Whitney Houston, the icon that she is, is in denial!

Ok Crusaders, I would LOVE some feedback for a change on this one. Let me know what you think or if I helped in anyway or if you think I am just plain nuts! Send an email to super@superstarsuperstar.com

Ok, I was going to blog about steroids this evening and how I think they directly relate to substance abuse issues at our nations school but I just received an email from a parent asking what I thought of Oprah’s interview with Whitney Houston, so the steroid conversation will have to wait. And that’s probably for the best as the use of steroids in our schools hits a nerve with me like you wouldn’t believe.

Ok, first and foremost, to all the men out there that are reading this. I don’t sit and watch Oprah ever night. I think she is brilliant but my participation with her show pretty much stops there. However, when I heard Whitney Houston was going to be on to talk about her drug addiction, I made sure to clear my schedule and tune in. After all, kids will be tuning in as well and they will be listening and paying closer attention that you might think.

Let’s get another thing out of the way, I don’t own a single Whitney Houston CD ok guys, So save the emails. Nevertheless, if you don’t think she’s an icon, your need to have your brain checked. There is no one in this universe, nor even a parallel universe that can deny that voice. Its spectacular and she is indeed a living icon. However, she’s also an addict, just like me.

Let me get right to it and explain why I didn’t care for the interview. Immediately I was drawn to her and her story. Its so great to see that she is alive and breathing, unlike her friend Michael Jackson who died because he was couldn’t get the help he needed to escape his addiction to drugs. Whitney came clean about her use of marijuana right away and with this, I thought we were set for a truthful interview, but soon it would become obvious that I was wrong. Why? Because, I’m here to tell you, in no way was she telling the truth about her use of crack cocaine. As other blogs and news articles suggest, her claims of smoking them in tandum, was in my opinion, a blatant act of denial. We have all seen the pictures of the glass pipe on her bathroom counter. How could she of forgotten about this? Any why would Oprah not bring this up? On Whitney’s behalf, this was such an addict move and is called the act of minimization. The act of minimization is something that we addicts do all the time to make something that we did appear look smaller or more minute to the observer. This way we feel like less of an ass, and ultimately point the finger towards something or someone else. For example, Whitney’s effort of declaring “Bobby” her true drug was her effort of placing the blame for her use elsewhere. Yes, legitimately, we can perceive the closest individuals in our lives as a drug. For normal people this is to be considered to be more of an infatuation, however to us addicts, we can take something such as you looking in our general direction as a sign of “love.” It’s bizarre and scary for those on the outside watching in but no need to run, we just crave more attention than most and until you understand and grasp what the symptoms of addiction are about, you will always have this problem. No worries, this type of thinking can be fixed.

Anyway, I do not want to get crazy into the rest of the interview but I was fascinated by this story. Here is a woman who has enormous amounts of wealth. She can afford the BEST doctors and therapists, but yet, can’t get past what some of the homeless people living under the bridges of Chicago cant get past. That old darn issue of denial. When tackling your addiction, be real, the first step to overcoming it is to own up to it. Denial can kill you. Admit you have a problem in its entirety. Stop blaming where you work, or whom you hang with, or things you have seen that you claim make you want to use. Once you do that fully and 100%, the denial is gone.

The problem with this interview is that there will be some kids who will emulate this behavior. Kids who will think now that because Whitney did it, they too can minimize and not fully own up to their use. Please take note of what I pointed out during this blog regarding Whitney’s interview. If you even sense your kids aren’t “owning up” then you can stay one step ahead of them, stop them in their tracks, and help them face the reality of the situation by telling showing them where you know they are wrong.

Super Star Crusader for Sobriety
www.weareoneonline.org