Demi Lovato Lost Her Childhood To Mental Abuse, Drug Addiction

Though she hasn’t done hard drugs since her relapse, Lovato admitted that she’s now smoking weed and drinking in moderation. Hospital after suffering what appears to be a heroin overdose, law enforcement tells TMZ. Demi was out Monday night celebrating a friend’s birthday in West Hollywood, and we’re told she posted photos on her private Instagram of herself and others in the group. Lockdown, like the recovery time following her overdose, forced Lovato to take a breath, though she spent its first seven months in a whirlwind romance that ended in a broken engagement. (More on that later.) “My spiritual healer had warned me last year and said, ‘Hey, just so you know, things are about to slow down, like, a lot,’” she said. In “Dancing With the Devil,” Lovato reveals personal images of her recovery from her 2018 overdose.

• For those who have personally suffered similar stories, however, Lovato’s documentary series can be revealing and help remove the stigma of discussing addiction and mental health.
• Just one month after celebrating six years of sobriety onstage during a March 2018 concert with DJ Khaled, Demi reveals she relapsed with “drugs and alcohol” following a photo shoot.
• The term “Cali sober,” Lhooq wrote, is also commonly used by people who abstain from all substances except marijuana.
• While they didn’t know it then, this would be the catalyst that started their quick descent down the dangerous path of addiction.

And while the procedure was successful, Lovato still suffered from temporary blindness and parts of her vision will never fully return. Shortly thereafter, Lovato had realized her drug use had developed into a full physical dependency during a trip to Bali (where she wrote her single “Sober“). After returning to her home in Los Angeles, Lovato’s use of hardcore drugs had increased, leading to her July 24, 2018 overdose. “His death was very complicated because we don’t know the exact day he died,” she says in episode one. “He had been laying there for about a week and a half before anyone found him…that was the fear that I always had for him, that he would end up alone and he did, he died alone.”

Like many women struggling with addiction, Demi Lovato coped through drugs and alcohol. In fact, research shows that 75 percent of females in addiction treatment have experienced sexual abuse. While everyone’s path to recovery looks a bit different, there are typically trials and tribulations along the way. Demi Lovato’s journey is full of pain, trauma, pressure, as well as a pressing desire to break free from all of it. Like many people struggling with addiction, she escaped in the form of drugs and alcohol.

Demi Lovato Has Done Heroin Since Her Near-Fatal 2018 Overdose

Cronin makes a distinction between this approach and the philosophy of harm reduction, which is when someone uses strategies to manage their usage and reduce the harmful or life-threatening consequences of drug or alcohol use. “I’ve learned that shutting the door on things makes me want to open the door even more. I’ve learned that it doesn’t work for me to say ‘I’m never going to do this again,'” she confessed. “Telling myself that I can never have a drink or smoke marijuana, I feel like that’s setting myself up for failure, because I am such a black-and-white thinker.” Lovato’s post-overdose road to recovery hasn’t been easy, and it included a sizable relapse.

I now need time to heal and focus on my sobriety and road to recovery. The love you have all shown me will never be forgotten and I look forward to the day where I can say I came out on the other side. Not to mention, they were working hard to balance both acting and singing careers.

Demi even shares at one point that they’re “just going to say it all,” adding that the production team can take out anything if they decide not to use it. Recovery from alcohol and drug addiction is possible, for you or a loved one. Demi Lovato the most important things you can do to help an alcoholic revealed they “rarely” think about using drugs anymore after being completely sober for nearly eight months. Demi Lovato said they “rarely” think about using drugs anymore after giving up their “California sober” lifestyle in December 2021.

Demi Lovato flaunts abs in makeup-free selfie

The prescription drug naloxone can reverse an overdose and save lives — but access can be difficult for the uninsured. Couey emphasizes that decades of research support evidence-based addiction interventions such as U.S. Food and the signs of a high functioning alcoholic Drug Administration –approved medications, feedback informed treatment,12-step programs, and cognitive behavioral therapy. Why might using another substance in moderation hamper efforts toward recovery for an addicted individual?

Exposing her imperfections to the world did little to alleviate internal pressures, though. Behind the scenes, Lovato pushed herself to be the idealized version of a successful pop star as her career progressed. Her first two albums from 2008 and 2009 were filled with spunky pop-punk in the mode of Ashlee Simpson and Avril Lavigne.

Life on the road had its challenges for Demi, and they were starting to catch up with them. By the age of 17, Demi was experimenting with cocaine and later progressed to alcohol, Adderall, and Xanax. After success on “Barney and Friends,” Demi’s acting career progressed to the infamous Disney Channel. Here, their acting career soared, and a singing career started to take flight as well.

“A stimulating conversation, food, drink, sex, or substance use can all lead the brain to release dopamine.” But different substances don’t release the same amount of dopamine. While a person may experience a small burst of the hormone while drinking a glass of wine, substances like opioids lead to extreme surges, hundreds to thousands of times greater, he says. Hails from Maine and does extensive work in the field of behavioral health as both a professional writer and passionate advocate for those suffering.

“She just started sobbing because she thought from then on I wouldn’t be able to see.” “I’m just like, ‘Do I call 911?’ What do I do? So I called,” Jordan recalls. “I just remember sneaking downstairs to make the phone call because I didn’t want to get in trouble for calling 911.” She goes on to reveal she was told by someone to request “no sirens” when the ambulance arrived. And it was on a trip to Bali that she realized she had become “physically dependent” on heroin, which lead her to write her 2018 hit single “Sober.” “I crossed a line that I had never crossed in the world of addiction,” the “It’s OK Not to Be OK” songstress says.

