Mommy, are you drunk?

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Mommy, are you drunk?

Alcoholism and other drug addiction have genetic and environmental causes. Both have serious consequences for children who live in homes where parents are involved. According to the National Association for Children of Alcoholics, more than 28 million Americans are children of alcoholics and nearly 11 million of them are under the age of 18. This figure is magnified by the countless number of others who are affected by parents who are impaired by other psychoactive drugs.

Alcoholism runs in my family also. Being born predisposed to something so difficult was made even harder by the lack of education that I had received surrounding the disease of addiction growing up. The school programs we were almost null and there was no talking about it at home either. I know now this was one factor that contributed to my own submission to addiction.

It’s a fact that Alcoholism and other drug addiction tend to run in families. Children of addicted parents are more at risk for alcoholism and other drug abuse than are other children. That’s why if you are a parent who suffers from substance abuse disorder; you need to pay extra special attention to your children’s behaviors and even more attention to yours. Kids are very intuitive, trust me, they generally have an idea when something isn’t right with mommy or daddy.

Recently I had an email come from a man in Florida. His wife’s erratic behavior, nights out at the bar, and frequent glasses of wine immediately after work has led him to believe that his wife may have a serious drinking issue. He had always felt that she was hiding and sneaking her drinking but has never been able to prove it. There are no empty bottles behind the couch or Vodka bottles filled with water, just his gut telling him something wasn’t right. He asked me if I think their kids, ages 6, 10, 13 had any clue themselves as to what might be going on with mommy. So I answered him.

“More than likely.” I said. “If your gut is telling you something is wrong, usually it’s because something is wrong and it’s not just you who senses it.”

Research has shown that adolescents who perceive that a parent is using are more likely to abuse drugs themselves.  My advice to him was to continue digging and asking the questions. I know he will find what he is looking for sooner or later and then take the appropriate steps to try and help his wife regain control of her life.

Here are the tools that will help you or your loved one beat addiction!

Use of substances by parents and their adolescent children is strongly correlated; generally, if parents take drugs, sooner or later their children will also. It’s just the nature of the beast. Kid’s aren’t as unaware as we sometimes we would like them to be. They observe understand, and absorb like sponges, especially at those ages as mentioned above.

If you are a parent and suffering from substance abuse disorder, please be aware that your kids probably know, are internalizing it, and trying to make sense of it all by themselves. This is bad because it leads to self-esteem issues, resentments, and bouts with depression. All this of course will most likely lead your teenage child down the same path you’re on now. So get help, because it’s time.

About me: I am Super Star (yes, that is my legal name). I have earned that name – and accomplished what many people would consider impossible – because I chose to stay sober one day at a time. I left the crack houses to mingle with Hollywood’s elite, ending up working with all of my childhood musical heroes, and have now found my purpose in life after surviving an almost 15-year battle with the disease of addiction.

Currently, I am an advocate for kids in recovery from substance abuse (and prevention as well) in Malibu, California, as well as from my home in Chicago, a sober companion to many, director of a non-profit that helps those struggling with recovery, and passionate speaker to kids about the issues of drugs and addiction.

I am also an author and musician. I am currently finishing my work on the book, “The First 30 Days to Serenity: The Ultimate Survival Guide to Staying Sober,” which can be pre-ordered here. I have also just wrapped up the recording of Serenity, a first-of-its-kind CD created in conjunction with my twin brother Rock Star solely to combat addiction. “Serenity,” was produced by a Grammy-winning producer and features many of our musical heroes, who have come together to help us tell our story in an effort to help others through their own addiction struggles. Guests on our CD include current and former members of bands such as Kiss, Heart, The Goo Goo Dolls, Dokken, Trans-Siberian Orchestra as well as many more. It rocks – musically and inspirationally – and can be found here

Pass this on if you feel it can help someone and feel free to visit us at www.rockstarsuperstarproject.com

Wow. 100% off.

Ok, so you literally can’t save any more than 100% OFF. Who knows, maybe next year we’ll PAY YOU to get our college reviews, but right now, the best we can do is 100% OFF.

If you don’t tell your family and friends about this special offer, then you might as well change your name to Scrooge.

Ho Ho Ho.

-Matt

We all know that times are rough. Every dollar counts. This is why we are tinkering with a concept known as “microscholarships.” We can’t say that we created the term, but we hope that other companies will follow in our path and make more microscholarships available to students.

We’ve created a contest that is giving out $100 microscholarships to ten (10) entrants.

Plus, we’re making it VERY EASY to enter. It’ll probably only take you 30 seconds to submit an entry to win a $100 microscholarship.


In a nutshell, here’s HOW IT WORKS:


1. Follow us on Twitter (http://twitter.com/realcollegetour).

2. Send us a Tweet telling us why you deserve one of our microscholarships or why you want one of them. It’ll look something like this:


3. The contest ends at 11:59 p.m. EDT on January 31, 2010. This means your Tweet must be in by then.

4. You can Tweet as many submissions as you want.

5. Entries will be judged on the “originality” and the “entertainment value” of the Tweet. Make them wise, clever, and/or fun!

