Demi Lovato is clearing up some misconceptions about her history of drug abuse.
The 28-year-old star spoke about the realities of substance abuse during a candid conversation on Diane Guerrero’s “Yeah No, I’m Not Okay” podcast.
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Lovato wanted to shed some light on the common belief that “if people are using drugs or if they are dealing with an eating disorder or self-harm they want to die.”
Conversely, the former Disney Channel actress said she believes drugs “stopped me from dying,” before adding, “In the same way it almost killed me, it saved my life at times, because there were times that I dealt with suicidal ideations. And had I gone forward with that in that moment, instead of another destructive coping mechanism, I wouldn’t be here to tell my story.”
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After recovering from her addictions, Lovato now thinks she “turned to those coping mechanisms because I genuinely was in so much pain that I didn’t want to die and I didn’t know what else to do.”
She continued, “I did the best that I could at times and now that I have other tools and other resources, I know how else to deal and how else to cope so I don’t have to resort to those behaviours again.”
Lovato has been open about her struggles with addiction, singing about them on her 2018 single “Sober”.
Her new documentary, “Dancing with the Devil”, will premiere Tuesday, March 23, on YouTube Originals.
