by Priscilla Benfield

Created on: March 09, 2011

Recovering from an addiction is never an easy process. When you are a celebrity who is either in the public eye because you are currently "hot" or you are a celebrity who was once "hot", admitting your addiction can bring you attention. Many celebrities shy away from negative attention and would prefer to keep their addictions private. Other celebrities seem to use their addictions as another way of getting attention. These kind of celebrities are the ones you will see on celebrity rehab television shows.

Personally I have to believe that a celebrity who is willing to bare the ugliness of their addictions on a celebrity rehab television show is not really 100% committed to getting clean. Many of them seem to be looking for attention in order to jump-start their fledging careers. For example, you do not see Lindsay Lohan signing up for these celebrity rehab shows.

Michael Lohan, who considers himself to be a celebrity by way of fathering Lindsay Lohan, is signed up to be on a celebrity rehab program. This wanna-be celebrity has no shame in what he has to do to get attention. When someone who is not a "real" celebrity or their 15 minutes of fame is over, signing on to a show like celebrity rehab or another reality show seems to be a chance at getting their name out there.

Competition in Hollywood is extreme. Some people will do just about anything in order to get attention. Female celebrities used to agree to pose for Playboy in order to get attention. Now it seems that reality television shows are a way for has-been's to revive their careers;or at least hope to revive them.

If someone is serious about recovering from an addiction, competing for the spotlight by showing how outrageously messed-up you are on a celebrity rehab show is not going to be the way to get clean. Witnessing some of these past shows, celebrities often seem to forget why they are really there. Many times, the celebrity doesn't seem ready for rehab.

It takes a huge commitment and the ability to be honest with yourself in order to face your addiction. Most studies show that a 90-day program is what works best. Of course the addict should have support from friends and family in addition to a good, disciplined program.

Grouping a bunch of celebrity addicts together makes for voyeurism television. It may remind viewers that celebrities are human with problems like everyday people. Unfortunately, it doesn't cure the celebrity of their addiction. It only seems to make them thirst for attention even more.

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