Brittany Murphy's death highlights disturbing trend of prescription drug abuse

Now that it has been revealed that there were 10 prescription bottles on Brittany Murphy’s nightstand, one cannot help but speculate if her death, currently listed as from “natural causes,” was an accidental overdose.

For decades, celebrities have succumbed to prescription medication addiction. Among them are Michael Jackson, Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, Keith Moon, Heath Ledger, Anna Nicole Smith, DJ AM, Lester Bangs, Steve Clark of Def Leppard, Dorothy Dandridge, Beatles’ manager Brian Epstein, Margaux Hemingway, Dana Plato, Howard Hughes, and Gerald Levert, just to name a few. Though the deaths of some of the people on this list may have also been linked to alcohol, cocaine, morphine, and other drugs, all of their deaths were ruled accidents, caused at least in part by an overdose of prescription drugs. (OK, the jury’s still out on Marilyn Monroe, but let’s give her the benefit of the doubt.) It’s a startling list and it makes one wonder why so many people abuse prescription drugs in the first place. These were people who had fame, and fortune, yet felt the need to seek something else.

This is not the same as famous overdose deaths like Janis Joplin, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Chris Farley, John Belushi, Lenny Bruce, Kurt Cobain, Howie Epstein of Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Pete Farndon and James Honeyman-Scott of the Pretenders, and River Phoenix, again to name a few. All of these celebrities died from overdoses of illegal drugs like heroin, and cocaine. Clearly, there is no need for those drugs to be in your body, no reason to take them other than curiosity or recreation.

Particularly tragic is the case of DJ AM. A drug abuser for much of his youth and young adulthood, and once addicted to crack cocaine, he had been sober for 11 years when he was involved in a plane crash. He was subsequently prescribed painkillers to treat his injuries and medication for post-traumatic stress. It tested the limits of his sobriety and unfortunately, he died of an accidental overdose from a combination of cocaine, and numerous prescription drugs.

Granted, these are celebrities, leading supposedly glamorous lives, and one could argue that the pressure to always be “on,” to be perfect, makes them to turn to prescription drugs and other vices to cope with that challenge. But what about the average, non-famous element of our society that abuses prescription drugs?

Did you know that prescription drugs are the second most commonly abused category of drugs in the U.S.? According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, they rank ahead of cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamines. Only marijuana is more widely abused. Though prescription drugs obviously serve a purpose, their widespread availability and the lethal consequences of combining them with other drugs and/or alcohol, make them a dangerous addiction.

Would it surprise you to know that, according to National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), in 2008, 15.2 million Americans age 12 and older had taken a prescription medicine for non-medical purposes at least once in the year prior to being surveyed? That is not a typo: 15.2 million Americans age 12 and older. Starting young. The most common prescription drugs being abused by middle and high school age kids are opioids (painkillers) like Vicodin and OxyContin. Nearly 10 percent of the 12th graders surveyed had abused Vicodin.

Brittany Murphy had forms of Vicodin and OxyContin in her home, along with a host of other prescription drugs. Again, the coroner has ruled that her cardiac arrest death was from “natural causes,” although that is sure to change when the toxicology reports come back in about six weeks. Regardless of what those reports say, it’s too late to save Brittany Murphy from whatever was troubling her. Or Michael Jackson. Or Heath Ledger, Elvis or Marilyn. But what about the rest of America?

Let’s hear your thoughts.

Why are we so quick to run to the medicine cabinet for every little ailment?

What do you think will be the outcome of our dependence on prescription drugs?

Have you ever tried natural remedies?

Do you think these high-profile accidental deaths will cause people to stop and think, or do you think they will figure, “That won’t happen to me” and continue on their path?

If you, or if someone you know, face the challenge of drug addiction, please don’t hesitate to seek help. Recovery Connection is just one of many resources.