A-List Secrets: Is There Really Rehab for That?

What celebs really mean when they say they're checking in for some help

I just read about yet another celeb checking into rehab for something other than drugs or alcohol. Come on, really! Foot injuries? Depression? Are we supposed to believe all this?
—Not Buying It, Boulder, Colo.

You refer, of course, to Heather Locklear, who, depending on which report you read, has checked herself in to a "facility" or "rehab" for anxiety and depression.

There are real hospitals for that, you know.

"Some programs are actually for mental-health rehab," says Dr. Sonja Keith, director of assessment and referral for the Las Encinas Hospital, which treats psychological and chemical dependency issues.

But here's what it really means when you hear the word rehab...

Until we know exactly where in Arizona Locklear has sought treatment, the fun conspiracy theories about exactly what ails the former Melrose babe will have to wait. But here's where celebrity rehab excuses start to fall apart: When they check into addiction treatment facilities for ailments that have nothing to do with drugs or alcohol.

Take Steven Tyler, who recently said he checked into Las Encinas to more peacefully recover from a foot injury. Las Encinas, as I have already reported, covers psychological and chemical dependency issues. A Las Encinas spokesperson wasn't commenting on the whole thing a few weeks ago, but Keith seemed to shed some new light for me today.

"Not to be specific about any particular person checking in," she told me, "but some people are given pain pills after they have surgery, and the patient may need to have drug rehab because of the pain-pill addiction postsurgery."

Hmmm.

Lastly, we'll speak of Kirsten Dunst. Dunst last told E! exclusively that she didn't head to rehab for drugs or alcohol, but rather depression.

However, I'm told that Cirque Lodge, where she stayed, doesn't accept patients suffering solely from mental illness. "People would have to come to our facility with at least an outward presentation of a substance abuse issue," a Cirque Lodge spokesman tells me. "They are using alcohol or drugs in an inappropriate manner. It may seem like a chemical dependency issue, and then the client goes into treatment, and we discover there is an underlying issue."

Of course. Such as one's pants being on fire.

Got a question about Hollywood? ASK IT!

Oh, and be my fan on Facebook, 'kay?