Jason Wahler's Alcohol Use Was Difficult on His Parents

TV star Jason Wahler is a big name when it comes to reality TV. He's been on hit shows like Laguna Beach, The Hills, and Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew. Since then, he's been open about his struggle with addiction and how fame has affected his life.

But Jason's life isn't the only one that was affected by his actions. His parents also dealt with some of the ramifications of his alcohol addiction. So, who are Jason Wahler's parents and do they have a strong relationship with their son now?

Jason is the only child of Rick and Denese Wahler. Although it's unclear what his mom does for a living, Jason's dad works in real estate development. According to his LinkedIn, Rick is an advisor at Trivest Builders, Inc., a contracting company that specializes in commercial and residential buildings. On his own website, Jason says that he has a great relationship with his parents now, but that may not have always been the case.

Jason explains that fame brought a lot of stress on his parents. When Laguna Beach first aired, Jason says it felt like everyone all of a sudden knew who he was. Even though he loved the attention, he didn't like that people would stand outside of his parents' house just to try and get pictures of them. But fame isn't the only aspect of his life that Jason says had a negative effect on his family.

In 2010, Jason appeared on the fourth season of Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew. He dealt with an addiction to alcohol and writes on his website that he began shooting for the show when he was only 60 days sober, but says that staying sober was more difficult than stopping in the first place. He continues to detail the way his drinking took a toll on his parents.

"I saw exactly how my drinking was affecting my parents," Jason writes in the "History" section of his bio. "My dad, who is my hero and in my mind walked around with a Superman 'S' on his shirt, sat in his chair a defeated man." He recalls his mom and dad basically waiting for a phone call telling them their son had died.

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Jason's net worth is $300,000. Aside from being a reality TV star, he's also a writer whose work appears in The Huffington Post. Since Lauren Conrad revealed on Whitney Port's podcast that she didn't get paid much to be on Laguna Beach, it's possible that Jason wasn't compensated much either.

According to The LA Times, people were paid to be on Celebrity Rehab, but it's unclear how much. In 2019, Jason also helped publicly launch The Red Songbird Foundation to help people struggling with alcohol and substance use.