When I heard about Heath Ledger's death I was shocked but when I heard about his problems with insomnia, I wasn't completely surprised at the prescriptions he was taking. Being a therapist who works with anxiety disorders, there is something I noticed about Heath years ago that I see in my therapy clients with anxiety disorders.

About the third of the clients I work with have what I describe as a certain extreme tension in their hands. They clench them or flick or hold tightly the thumb to index finger. Bar none, every person I have so far met so far with that particular tension has an anxiety disorder that includes severe bouts of insomnia. Watching Heath's work, I saw that same hand tension. I know, it sounds absurd and I might be very wrong. But after I started looking for it in people, I was amazed at how accurate it was as tell-tale sign of severe anxiety.

As far as the prescriptions go, people who don't have extreme anxiety don't even begin to comprehend how debilitating it is, especially where sleep is concerned (sorry, Amerigo, but you are WRONG on this one). Most people with severe anxiety disorder who have insomnia only sleep maybe 4 hours a night and they can suffer with it for years and years, night after night. It can drive the person crazy because of it and also drive them into deep depression.

I have had clients who will take any drug in the book and in any combination (pain pills, sleeping pills, anti-anxiety pills, whatever) just to relax enough to sleep or to stay asleep. I suspect Heath had been doing some various drug combination for years (as many of people who suffer from it, do!) just to sleep. People don't realize how desperate someone gets not being able to sleep. I also suspect that because of his recent stress in filming and his relationship breakup that his insomnia was exacerbated and so, having had no problem before with the combination of drugs, he added one or two more, never realizing the dire consequences.

What is sad here is that his doctors didn't diagnose him properly and, therefore, did not give him proper treatment. But I have found that people who suffer from severe anxiety and insomnia often have their anxiety, including the insomnia, dismissed out of hand from doctors because of a real lack of empathy this horrible problem. They're basically told to suck it up and that a lack of sleep won't hurt them. The trouble is, lack of sleep does hurt them. Especially, if it goes on day after day, week after week and year after year. But because it is so dismissed, people often give up or shy away from revealing the full extent of the problem to the doctor. But it still hurts. Often, as in this case, badly.

I have had clients coming close to the same end as Heath trying to relax and sleep or calm down. Or they self-medicate with heavy use of drugs and alcohol. Severe anxiety and it's resultant insomnia really is something that needs to recognized and addressed with more open understanding and empathy by other people who do not suffer from it and, more especially, by the medical profession.

I hate to say it, but while I agree that people with insomnia need to check out a sleep regimen, or try alternative methods first, the severe ones I have seen have done everything in the book and more!

And sorry, for many people with severe insomnia, Ambien, even Ambien CR, Restervil, etc. doesn't always cut it. They would laugh to hear you describe it as heavy duty.

The point that I am making is that Anxiety disorders are highly overlooked and disregarded and doctors often - OFTEN! - do treat a patient like an addict if they ask for more or something else. So, the patient ends up going from regular doctor to regular doctor getting several different meds. Most clients at that point I suggest people with these disorders go and see a psychiatrist first and then usually they don't get the runaround. And they get the medication they need the first time. It's usually a mix of an anti-depressant and a sleep aide or an anti-psychotic and an anti-anxiety. Perhaps Ledger didn't know to do this because it's rare that a regular doctor will suggest it unless the person is severely depressed. Most people never think to do this unless someone else who has visited a psychiatrist tells them so.

And I'm sorry folks, the people who scream at doctors for extreme medication AND actually get it are rare! Let's look seriously at people's problems and complaints BEFORE labeling them as addicts and demonizing them.

And as far as people being dependent or addicted to those drugs, I think, and many of those people agree, that, if they're the proper drugs, addiction is better than the less-than-zero life than many end up with otherwise.

in all the debates where he was asked the question as to how long he would take getting us out of Iraq, he said, "16 months." Absolutely, unequivocably, PERIOD. 16 MONTHS!!!!! No ifs, no ands and no buts!! He said it like it was solid gold truth from his mouth --- never bothering to tell people that what is printed on his website is just a bit slightly different in that it could take longer...

But Clinton, in the same debate, said EXACTLY what this Obama advisor said, that it may take longer depending upon the situation and, of course, everyone criticized and demonized her for it.

Hypocrisy, anyone?