Demi was once again caught in a vicious cycle of drinking and abusing cocaine, which only intensified their struggle with bulimia, bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety, and suicidal tendencies. This dangerous binge lasted until the spring of 2012, and after a few months of sobriety, she checked themselves into a sober house. From there, Demi worked hard on her recovery and stayed sober for six years. The combination of their father’s struggle with addiction and mental illness and the push to become a child star truly robbed Demi of any semblance of a normal childhood. While they didn’t know it then, this would be the catalyst that started their quick descent down the dangerous path of addiction. Over 21 million Americans struggle with addiction in each passing year, yet so few get the treatment they need in order to live a healthy and prosperous life.

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(She can no longer drive and described the lingering effects as resembling sunspots.) The drug dealer who brought her heroin that night sexually assaulted her, then left her close to death. After a year-long spiral, Demi was admitted into an addiction treatment center for the first time in 2010 to address her problems with self-harm, bulimia, and substance abuse. During her treatment, Lovato was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, which proved to be an eye-opener and explained some of their erratic behavior leading up to admission. In January 2011, Lovato left rehab and resumed her normal responsibilities. Unfortunately, Demi decided not to utilize the tools and strategies they learned in treatment, and not only resumed their regular responsibilities but a precarious lifestyle, too. Since the time they were 17, Demi has struggled heavily with addiction, eating disorders, and mental illness.

“I had three strokes, I had a heart attack, I suffered brain damages from three strokes,” she explains. “I can’t drive anymore and I have blind spots in my vision, so sometimes when I go to pour a glass of water, I’ll like, totally miss the cup because I can’t see it anymore. I also had pneumonia ’cause I asphyxiated and multiple organ failure.” In a candid new docuseries, Demi Lovato discusses her overdose, mental health, and experiences of sexual assault.

From his own personal encounters with mental illness, he speaks to those seeking healthy relief from depression and anxiety and embraces wellness both personally and professionally. After losing friends and family to the darkness of suicide, Eric aims to educate and inform about the nature of treatment and render it accessible for all those seeking a way out of darkness and despair. Appearance on the beloved children’s show “Barney and Friends.” While their fun-loving and bubbly character on television was heartwarming and endearing, life outside of the show was quite the opposite.

What Happened To Demi Lovato During Their Overdose? The Singer Opens Up In Youtube Doc

Lovato’s experience makes it clear that, even for those in the public eye, we often don’t know the full picture of what’s going on in someone else’s life. And, when it comes to substance use, recovery can be a particularly long road with plenty of ups and downs. The best way to help those with substance use issues like Lovato’s is to provide easy access to compassionate, individualized care—without judgment.

Their journey to sobriety is a harrowing one but comes with a wealth of lessons we can learn from. From the start, Demi Lovato has been very transparent about their struggle with substance abuse in hopes that it will help others who are fighting the same battle. On July 24, 2018, Demi Lovato overdosed on a dangerous mix of the opioid drugs, heroin and fentanyl. Despite the friends she held close, and the team of assistants and therapists that monitored her closely, no one was fully aware of her relapse to hard drugs after six years of sobriety. “Demi is very good at hiding what she needs to hide,” her sister explained in an interview.

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The term is often attributed to Michelle Lhooq, a writer who published anarticle on Vice.com in 2019 about streamlining her substance use to improve her health. Lhooq quit all drugs except marijuanaand certain psychedelics when she moved from the 6 stages of change in addiction recovery New York to California (one of the states that had legalized marijuana use at the time, hence the name “California sober”). The term “Cali sober,” Lhooq wrote, is also commonly used by people who abstain from all substances except marijuana.

Demi Lovato Details How They Hit Her Head On A Crystal

“I’m in such acceptance of my life the way that it is that I really rarely think about substances, which is a beautiful thing and something that I never thought would happen to me,” the pop star said on Boston radio station Mix 104.1 on Thursday. While Demi’s best friend and choreographer Dani Vitale was unaware that the singer was doing heroine, she was with the “Sorry” singer the night of her overdose. Because it was her birthday they were celebrating, Dani ended up becoming the target of Demi’s loyal fanbase’s rage, revealing she received “four to five thousand death threats” per day at one point. Two weeks after her relapse, Demi reveals she was “introduced to heroin and crack cocaine. I started using recreationally and obviously you can’t do that with heroin before you become addicted to it.” “I don’t even know why I’m sober anymore. I am so miserable. I’m not happy. I have all this stuff that I’m dealing with,” she recalls thinking at the time. “I picked up a bottle of red wine that night and it wasn’t 30 minutes before I called someone who I knew had drugs on them. I’m surprised I didn’t OD that night.”

In Communications from the University of Central Florida and has 6 years of professional writing experience. A passion for writing led her to a career in journalism, and she worked as a news reporter for 3 years, focusing on stories in the healthcare and wellness industry. Knowledge in healthcare led to an interest in drug and alcohol abuse, and she realized how many people are touched by addiction.

McIntyre says that Lovato had shown signs of depression, such as “sleeping all day,” and struggling with “anger management” issues while touring, which coincided with her experimenting with drugs and alcohol, including cocaine. For those who have personally suffered similar stories, however, Lovato’s documentary series can be revealing and help remove the stigma of discussing addiction and mental health. The person who found Demi Lovato was her assistant and friend, Jordan Jackson. She was coming to wake the singer up for an appointment, only to find that Lovato was unresponsive in her bed. Jackson thought she was dead, but called 911 despite other’s wishes to keep the overdose as secret as possible.

“I lost my virginity in a rape. I called that person back a month later and tried to make it right by being in control and all it did was just make me feel worse.” “I wanted it now to be my choice and he also had something that I wanted, which were drugs,” she continues. The star goes on to reveal the night she returned home after “a week-long intensive trauma retreat,” calling her dealer and taking drugs.