and have to live with it still is heartbreaking.


*I hope it's a lesson to all that even if it's legal substances it doesn't mean it's legal to abuse it if it's not taken for theraputical purposes. If you think replacing illegal substances for legal ones is legally okay... you're dead wrong.

 

[erin_k]

There are pictures from the wake, and they are really beautiful and tastefully done,

Click if you want
http://community.livejournal.com/ohnotheydidnt/20233014.html?view=2402778422#t2402778422

 

[smartarse]

awww. does that mean they threw his ashes in the ocean? he was a surfer boy ....

 

[LoveLetter]

awww. does that mean they threw his ashes in the ocean? he was a surfer boy ....

He is buried in a family plot in Perth.

Erin, thanks for posting the link. Those photos are beautiful. Glad to see Michelle smile and laugh.

 

[melfreya]

the photos are so beautiful and uplifting

 

[melfreya]

..and i think heath would have wanted it this way..everyone smiling and celebrating his life

 

[smith1016]

^I think so too.

The photos of everyone in the water made me cry...but a happy cry, as I know they are celebrating Heath's life.

 

[Cut Copy]

http://www.smh.com.au/news/heath-le...bration-of-life/2008/02/09/1202234225490.html

latest article from SMH.

the wake looks like a really beautiful way to say goodbye.

 

[adorefaith]

so beautiful..