Whitney Houston: No foul play, says coroner

[Jimbuna]

A Los Angeles coroner has said there were no signs of foul play surrounding the death of singer Whitney Houston.
After a post mortem examination, the coroner said there were no visible signs of trauma on Houston's body and that foul play was "not suspected at this time".


Looks like the toxicology results may hold the key to the cause of death.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-17008000

[Skybird]

In Göttingen, there is a professor for neurology and psychiatry, he also is psychologist and psychotherapist and author of several books. Some years ago he released a book on celebreties, and the possibility that many of them are mentally ill, suffering from borderline syndrome. He is being quoted in newspapers over here again now, claiming that neither drugs nor marriage destroyed Houston in the first, but her since earlier existing borderline syndrome that made her living as excessively as she did.

His argument is that if it were only to be in the spotlight that destroys people from within, than many other, politicians and sports stars, would fall in greater numbers, too. Borderline patients however suffer from neurological deficits, their brains, he says, do not produce enough endorphines and their brain's reward center does not function properly. In order to get the feeling of success and being loved and liked and appreciated that most people try to gain to varying degrees in order to avoid a feeling of existential despair and isolation, these people must invest much more obsessiveness and intense engagement in order to become extremely successful in something and by gaining that success also gaining public attention and appreciation, which gives them the feeling that by normal working conditions their reward centre cannot produce, biochemically. And the glittering showbusiness is the preferred method of trying to get that kick, for it matches their needs so much, more than any other profession. He refers to Michael Jackson, Kurt Cobain, Aimee Whitehouse, and now to Whitney Houston. He says that such people can feel allright as long as they are on the stage and the crowd in celebrating them, but these kicks do not last for long, and just some hours later they sit desperate and demoralised and lonely in their hotel room. No show lasts forever, and between these kicking events they then go for drugs and medication abuse or alcohol or excessive sex in order to stimulate their lagging reward centre to produce just the normal daily dose of endorphines to make life bearable for them.

I do not evaluate the validity of these theory, but I admit I find it compelling. It explains quite well why there is so much total freakiness and self-destructive behaviour to be observed in the show business. I have doubts that it could be explained by burnout or stress only (in fact I even doubt the existence of socalled burnout syndrome). Seen that way, one could say indeed that the show biz is - sick.

Borderline is a tricky and malicious issue, like major depression also is, just more spectacular.

http://www.textem.de/1027.0.html (http://www.textem.de/1027.0.html)

[Takeda Shingen]

As a totally unqualified second-hand spectator, I am pretty sure that it wasn't foul play. Whitney had a long history with drugs. The death is shocking, but not surprising.

[GoldenRivet]

As a totally unqualified second-hand spectator, I am pretty sure that it wasn't foul play. Whitney had a long history with drugs. The death is shocking, but not surprising.

my thoughts exactly

She had one too many sleeping pills or whatnot and fell asleep in the tub.

all around bad idea.