So last weekend, I was watching a documentary on Steve-O's (the daredevil/bad-boy from JackAss) drug abuse and addiction.
For any of you who may not remember which one he is, 
<-- this is Steve-O.
The entire episode revolved around this celebrity who has been struggling with addiction for years. Steve-O had decided to publicly reveal himself to the world, both sober and while doing drugs. It was stunning, and it hit home to almost anybody who was watching. In many scenes, Steve-O was shown hitting bongs and sucking in chemical mixtures of who-knows-what. But it wasn't the show that really got me writing about this; ultimately, it was the reaction of my peers.During this hour-long documentary, I drew my eyes away from the screen every so often, although it was quite difficult. My friends' reactions were something I wish that every anti-drug campaign triggered. After watching our favorite bad-ass insanely grin into the camera following a large inhale of nitrous oxide, it was clear how serious these drugs can be. His body was withering away, and his eyes were completely void of any emotion. My eyes were glued to this image. My heart was hurting for him. My mind was completely skewed in thought. This wasn't the same celebrity who made my friends and me laugh during crazy episodes of JackAss. This Steve-O was a complete stranger.Steve-O's idea of exposing his struggle with drug abuse out to the world was a courageous and evoking action. It makes me think: Why did seeing a celebrity struggle with abuse hit home moreso than reality TV shows that focus on the same issue? When watching intervention programs of regular people getting help, I didn't feel as connected to the issue as I did with Steve-O's documentary. Is it because he's famous? If more celebrities opened up and spoke out about their own struggles, not just with drugs, but with anything, then the world would react on a much larger scale.Unfortunately though, not all of my peers took the correct message away from this documentary. I was appalled the next day to hear my friend say, "Steve-O made me want to try [drug name here] really bad. He made it look fun." I couldn't even respond to this comment. How could anybody want to try something that has caused such hell in another individual's life?
I hope he was joking. If so, he should probably never try to do stand-up.
I'd like to close this short blog post with a message Steve-O wrote to his drug addiction:
A GOODBYE LETTER TO MY DRUGS OF CHOICE
At this point,
All you ****ing things are good for is dying. I’m not
ready to die. I’m ready to live. I’m ready to breathe
(properly, even). I’m ready to fall in love. I’m ready
to become ready to start a family. I’m ready to be
happy, fulfilled and meaningful. Maybe I’ll see you
******* if and/or when I’m ready to die.
Steve-O
-This doesn't sound like a joke to me.
