Lost sense of self. Many celebrities feel unable to assert their individuality in a media world fraught with stereotypes.  As the media and fans develop a false perception of a celebrity (which is often one-dimensional) a celebrity begins to lose track of the multi-faceted aspects of their own personality.  This causes them to make choices that no longer reflect their true self, which further compromises their sense of identity.  Over time, they feel increasingly isolated and alone and have difficulty trusting others.

Loss of challenges. The experience of reaching the pinnacle of your goals and realizing it’s not as fulfilling as you think can be disconcerting. You’ve landed your dream job and begin settling in after your first big break…at first it’s exhilarating, but then you eventually wonder, “Is this all there is?” When a celebrity begins to feel they have nothing left to strive for – i.e. they’ve “made it”, suddenly they are left struggling to fill that empty emotional space with something even more thrilling or risqué.  Often celebrities turn to taking increasingly bigger and more dangerous risks, as a way to regain a sense of challenge.

Imposter syndrome. Some celebrities are bewildered by their fame, knowing that they are far from perfect.  The feeling of being an imposter occurs when people don’t feel they deserve their success. Celebrities may also fear being discovered, i.e. that the public will find out that they’re not as talented, intelligent, or attractive as they are portrayed in the media. They become keenly aware that their fans have idealized them in a way that is impossible to match in real life.  Consequently, celebrities can begin to feel their gifts are no longer enough, leaving them with a sense of inadequacy.

Quest for media spotlight immortality. Many celebrities fear their fame is fleeting, which leads them to constantly obsess about losing the attention of their fans and the media.  After a celebrity’s fame peaks, it is often a brutal ride downward as they garner less attention from others.  The loss of the spotlight can leave people feeling bereft of purpose and importance.  As a result celebrities often become desperate to regain notoriety and in doing so, become prone to buffoonery.  In the wake of this loss, they often turn to self-destructive behaviors as a means to cope with overwhelming feelings of failure.

* Many of these individuals may have already been abusing substances before they became famous. For some people the decline into addiction occurs over many years.
* Many of the careers that lead to fame involve a strong drinking or drug using culture. This means that those who join such professions may feel pressured into substance abuse.
* Famous people will often have more disposable income to spend on recreational drugs.
* The personal characteristics that help people become famous can be similar to those found in the addictive personality. This may mean that some of those who achieve some type of stardom may be prone to addictive behavior.
* The pressures of fame can be used as an excuse to abuse alcohol or drugs. The individual feels that they deserve a respite from all the pressure surrounding their work.
* There are many famous people who would be classified as high functioning addicts. The fact that they are doing so well in life means that they feel entitled to party hard.
* Those who receive the star treatment are allowed to get away with much more than the average person.
* It is suggested that those who achieve stardom can lose their humility. This means that they feel sure that the normal rules should not apply for them – this is something referred to as terminal uniqueness.
* Many famous people who develop an addiction may have followed the same path even if they had not had success.
* It has been suggested that those who abuse alcohol and drugs and those who need fame may enjoy higher dopamine spikes as a result of such behaviors. In other words they get higher feelings of pleasure than the average person.
* Those individuals who achieved celebrity at a young age may have missed out on important elements of human emotional development. They may be turning to alcohol or drugs because they feel unable to cope with things.
* It can be incredibly difficult to be in the public eye, and some of these people can’t even visit their local shop without being hounded by reporters. This can be used as justification to abuse alcohol or drugs.

Fame and the Addictive Personality

Many of those who become addicted to alcohol or drugs will tend to share certain character traits. These shared characteristics are sometimes referred to as the addictive personality. It has been suggested that those individuals who manage to find outward success in life may do so because of the same characteristics that lead people into addiction. The addictive personality involves traits such as:

* The individual needs to be the centre of attention, and this means that they are prone to attention seeking behavior.
* Such people tend to value nonconformity. They don’t like to go along with the herd but prefer to express their own individuality, and they also like to think outside the box.
* They have a high tolerance for deviant behavior.
* These are individuals who will often act impulsively. Such impulsiveness will often get them into trouble, but it can also open the door for new opportunities.
* Those people who have the addictive personality are more willing to take risks. Achieving fame often involves risk taking along the way.
* One of the most common traits of the addictive personality is low self esteem. The individual may try to overcome their feelings of low self worth by seeking the approval of other people.
* They struggle to delay gratification. This means that they find it difficult to wait for pleasure.
* Such individuals will believe that they have a high degree of stress in their life. They feel that this gives them justification to abuse alcohol or drugs.
* They have a feeling of alienation from other people. They may alternate between feelings of being better than everyone else to feeling that they are worse than everyone else – or they just might feel like they do not fit in.
* These people tend to be insecure in their relationships.
* They have a tendency to act in ways that would be considered antisocial.
* Such people will often suffer from depression or anxiety problems.

Fame is deeply attractive because it seems to offer very significant benefits.  The fantasies go like this: when you are famous, wherever you go, your good reputation will precede you. People will think well of you, because your merits have been impressively explained in advance. You will get warm smiles from admiring strangers. You won’t need to make you own case laboriously on each occasion. When you are famous, you will be safe from rejection. You won’t have to win over every new person. Fame will mean other people will be flattered and delighted even if you are only slightly interested in them. They will be amazed to see you in the flesh. They’ll ask to take a photo with you. They’ll sometimes laugh nervously with excitement. Furthermore, no one will be able to afford to upset you. When you’re not pleased with something, it will become a big problem for others. If you say your hotel room isn’t up to scratch, the management will panic. Your complaints will be taken very seriously. Your happiness will become the focus of everyone’s efforts. You will make or break other people’s reputations. You’ll be boss.
The desire for fame has its roots in the experience of neglect, in injury. No one would want to be famous who hadn’t also, somewhere in the past, been made to feel extremely insignificant. We sense the need for a great deal of admiring attention when we have been painfully exposed to earlier deprivation. 

We want to be known, because we want others to accept us.

We want to be accepted, because we want other to truly value us.

We want to be valued, because we want to be loved.

God made us with this desire for love. When we feel loved, we find our worth. Yet, the only one who can love us fully and perfectly is God. So, the search for fame is ultimately a search for God to love us. There is a truth behind this. You can’t love what you don’t know. So, you must know about someone before you can love them for who they are.