Sleep Enough

One of my pop idols back in my childhood days was Michael Jackson. Yes he was weird, but to me, he is still the King of Pop. I admire the guy for his music, message, dancing, and superb entertaining skills. But of course, the media just could not stop hounding him for years, and years. So when I heard he had died of an apparent cardiac arrest, I wasn’t really surprised. The world has hardly ever given MJ a break, and I knew eventually something like this was going to happen.

More suspicious though, was the behavior of his doctor as reported in the media – and his ultimately fatal addiction to sleeping pills, which seems to be what tipped him over the edge.

If you’ve been a fan of Michael Jackson, you would know he was addicted to sleeping pills and painkillers for many years. As he prepared for his comeback tour, the physical strain and sleepless nights obviously took a heavy toll on him.

Michael definitely took a lot of Valium, Xanax, Ativan, and many others that would make any healthy sane person faint on the spot! It seems one of the pills which were cited in his death was Demerol, a powerful painkiller, and Propofol (brand name Diprivan), a drug that is normally used for anesthesia, not sleep! His nurse/nutritionist Cherilyn Lee has stated that Michael specifically asked for Dripivan to be administered intravenously to him, but she refused. The true story may never really be known, but suffice to say, MJ was definitely seeking such powerful anesthesia drugs in order to sleep.

Can we learn something from Michael Jackson’s death? Imagine the consequences of taking all these drugs for years, and it will definitely not be a surprise for anyone that MJ (and many other celebrities) ended up 6 feet under. As far as I’m concerned, let this be a reminder that many drugs are dangerous and they should never be taken in the first place; rather natural cures and treatment methods should be sought out. MJ’s death also underscores the fact that you can have all the money and fame in the world, but they do not guarantee you will get something as basic as sleep. Is the ability to sleep worth more than all the wealth in the world? I guess an insomniac would agree.