I’m not sure if I have a heightened awareness of it now, having gone through a luxury drug rehab program myself, or if there are just more celebrities with substance abuse than there used to be. We’ve been bombarded with news about Charlie Sheen these past few months; that cannot be doubted. He’s almost always been a part of the celebrity substance abuse discussion as his abuse dates back decades. But I see and hear quotes from all levels, all types of celebrities in all branches of the entertainment business almost on daily basis. Today, I was flipping through a magazine where a celebrity, like many, who is only a celebrity because of the family they were born into, was quoted. Of course I’m referencing Kelly Osbourne and her shared experiences with – what I imagine had to be a luxury drug rehab – rehab. Like her celebrity status, she has also inherited a history of addiction from her father, Ozzy Osbourne.
She was quoted as saying, “I understand that being judged by others comes with the territory, but it broke my heart and ruined my self-esteem. It sets you up to hate yourself in a huge way. I was so angry the things people said about me. I truly believe it’s the main reason I turned to Vicodin and ended up in rehab three times.” I guess it is just a part of our natural curiosity with celebrities, but nothing about her quote way very earth-shattering. Sure, I didn’t know that she had been to a luxury drug rehab three times. But then again, I don’t read trashy magazines of tabloid headlines very often, either. So her rehab experiences may have been very well documented pieces of public knowledge that I chose to ignore. However, it really amazes me that simply because a celebrity remarks it, suddenly the quote is… quotable! Please don’t misunderstand me here: I feel her pain having been a patient at a luxury drug rehab myself but if I’d said the same thing to the same report on the same day, I would never be published. I’m not knocking luxury drug rehabs, either. Quite the contrary! I’m one of their biggest advocates! Luxury drug rehabs exist because they need to exist. The privacy and individualized attention are like those MasterCard commercials: priceless.
However, the flip side of this argument is that if a celebrity can sell treatment like that, if they can spread the word about the insurmountable benefits they bring to one’s life, then let them! Maybe it will inspire others to join this seemingly trendy movement toward luxury drug rehab.
