Demi Lovato Was at Her ‘Lowest Point’ Years Before Her 2018 Overdose
Throughout the years, Demi Lovato has spoken candidly about her past drug use and ongoing journey to recovery. In addition to opening up about some of her darkest moments, the singer has also gone into detail about the lowest points in her life.
While her 2018 overdose was a pretty low point for her, Lovato says her lowest of low came years prior, at a time when she struggled heavily with drugs and alcohol.
Demi Lovato hit rock bottom when she was 19-years-old
In the early 2010s, Lovato went to great lengths to ensure she could use drugs and alcohol whenever and wherever she wanted without people knowing.
Eventually, her addiction became part of her everyday life, which led her to keep drugs and alcohol on her person at all times.
From smuggling cocaine onto airplanes to drinking heavily when her sober companion wasn’t looking, Lovato had fallen into a dark space.
But it wasn’t until the Disney Channel alum traveled with a soda bottle filled with alcohol when she was 19-years-old that she realized she had a problem.
“My last drink was probably my lowest point,” Lovato admitted during a 2013 interview with Access Hollywood. “I was going to the airport and I had a Sprite bottle just filled with vodka and it was just nine in the morning and I was throwing up in the car and this was just to get on a plane to go back to LA to the sober living house that I was staying at…I had all the help in the world, but I didn’t want it.”
The “Skyscraper” singer continued, “When I hit that moment I was like, it’s no longer fun when you’re doing it alone… I think at 19 years old, I had a moment where I was like, ‘Oh my God… that is alcoholic behavior. [It’s] no longer, I’m young and rebellious and out having fun, it was, wow, I’m one of those people…I gotta get my sh*t together.'”
Demi Lovato experienced a near-fatal overdose in 2018
After realizing that she needed to change, Lovato put in the work to try and get clean.
In November 2016, she opened up about the struggles of staying sober to Glamour magazine, sharing that though it was hard to maintain her sobriety.
“Getting sober was difficult,” she said, “I went into rehab, I came out, and I didn’t stay sober. I still had issues occasionally. Now some days it’s difficult; some days it’s easy.”
The following March, the singer celebrated five years of sobriety, writing on Instagram, “I’m so proud of myself, but I couldn’t have done it without my higher power (God), my family, friends, and everyone else who supported me. Feeling humbled and joyful today. Thank you guys for sticking by my side and believing in me.”
Unfortunately, Lovato didn’t maintain her sobriety. In June 2018, she released her song “Sober,” which seemed to imply she’d relapsed.
A month later, the singer was rushed to the hospital for an apparent drug overdose, which she recently revealed triggered a heart attack and three strokes.
Demi Lovato says she had to ‘essentially die to wake up’
After making it through that harrowing experience, Lovato is grateful to be alive. However, she recently revealed in an interview with CBS Sunday Morning that her 2018 overdose was a sign that she needed to make changes to her life.
“The doctors told me that I had five to 10 minutes and … like, if no one had found me, then I wouldn’t be here,” she said. “I, for the first time in my life, had to essentially die to wake up.”
Lovato added, “I didn’t control any of my life at that period of time. I also needed to grow up and take control.”
Now, the “Sorry Not Sorry” hitmaker says she is more “in control” of her life, and is confident that her brush with death made her stronger and happier.
“I feel so good,” she shared. “I feel more joy in my life than I’ve ever felt, because I’m not quieting or diminishing any part of myself.”
