Heather Locklear has one of those smiles that make a beautiful woman even more attractive. The actress, known for her role in the television series Melrose Place, looks far younger than her 50 years. Physical attractiveness and a winning smile have not kept the bumps and bruises of life from the Hollywood starlet. The public sometimes forgets that the icons of celluloid are made of flesh and blood just like the rest of us and are not impervious to the trials which come to us all. But while most of us fight life’s battles in private, darlings of the media are forced to struggle in front of the camera.

Ms. Locklear’s troubles seem to have begun in 2006 when it she discovered emails which hinted that her husband of 11 years, Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora, was carrying on an affair with one of their mutual acquaintances. Almost immediately, tabloid magazines ran stories which reported Ms. Locklear as seeking the help of prescription medications to deal with bouts of anxiety and depression. Not long after her supposed discovery, Ms. Locklear filed for divorce.

Things appeared quiet for a time until 2008 when it was reported that the star had spent a month at a center in Arizona receiving treatment for anxiety and depression. Sadly, Ms. Locklear appears to have experienced a relapse at best, within a matter of months she was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated. Evidently, a US Weekly reporter who had been photographing Ms. Locklear that same evening, made a 911 call to report that the star was driving erratically. It turned out that Ms. Locklear tested negative for alcohol and narcotics, but her lawyer did say that prescription medications may have caused her impaired driving. The case was dismissed in 2009 after Ms. Locklear entered a plea of no contest to the charge of reckless driving. The star agreed to three years of informal probation and a $700 fine.

No further mishaps were reported until 2010 when she ran into a neighborhood No Parking sign at four in the morning. A neighbor, frightened by the crash, called 911. This case was later dismissed because the court had insufficient evidence to prove that it was Ms. Locklear’s car which had crashed into the sign. Despite the fact that the court could not prove her culpability, it must have been obvious to those closest to Ms. Locklear that she was a woman who needed some help. It took another near-disaster before her loved ones intervened.

In 2011, it was announced that her engagement to boyfriend Jack Wagner was at an end. Their on-again off-again romance appears to have mirrored the turbulence inside Ms. Locklear because just this past month her ingestion of a cocktail of prescription medications (likely Xanax) and alcohol left her so disoriented that her sister placed a frantic call to 911. Ms. Locklear ended up in Los Robles hospital because her family was concerned that she might try to harm herself. The family later said that the star was out of any immediate danger but did announce their desire to see her enter residential rehab treatment again.

It has been said that we live out of our hearts. Ms. Locklear’s heart has been sorely tested over the past six years. Prescription medications and alcohol have not been sufficient to mend what has been damaged inside of the star’s beautiful exterior. Hopefully, she will agree to her family’s wishes that she seek residential rehab treatment. Addressing the issues inside of Ms. Locklear is the best hope for conquering the outside issues plaguing her.