Kim Ledger talks addiction with Nova's Ash Bradnam

Kim Ledger, the father of renowned Australian actor Heath Ledger, shares his story with Nova’s Ash Bradnam, in the latest episode of the compelling podcast series, Addicted.

In this episode Kim Ledger shares his family’s grief at the death of their beloved son to an accidental overdose in 2008. In the wake of Heath’s passing, Kim has dedicated much of his time to raising awareness of the dangers of prescription drugs and through his association with ScriptWise, is committed to educating Australians about these dangers and establishing a prescription register to spare families the pain that his family has experienced.

ScriptWise has given Kim some sort of peace, he said, “The reward for myself personally, I just do it because it repudiates my personal soul a bit. You almost feel guilty as a parent that you weren’t there to help him out but then that same tragedy is happening right in loungerooms and in bedrooms of family homes, right under people’s nose. There are more deaths through prescription medication than deaths from any other type of drug use in Australia.”

This episode features real time audio from the Nova Brisbane breakfast show in 2008 when Heath’s death became news across the globe. The emotion of this moment, felt by those who loved Heath up close and from afar, is audible. There is so much said in this podcast about grief - the immeasurable pain, the uncontrollability, our fear of not knowing what to say to the person gripped by loss, and the things that blindside us in moments of unimaginable sadness.

Kim discusses the difficulties with the names of drugs being different all over the world, people are not aware of exactly what they are taking or the effects associated with combining opioids and benzodiazepines with other drugs. Kim said about his son, “There was no sign of an addiction, that is part of worry with this, he’s here one night and then mixes all these other things and he’s not here.”

Kim’s story is everything that the family of an addict fears…the powerlessness, the hopelessness, the nightmare, and the inability to change a situation (all the while knowing you live with the constant fear of catastrophe anyway). This is a powerful episode and an important conversation.

Kim said, “Through this process with ScriptWise I learnt that we are not alone. It’s happened to so many families, it’s so wide spread, it blew my mind.”

NOVA Entertainment released the podcast series Addicted in August last year, after a huge response from listeners to Ash Bradnam’s revelations about his 15-year battle with addiction.

Addicted was launched as a candid conversation about addiction and to provide practical advice and support for others and their families in similar situations. The series launched in 2017 with Ash Bradnam’s raw and honest account of his lengthy battle with addiction and the affect it had on his relationships and was followed with rapper 360’s intense account of his own battles.

Jodie Bradnam, a clinical psychologist, helped her husband Ash throughout his sobriety journey and encouraged and supported him to discuss the toll it took on their relationship, and their continuous road to recovery in the first and ongoing episodes of Addicted.

Jodie comments on the ability to become addicted to prescription drugs, she said,
“When faced with pain or illness, every human is wired to want to escape that pain, to numb that pain. Prescription medications provide a pathway to numbing, even if temporary. They are a blessing for those in serious pain, but the truth is that some medications are very dangerous in combination with other drugs and alcohol. For at least three Australians each day, a desire to numb leads to accidental death or serious dependence.”

Addicted will premiere this episode on Wednesday 12 September. Listen to Addicted on acast.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

Addicted is nominated for Best Podcast in the upcoming 2018 Mumbrella Publish Awards and is a finalist for Best Original Podcast – Unbranded at the Australian Commercial Radio Awards (ACRA) which will be held in October.

For further information about ScriptWise – http://www.ScriptWise.org.au/