6. All  ten (10) Winners will be announced on February 14th, 2010. We’ll contact the winners via Twitter, so don’t be a stranger!

Don’t forget to tell all your friends and family about the scholarship!

For more info, go to the Twitter MicroScholarship Page.

Just added Miami University – Oxford to the website. This guide is seriously awesome. The info in this college guide is juicier than yesterday’s turkey. Seriously.

Don’t believe me? Read some of the “RAW & UNCENSORED EXCERPTS!” Like, wow. RealCollegeTour.com is TRULY the home of uncensored college info…. If you don’t want to get assaulted by some scumbag frat boy, you should read this guide. We actually NAME which frat at Miami University is known to roofie girls…and guys.

As if the recent tuition hikes in the news weren’t bad enough, Pittsburgh will be bending college students over and screwing them adding a 1% college tuition tax to raise $16 million per year for the struggling city. You can read about the whole fiasco in detail from The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

Some city officials sound more like a group of 6th graders than public servants:

City Councilman (and apparently the official Asshole of Pittsburgh) Jim Motznik said, “If they (colleges) would have contributed to the City of Pittsburgh like they should have been, there would be no need for this,” he said. “With all the fees and costs college students are paying, this is minimal.” (BTW, 1% of a $30,000 tuition is $300, dick. That’s a lot of Ramen.)

Adding to the brouhaha is the fact “the state Supreme Court has determined attempts to tax institutions of higher education to be illegal.” So, basically, the city will waste taxpayer dollars trying to create a tax that will ultimately be shot down because it’s illegal.

Stay classy, Pittsburgh.

P.S. If you want to tax college students, don’t tax them directly. Just tax the booze.

Hi, we just finished this video over the weekend, and we’re embarking on a massive viral marketing campaign. Our goal is 1 Million views for this AWESOME CAT VIDEO! I mean, it’s got kittens and college tips… What else could a video need in order to become successful?

Remember to share this what all your cat-loving and/or college-loving friends and family.

The “We Are One Rocks La Grange” event was a success. We raised some money for our upcoming programs in the community, and we raised awareness to an important issue. Thank you to everyone who helped make it possible! Also, a special thanks to musical guest “Von Chalant” who stole the show!

We Are One is a registered 501(c)3 charitable non-profit organization dedicated to fighting teen substance abuse

College costs over $100,000 in many cases–and sometimes final college costs hover near the $200,000 mark. So, most people apply for financial aid via FAFSA and/or the CSS Profile. Anyone who has gone through this process will tell you it’s frustrating, and some will tell you it’s not fair. Kiplinger’s had an article about “11 Student-Aid Traps to Avoid.” If you’ve never filled one of these babies out, then this article is a must-read. You shouldn’t LIE, per se, on your financial aid apps, but be aware that your answers will affect the aid decision. And your financial aid decision will affect you for potentially the next 20 years… Just sayin’.

One thing you should know is that you might feel screwed if you’re a member of the middle class. You’ll get over it after the 5 stages of grief have passed. What will frustrate many of you is that you’re considered a dependent of your parents until you’re 24.

Let’s take a look at a hypothetical example of how this can make you resentful for the first few years of your adult life. Let’s say that your parents make $200,000+ per year, own all sorts of real estate, and–for all intents and purposes–are shoveling money. You still apply for financial aid because you’re trying to be a good son, and you don’t get a dime of aid in the process. You still work throughout college, because you feel bad about your rich parents paying $50,000 per year for college. Then after 4 years you decide you no longer want to go to medical school and you completely change majors, because you realize you have a passion for Psychology (Read: saving lives, helping others, etc.). Mom and Dad get pissed off, say they won’t “waste” any money on a Psychology degree, and you’re stuck footing the bill for the last year of school, which is still $50,000, because you’re a dependent according to the Department of Education. Yup yup, I would HATE to be in that person’s shoes. Wait a sec… oh crap. Time to go pawn my watch so I can pay for the first 15 minutes of Psych 345 next quarter.

Answer: Travel back in time.

Sorry, that was cruel. I hope I didn’t get anyone’s hopes up. Yes, we’re in the middle of an economic crisis and unemployment is almost at %10. So, in order to give high school students an incentive to work at McDonald’s or White Castle, colleges are increasing their tuition rates. Yahoo! reports:

“Average tuition at four-year public colleges rose 6.5 percent, or $429, to $7,020 this fall, according to the College Board‘s annual “Trends in College Pricing” report, released Tuesday. At private colleges, the average list price for a year of coursework rose 4.4 percent to $26,273.”

A 4.4-6.5 percent increase is not so bad, though, is it? If they raise the tuition now, they won’t raise it again for a while, right? Wrong! How about next year’s proposed 30-F*!@ing percent tuition increase at California schools:

“Worst hit is California, whose giant public university and community college systems educate about one in six American college students. Facing unprecedented state funding cuts, public colleges have boosted fees, raised class sizes, furloughed faculty and turned away students. On top of the current year’s 9-percent fee increase, the University of California system is considering increases of more than 30 percent by next year.”

Stay classy, America.