Comments on: Was Heath Ledger Snoring? Or Was It Something Worse?

By: Marilyn

Marilyn — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 02:08:24 +0000

Hello!
At last! A professional who could share the possibility that Ledger may not have been trying to abuse drugs.Thank You! Thank You! This young man got a really raw deal by the media and people who managed his body in the apartment when he was found dead.I think he was dead much sooner than what was reported by the EMTS.I agree with you about shaking someone awake.The maid was fine with going though his room to change a light-bulb,so it would be hard to convince me that she was worried about waking him. I don’t know, but if I saw anyone I knew nude,face down and snoring,I would at least go over and cover them up.Maybe then she could have seen there was a problem?

Millions of people take serious cocktails of drugs daily. It was hard to fathom that he simply died on 6 pills.Note that the Medical Examiner had to do an exstensive autopsy to find out if this was indeed a an overdose.This tells me that upon first lab tests there was not enough in his system to conclude anything -hence the tissue samples later on.

Secondly, nobody has mentioned this young man had been traveling through several time zones in a short amount of time which would definitely cause jet lag.This can alter mood and sleep.Secondly, he was ill with a respiratory infection -this will impair sleep and as we all know illness usually causes body aches.

He also had a lingering back injury. I have no doubts he suffered some depression and anxiety but all of the above can increase and magnify these.

I am saddened that he was unable to see his daughter, but that it is a separate issue and one Miss Williams will carry the burden of the rest of her life.

If this young man was out to seriously harm himself -he would not have played around with just six pills. I am also disgusted with the NYC officials for dragging his body out before the public in the fashion they did. There is a private back entrance to that building which would have worked perfectly well and preserved his dignity. Thank You for sharing your insight. Marilyn

By: Doc Gurley

Doc Gurley — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 14:25:31 +0000

My deepest, heartfelt condolences to you and your family.

By: Susan Over

Susan Over — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 16:58:59 +0000

My Aunt was admitted to the hospital on the evening 7/2/08 with a stroke. She was alert and oriented with only some mild deficits involving her left arm and leg. The next morning she c/o neck pain according to the physician who saw her. He had not been the MD to admit her the night before. He later told me she wasn’t very ” responsive” when he first saw her. So why would he order 1-2 Percocet q4h prn. Hospital staff members I spoke to later confirmed she was alert and even walked to the stretcher to go to an MRI at approx 1010. She had received 2 percocet at about 0900. At 1500 her niece visited her and she was sleeping soundly. At 1615 my Aunt received her 2nd dose of 2 Percocet. I spoke to my Aunt briefly on the phone at 1738 and she was unable to converse without the nurse (who was holding the phone) prodding her to keep awakening her. I spoke to my Mother about 1900 who informed me she had visited my Aunt and was unable to arouse her – the nurse told her she was “sleeping”. I told my mother even if a person is sleeping you should be able to wake the person. I went to see my Aunt at 1940 and she was unresponsive and snoring. She was unarousable to painful stimuli. The nurse told me she was “sleeping”. I asked her to call the doctor – he ordered a stat CT to R/O bleed ( she was on heparin). This is when the nurse informed me my Aunt had received 2 Percocet at 1615. My Aunt very slightly aroused while loading her on the stretcher to got to CT. The nurse did not check my Aunt’s vital signs until she returned from CT at 2130 and did not do an O2 sat. ! The CT was negative for a bleed so the Heparin was restarted. My Aunt remained very lethargic with little oral intake and on 7/5/08 they asked about a code status and were going to do another MRI. The neurologist felt she had extended her stroke. The MRI showed no change from her original MRI done when she was oriented and alert. The neurologist said he was perplexed because with the way her MRI looked she should not have looked as poorly as she did. He mentioned the possibility of a brainstem infarct but it was not visible on the MRI. Her eyes have deviated at times and they have always deviated to the right( toward the infarct). I was told with brainstem infarcts your eyes deviated toward the affected limbs ( left for her). Also, I had called in and spoke with the night shift RN on 7/6/08 at 0500 and 7/7/08 at 0500. Each time she told me, “She slept all night.” On 7/7 I asked if she woke my Aunt to do neuro checks during the night and she said no. I asked how could she tell she was sleeping and not unresponsive? She responded with a cocky attitude, ” I know she was sleeping, she snored all night.” Wow, that’s scary! I apologize for dragging out my Aunt’s saga but she has been doing very poorly and I feel she will die in the near future. She didn’t deserve this. I strongly feel she was oversedated and unable to protect her airway and had hypoxic brain damage. The physicain who ordered the Percocet told me he would D/C the Percocet 7/4/08 and he didn’t. The brilliant night shift nurse gave her a dose at 2100 7/5/08. I guess the point I am trying to make is that a person isn’t necessarily safe from having serious consequences from narcotics and an unprotected airway in a hospital setting. When I complained about the physician who ordered Percocet on a new stroke patient I was informed by the head of the Hospitalists that this MD was just trying to help my Aunt. I will have to send him a Thank You card from my Aunt before she dies.

By: It’s the Wright thing to do | Doc Gurley

It’s the Wright thing to do | Doc Gurley — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 20:49:16 +0000

[...] was the whole tragic Heath Ledger mess – how and why it happened – and what to do to prevent it happening to someone you [...]

By: Eight Practical Tips on How To Prevent A Death Like Heath’s | Doc Gurley

Wed, 06 Feb 2008 23:50:26 +0000

[...] of all their side effects that killed him (for more information, read the prior Doc Gurley post, Was Heath Ledger Snoring?). AP reports that “in a statement released through Ledger’s [...]

By: The Bedtime Chronicles, Vol. 4 « Women’s Health News

The Bedtime Chronicles, Vol. 4 « Women’s Health News — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 03:21:11 +0000

[...] by Rachel on January 29, 2008 Via Emergiblog’s edition of Grand Rounds, I found Doc Gurley’s post on snoring, Heath Ledger, and sleep problems, and it reminded me to tell you of another of my odd sleepytime adventures. Recently, I fell asleep [...]

By: Grand Rounds: Volume 4, No. 19 // Emergiblog

Grand Rounds: Volume 4, No. 19 // Emergiblog — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 04:33:57 +0000

[...] Was Health Ledger Snoring or Was It Something Worse? Doc Gurley gives tips on how to distinguish a snore from an airway problem, and how to help someone you suspect is having breathing issues. [...]