Rolling Stone: "Chris Cornell's Wife Blames Anxiety Medicine for Suicide"

"Chris Cornell's Wife Issues Statement, Blames Anxiety Medicine for Suicide"

 

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/chris-cornells-wife-issues-statement-w483179 

 

Dr. David Juurlink's twitter:

 

https://twitter.com/DavidJuurlink/status/865579799921782784 

Something needs to be done about these meds. This is getting out of control. I am lucky to be alive from the fallout of this shit!

Ativan worked the first couple weeks for me, then created more anxiety, heightened panic and definitely a brand new feeling of self hatred. I was never like that before taking ativan. I am so glad I C/O to Valium and am now tapering off this stuff.

 

This article gave me chills. So sad to know there are so many suffering from this medication. I pray for his family and all those who suffer on this board, off this board and those that suffer in silence.

The moment I heard it was suicide, I suspected benzos were involved. So many lives destroyed. If any good can come of this, it will be the spotlight finally falling on this poisonous drug and the ignorant doctors who prescribe it.

I absolutely agree. Such a young man! Very, very sad.

Oh, I am so sad about this!!! I'm sure Ativan had something to do with it. That's a crap pill beyond a couple of days. He probably didn't know what was happening to him. It could have drained all his creativity or caused incredible anxiety.

 

Thanks for this, Lapis! I was just reading about him yesterday, and he was an amazing man.

I wonder if he got to the point where he started getting that dreaded anxiety between the doses of ativan and didn't know what was happening.

 

Also, this is one of the very rare occasions where even the mainstream media station today actually mentioned the anti-anxiety pill by its name. Usually they just use the term "prescription drug", and nobody ever mentions anything in particular. Good on his wife to speak out

Yes, I agree, Lorazepam!

The moment I heard it was suicide, I suspected benzos were involved. So many lives destroyed. If any good can come of this, it will be the spotlight finally falling on this poisonous drug and the ignorant doctors who prescribe it.

 

Ditto, as did my husband. 

 

I certainly hope this story does not disappear from the mainstream news.  Here is another opportunity for brave journalists to bring focus to the issue.  How long is this going to take? (I keep asking myself)  So much wasted talent, lives and time, including our own.

The article I read said he had took one extra Ativan

 

I was wondering if he was having that horrible interdose w/d and that's why he took one extra

 

His poor wife said they had planned things for Memorial day and wouldn't have committed suicide.

 

 

Incredibly sad, indeed.

 

My fear is that because Chris Cornell is a "rock star" and previous drug addict that the media will turn it into another "addiction" issue, and the real issue will still be muddled, or lost altogether.

Something similar happened with Kurt Cobain, and while there was no doubt that heroin played a major role in his downfall, they've actually found diazepam in his system at the time of death, as well. He was definitely bad and in need of treatment for heroin alone, but in that fateful 1994, he OD'd on alcohol + rohypnol, and was also introduced to klonopin and was also taking diazepam.

 

Again, heroin was the big picture, but there have been stories online how his decline escalated after he started taking benzodiazepines at some point. He was obviously too sick to play that concert in Rome, and it is at that time that he might have been suffering from the effects of klonopin or some other benzodiazepine in addition to his already established problems with heroin.

 

http://ultimateclassicrock.com/kurt-cobain-overdose-coma-rome/

http://www.livenirvana.com/history/calendar94.php

https://kurtcobainsdeath.wordpress.com/2011/10/10/morphine/

 

 

 

Wouldn't be the first person to off themselves from these horrible poisons.  So sad. 

Incredibly sad, indeed.

 

My fear is that because Chris Cornell is a "rock star" and previous drug addict that the media will turn it into another "addiction" issue, and the real issue will still be muddled, or lost altogether.

 

Of course they will. That's why it's hard for our cause to gain any traction even though we have several celebrities who have been seriously adversely affected by them. Stevie Nicks, Eminem, Johnathan Davis and a whoooooole laundry list of celebs who were on benzos when they died of "something else".

"The cat won't get out of the bag" about the horrors of these drugs because nearly every other person on this planet is on the pills.  It's far more than those on opioids.  IMO, it's the best kept secret on the planet, the damage that these drugs do to people and especially the elderly. 

"The cat won't get out of the bag" about the horrors of these drugs because nearly every other person on this planet is on the pills.  It's far more than those on opioids.  IMO, it's the best kept secret on the planet, the damage that these drugs do to people and especially the elderly.

 

You've said it so well. It's a problem that is hiding in a plain sight.

