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Seabrook House weighs in on the death of actor Heath Ledger in the Courier Post
Letters to the Editor
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Koren Rife
With the opening of The Dark Knight, everyone – from the New York Post, CNN and MSNBC to People, Access Hollywood and MTV – is talking about the late Heath Ledger. His performance is stirring up talk about his scene-stealing presence, his decent from the character of previous Joker performers and even a posthumous award or two.
What everyone is not discussing, though, is Ledger’s problem with prescription drugs.
Some may think it’s in bad taste to drudge up the reason for the actor’s untimely passing while trying to honor his final work, but would the mention of drug abuse really hurt the millions of other addicts out there who don’t know how to get help? Would it be a blemish on Ledger’s memory if telling his tale helped one mother, father, coworker, friend realize that his/her son, coworker, friend is slowly—or quickly—killing him or her self?
We at Seabrook House-- a nationally recognized, private inpatient drug rehab and alcoholism rehab treatment center-- don’t think so.
Prescription drug abuse is a pandemic greatly affecting our country today. According to the 2006 National Survey on Drug Use and Health by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, approximately 49.8 million Americans age 12 or older reported non-medical use of a psychotherapeutic. In the Partnership for a Drug-Free America’s annual tracking study, 1 in 5 teens reported abusing a prescription pain medication, and the same number report abuse of a prescription stimulant or tranquilizer.
http://www.courierpostonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/200807250310/OPINION/807250319
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