Whitney And Xanax? Let's Make The Conversation Bigger

Rochester Patch:

By Angela Youngblood, Patch blogger

I get all kinds of fired up when a celebrity dies from an overdose of prescription pills. The media coverage is nuts for a couple weeks. Then it goes dark. Until the next celebrity dies.  

But here's the thing, addiction is the great equalizer. Rich, poor. Fat, thin. Good looking, not so good looking. A celebrity, a nobody. Everyone can be an addict.

Read the whole story: Rochester Patch

Comments

[beachlady7]

03:06 PM on 02/21/2012

Not jumping on the Xanax bandwagon. Scientists worked for years to find the proper med to help a condition usually caused by trauma or abuse. I have witnessed miracles on this drug when used as prescribed. If someone walks around out of control on Xanax they either are abusing or mixing. Ms. Whitney should not be judged, she was trying hard to return to her old self. She was abused enough in life, physically, which leads to mental anguish. Let's leave science to the scientists and leave Xanax or any other medication to the experts.If some abuse, then they need help but leave those for whom this drug works miracles alone. Stop practicing medicine without a license and let her rest in peace, she was abused enough in life.

[susanbsbi]

05:39 PM on 02/16/2012

The Corner's report is not out yet with the cause of death, but every body is putting drugs into her death with out any concrete proof. You are no better than the one who sells the drugs, trying to make a profit off of Whitney

[Ivor Goodbody]

05:31 PM on 02/16/2012

Amen to all that, Angela. I have a daughter of 28 who warns me about the dangers of suntanning while taking another drag on her morning cigarette! The commonest legal drug of all is booze and painkillers and antidepressants are, respectively, the first and third largest prescription categories
in the US (statins and the like are second). Some combination of those seems to have been Whitney's downfall.

Like you, I think this is a subject for all of us. I've blogged my thoughts here: http://ivorgoodbody.com/?page_id=41

The only point where I may take issue is over the value of activism. Folks don't like to be lectured, in my experience, but what may work is gently raising awareness of issues they may not have considered, and setting the example of a COMPLETELY drug-free life oneself. And yes, I'm sorry, that means no over-the-counter meds, no cigarettes, no booze, little or no coffee, no sugar-charged cinnabuns etc. Otherwise, don't we quickly get into just another game of "my drugs are better than yours"?

[slloyd414]

06:09 PM on 02/16/2012

I have to disagree. One will not intentionally nor accidentally overdose and die from cinnabuns or a few extra cups of coffee or a few packs of cigarettes. While all of those have health risks over a period of time, they won't accidentally kill you in a moment of misjudgment.

[Ivor Goodbody]

02:11 AM on 02/17/2012

Of course what you say is true. But my question is this: What weight is your well-meaning advice to pill addicts to "Stop!" going to carry when they look you in the eye and you are, say, a chain-smoking caffeine fiend, or a 250-lb compulsive gambler, and they tell you: "You're just using different drugs to get out of it"? I hear both teenagers and my own 60+yr old friends using that argument all the time. And they're right. But I also see that when they get advice from an ex-addict who's cleaned up, they can't resort to that argument and - sometimes! - they take notice. In fact, the one time Whitney appears to have got a lasting shot at sobriety was when she took advice from a former

[Ivor Goodbody]

02:24 AM on 02/17/2012

Of course what you say is true. But my question is this: what weight will your well-meaning advice to any pill addict to "Stop!" carry, when they look you in the eye and you are, say, a chain-smoking caffeine fiend, or 250-lb compulsive gambler, and they tell you: "You're just using different drugs to get out of it"? They'll be right. And I hear addicts from teenagers to my 60+yr old friends use that argument, or variants of it, all the time. But they can't use it to an ex-addict who has truly cleaned up their act and they will - sometimes! - pay serious respect and attention to advice from such people.

In fact, the one shot Whitney seems to have had at lasting sobriety was when she was advised by an ex-druggie adviser-to-the-stars shortly before her split with Bobby Brown (Sorry, I can't seem to rediscover a news link I saw on that.)

While one in five Americans smoke and one in three is overweight, addicts are not going to stop wondering and/or retorting: "How come you're so concerned about my health, but so unconcerned about yours?