Addiction, be it to alcohol or drugs can destroy ones career and tragically, ones life in the process. We have witnessed the demise of many talented actors,comedians,singer/songwriters and hopefuls, who lived with private addictions and who died alone, many alone due to overdose.
There career could have been the driving force behind their addiction or the addiction could have manifest itself before their success.
To be a celebrity today, is to live your life like an open book. Adoring fans demand to know your every move, who your dating, where you live, where you shop and so on. There is no longer the privilege of privacy and the public can be extremely fickle especially when the tabloids exploit every little detail of a celebrities life. It seems relationship controversy, eating disorders, alcohol or substance abuse and aggressive public outbursts, sells and the public buys it.
Tabloids will pay premium prices for pictures of celebrities, in all manner of dress or undress; is it no wonder we have people dying to get the perfect shot?
It is all so flattering in the beginning, when fame is new. Many young celebrities just can't get enough exposure, they become addicted to fame. They will expect to see their image in the latest tabloid or magazine and if they don't, they will complain to their publicist!
Yes, almost everyone who is anyone in "the business" has a publicist, and they are essential for a celebrity. Public exposure is key in maintaining the celebrity's name on the lips and in the psyche of all their fans, as well as any casting directors or producers in the market for a particular look or talent.
In the world of celebrity, if they aren't talking about you anymore than you no longer exist!
This causes many celebrities especially of the younger set, to create their own news headlines, be it positive or negative! There are web pages, such as "my space" where fans create celebrity spaces for their idols. There they can flaunt their celebs fashions, post flattering pictures, the latest gossip, movie, or music video. They can chat about their favorite celebrity incessantly because that happens to be their favorite subject! It can become quite obsessive and addictive to those who create and maintain these fan websites. Some celebrities instant rise to fame can sometimes cause irreparable damage if they get caught up in the hype and take it too seriously.
Attention getting behavior is imminent if a celebrity feels they are losing popularity. Some will use their problems such as eating disorders, or drug use to maintain the publics focus on them. They feel they must maintain a public persona to stay on top in the very competitive entertainment industry.
There are those celebrities who know the pressures of living in the limelight can take a toll on their personal lives. They have learned how to maintain some measure of privacy, while not denying their fans a peek now and then into their private lives.
It becomes a delicate balance of give and take, the celebrity who has difficulty drawing the line between the role they play, the image, as opposed to who they really are, will have problems.
The lines become blurred and they will become lost in the made up fairytale land of glamor, fame and fortune. A world where drugs and alcohol are just a part of the scene and where everyones doing it. It is such a very seductive lifestyle, and some need much more guidance than others on how to keep a lucrative career and still maintain a healthy lifestyle with a positive self image.
Alcohol plays a prominent role in a celebrity's lifestyle; it is served during awards dinners, presentations, film festivals, "after parties", also when just plain socializing with friends and/or relatives.
A celebrity with an addiction cannot recover while under the scrutiny of the public and the fans who maintain a loyal following. Those celebrities who agree to have their struggle documented are deluding themselves, they are playing another role subconsciously this time.
A celebrity who is exposed as having an addiction can feel humiliated or shame, and if they choose to go into treatment only because they have been caught, than, they will not be successful in abstaining from their addiction.
When the camera's rolling and the fans are all eyes, the celebrity will play the part, all to please their public.
Recovering from any addiction can only be successful when the person who is addicted finally says,
enough!
Whether a celebrity or not, one must want to stop using for themselves, not because someone else wants them too, or to clean up a public reputation.
Recovery must be done in private, especially if you are a celebrity!
It is essential to have only positive, empathetic, experienced medical and social personal assisting one in this most critically important, life altering, and emotionally draining experience. It may take years to fully recover from an addiction. The first week or two of withdrawals are the most critical, if one cannot endure it, they will fail and start using again.
This is why it is so critically important to want to quit, because in the end,
whether you use or not, is really up to you.