 

This was an interesting article on the subject:

http://uproxx.com/life/ativan-chris-cornell/2/

 

What caught my attention is this tidbit. I've highlighted the part that is a bit concerning in terms of prescribing practices:

 

"According to Priyanka Wali, a San Francisco-based physician we spoke to about overdose risk, it’s very difficult to overdose on Ativan unless it’s been mixed with another CNS depressant. And while there are no clear and fast rules on how many milligrams of Ativan will make up a fatal dose, it’s recommended that users don’t go above 10mg of the drug (spread out over the day) per 24 hours. The initial dose for most people, however, is between 0.5 and 2 mg two to three times a day. Any more and the user runs the risk of respiratory problems (and possible respiratory failure)."

 

That really is way too excessive for an initial dose.

 

The way I came across this Rolling Stone article was on the Twitter account of a doctor/professor/pharmacologist/toxicologist named Dr. David Juurlink. (See link below.) In the past, he has appeared in the media to discuss issues with opioids in Canada. I hope he'll speak up about this issue too.

 

https://twitter.com/DavidJuurlink/status/865579799921782784 

I put up a blog post about this on my website last night and people seem to be finding it.  Hope it helps get the word out.

 

[nobbc]http://www.lindacrew.com/blog.htm[/nobbc]

 

Edit: Deactivated commercial link

 

 

What caught my attention is this tidbit. I've highlighted the part that is a bit concerning in terms of prescribing practices:

 

"According to Priyanka Wali, a San Francisco-based physician we spoke to about overdose risk, it’s very difficult to overdose on Ativan unless it’s been mixed with another CNS depressant. And while there are no clear and fast rules on how many milligrams of Ativan will make up a fatal dose, it’s recommended that users don’t go above 10mg of the drug (spread out over the day) per 24 hours. The initial dose for most people, however, is between 0.5 and 2 mg two to three times a day. Any more and the user runs the risk of respiratory problems (and possible respiratory failure)."

 

That really is way too excessive for an initial dose.

 

I have a feeling that doctors in SF are all blind when it comes to benzos.

What caught my attention is this tidbit. I've highlighted the part that is a bit concerning in terms of prescribing practices:

 

"According to Priyanka Wali, a San Francisco-based physician we spoke to about overdose risk, it’s very difficult to overdose on Ativan unless it’s been mixed with another CNS depressant. And while there are no clear and fast rules on how many milligrams of Ativan will make up a fatal dose, it’s recommended that users don’t go above 10mg of the drug (spread out over the day) per 24 hours. The initial dose for most people, however, is between 0.5 and 2 mg two to three times a day. Any more and the user runs the risk of respiratory problems (and possible respiratory failure)."

 

That really is way too excessive for an initial dose.

 

I have a feeling that doctors in SF are all blind when it comes to benzos. BENZOS ARE THE BAD GUYS WHO NEVER GET CAUGHT.

Another

 

http://www.bostonherald.com/lifestyle/health/2017/05/chris_cornell_s_family_thinks_ativan_may_have_played_role_in_his_suicide

 

Incredibly sad, indeed.

 

My fear is that because Chris Cornell is a "rock star" and previous drug addict that the media will turn it into another "addiction" issue, and the real issue will still be muddled, or lost altogether.

 

Of course they will. That's why it's hard for our cause to gain any traction even though we have several celebrities who have been seriously adversely affected by them. Stevie Nicks, Eminem, Johnathan Davis and a whoooooole laundry list of celebs who were on benzos when they died of "something else".

Waaaay too much money involved for this not to be swept under the rug. His wife will be made to look like a fool. But we will know the truth.

He was a really introspective soul searching for the truth. I always loved the lyrics to this tune

Good to see the story in the Boston Herald.  Too bad an uninformed doctor had to weigh in.  Here it is in ABC News from two days ago:

 

http://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/music/chris-cornell-dead-possible-suicide-was-guiding-force-grunge-music-n761476

 

ssristories.org used the above story on their site.  I've sent the editor the ones you posted Lapis, in case she hadn't seen them.

Sadly, I suspect many "drug-related" suicides  may have been partly, if not exclusively due to lorazepam, and/or related compounds. Full toxicology results are usually quietly released after the fact with regard to famous people. Rarely do I see benzos as a suspected culprit (e.g. whitney, M. Jackson, etc). Furthermore, M.Es are likely not qualified to draw an association between benzo presence and cause of death, since there is no direct physical link to death in almost all cases.

 

Widespread public awareness on the opioid epidemic, with nary a breath on the benzo pandemic.

 

Sad. Just listened to some excellent Chris Cornell/Soundgarden tunes this morning. What a voice!

 

laser