The coroner is New York has ruled that DJ Am's death last month was an accidental overdose. According to TMZ who saw the report, Adam Goldstein had a wide variety of drugs in his system at the time of his death. They included cocaine, oxycodone, hydrocodone (Vicodin), Ativan, Klonopin, Xanax, Benadryl and Levamisole (a drug used to cut cocaine with).
Some of those are prescription drugs so I wonder if we will have another doctor scandal on our hands or if he bought them from a dealer.
Ny first thought when I read that laundry list of drugs was, holy fuck!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad I never got into putting crap like that in my system. That sounds like a lot of work to keep topped up and level. I don't have time for that.
^^^i here ya.
ReplyDeleteHow do they know it was an accident? He accidently injested that many drugs? He had 6 oxy in his stomach and one pill stuck in his throat. Sounds more like an accident waiting to happen.
ReplyDeleteI feel out of sorts when I just take the benadryl so I can't imagine being able to function with all of that in my system.
ReplyDeletePoor guy.
ReplyDeleteThere may be a few doctors who go down in this scandal, but there are still plenty of drug-pushing MDs who can take their place. Addicts with enough cash can also find relief via getting prescriptions from multiple doctors. There's just not a clear-cut solution to this, either.
Geez louise! Why do people do that to themselves when one bottle of Absolut does the trick!!!!
ReplyDeleteHe could have had the oxys, vicodin, ativan, clonopin and xanax "left over" from the injuries he sustained during that plane crash--very common pain/anxiety drugs. In my line of work, it is very common to see patients that have been started on one med and migrated to another because the first was ineffective. The thing is, if the doc writes a script for ativan and the patient has a better reaction to klonopin, there's probably still a whack load of ativan left. Most patients would dispose of it, but with his history I wouldn't be surprised if he held on to it.
ReplyDeleteSad.
Because they puke when they drink alcohol but "feel good" on pills and coke.
ReplyDeleteCould be another doctor scandal, but in all fairness, none of that stuff would be hard to get on the street if you knew the "right" people. And considering his past, he probably had some friends in low places. It's still a fucking tragedy though.
He had a history of prescription drug abuse so I don't know why they would prescribe them in the first place, but patients lie.
ReplyDeleteHe had a fear of flying, 3 different cities and 3 different doctors - boom you've got your Ativan, Klonopin, and Xanax. You've got PTSD from a major accident, similar drugs.
He could have had some permanent nerve damage as a result of his burns and that explains Oxy and Vikes. Not familiar with levamisole.
Benadryl is over the counter so a quick trip to Duane Reade and ready to party.
Feel sorry for the guy.
I am going to sound naive but a quick question.
ReplyDeleteCan someone explain the part about the drug that is "used to cut coke"? What does that mean?
Faithy and DMfromMN - coke is seldom sold pure...I think it's only sold at that concentration from farmer to cartel (if then.) You mix levamisole with the coke...it dilutes it so it's a better price per unit for the dealer. Also, wasn't levamisole the cause of all the recent coke related ODs in manhattan?
ReplyDeletePretty sure when you cut something with something else you're just diluting it from its pure form. You know, so you don't die. Well, die straight away that is.
ReplyDeleteYep...levamisole is a common veterinary drug used to deworm animals. Fatal for humans:
ReplyDeletehttp://gawker.com/5349939/new-coke-deadlier-than-ever
Sue Ellen - If I were to cut my hypothetical coke...yeah, I would cut it with something non toxic. Now if a scumbag dealer is looking for a great way to mask his cutting and doesn't really care about customer service or returning customers...I don't think said scumbag dealer is gonna care all that much.
ReplyDeleteThat's why you gotta go high class for your coke dealers.
ReplyDeleteHypothetical coke dealer, of course :)
ReplyDeleteI wonder (aloud) why it is ruled accidental? From ready Enty's post from TMZ listing all the substances in his blood "looks" like he ingested a deliberate cocktail.
ReplyDeleteSorry, I'm not buying that it's not a suicide. Nope, not at all.
ReplyDeleteYeah, what is the difference between a suicide and an accidental overdose?
ReplyDeleteSorry everyone for commenting so much on this...guess I hit an area of expertise.
ReplyDeleteAccidental overdose just means that the point was not to die - the point was to get high or at least there does not seem to be a deliberate action to cease living. This is a very fine detail and something a lot of people are confused by...I remember one excruciatingly long night (brought on by my stupid 16 year old decisions) spent in the ER when I was trying to get out of being transferred to the psych ward because the admitting nurse just couldn't understand how I took so many pills without wanting to die. She kept explaining that I was pretty damn lucky to be alive as is and they wanted to keep me that way. I kept trying to explain to her that, after a certain point of consumption, you're no longer either counting pills or remembering what you've taken. That was just Oxy + Vics + alcohol. I can only imagine what would have happened if the rest of the cocktail has been mixed in. Also, in my (admittedly damaged) family, mixing prescription drugs for a good high was referred to as a "pharmapolitan."
sussique, i agree completly that it was suicide but i think lack of a note or conclusive proof would be enough to get it signed off as 'accidental'. When I was at school I read an interesting study about how coroners who had catholic upbringings were much more likely to hunt for a reason to reclassify a suicide to avoid bringing shame on a family. When I see stuff like this it always makes me think of it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info everyone :)
ReplyDeletewhat Mikey said.
ReplyDeletehow is 6 undigested oxy plus one half chewed in the mouth an accident?
ya right. either way sad.
i wonder if it is labled "accidental" as opposed to "suicidal" so that his mom can collect life insurance if he had any, to make it easier to collect?
ReplyDeleteI don't think he was suicidal. His tweets right before he died sounded fine. I think he was just self-medicating his very real problems. There is nothing as painful as burns, and once he was back on drugs, it would've taken a lot of time and strength for him to get clean again. I really think he would have made it back eventually if he had lived. :(
ReplyDeleteSo very sad.
ReplyDeletewould also like to point out that oxycodone is percocet, which does NOT mix with vicodin. oxycontin (which is what is usually called oxys. percocet is referred to as percs) can be taken with other drugs. the problem is not to take to much of the same type of drug.
ReplyDeleteOT, the government has recently decided to change the percocets, darvocets, and the other narcotics that contain aceteminephin or tylenol. they will be replacing it with ibuprofen or motrin. this will be interesting for folks like me who can't take celebrex, and instead take 800 mgs. of ibuprofen 3 times/day. nsaids such as aleve or naproxen can have other side effects, too.
but, yeah, that's a lot of shit in his system, and too many in the same classes.
sorry about my misspellings, i'm not getting up to check my medicine cupboard. :)