From Barney, to Rehab, to Recovery
Demi Lovato’s transition from childhood star, to recovering addict.
Almost everyone born in the 90s can recall days of their childhood spent watching Barney and Friends in the early morning, or remember the nights we asked to stay up past bedtime to watch a new Disney Channel movie. Along with Barney and Friends, the movie Camp Rock was among my favorite childhood memories. During this time of my life, I valued these shows tremendously, as well as one of the actresses that played on each of them- Demi Lovato. During my childhood, I knew Demi as a fun-loving singer and actress who charmed the public eye, but now I know that Demi’s real story lies in her struggle with addiction, self-harm, an eating disorder, and her ability to overcome each of those obstacles.
Demi Lovato came into the acting industry at the early age of seven when she was featured on Barney and Friends. She was successful on the show, and it led to her starring on Saved by the Bell. In 2008, Demi’s career finally took off with the release of Camp Rock. The movie was a huge hit among teenagers, and gave her the extra attention she needed in order to truly begin her career.
After featuring in Camp Rock, Demi recorded three songs with the Jonas Brothers. At the time, the Jonas Brothers already had a solid fan base, and the exposure Demi received from working with the brothers amplified her stardom. It was not long after recording with the Jonas Brothers that Demi released her own album, Don’t Forget. The following year, she released her second album, Here We Go Again, and immediately after, Demi went on tour with the Jonas Brothers.
Going on tour with the Jonas Brothers amplified the attention that was already on Demi. Demi’s stardom grew even more when she also began to date Joe Jonas. Everything seemed to be going incredibly well for Demi. Her career was perfect and only getting better, and she was in a relationship with someone who shared her passion of music. To the public, Demi was living her dream and enjoying every minute of it. Until suddenly, she was not.
While on tour with the Jonas Brothers, it became apparent that Demi was not acting like herself. She was becoming moodier, and no longer seemed to enjoy singing. It was not until she got into an altercation with one of the back-up dancers that the public realized something was going on. After this event, Demi was sent to a facility for treatment, but no one knew what was actually wrong.
Shortly after going into a treatment facility, it was revealed that Demi had an eating disorder, and had been harming herself. To most people, this would did not make sense. Why would a young girl with such a promising career resort to self-harm? Once more information was out, the public learned that Demi was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Demi underwent treatment for several months. She was in and out of rehab for a few years due to relapsing several times after.
After three years of struggling to stay out of rehab, Demi finally came out to the public about what had been going on in her life all that time. In 2013, Demi released that she not only had resorted to self-harm and an eating disorder, but she also abused drugs.
“Something I’ve never talked about before, but with my drug use I could hide it to where I would sneak drugs. I couldn’t go without 30 minutes to an hour without cocaine and I would bring it on airplanes.”
Drug abuse is not completely uncommon among stars, but Demi’s beginning with drugs is what surprised the pubic the most. At the young age of 12, Demi left school because she was being severely bullied about her weight and appearance, which led to her eating disorder. Shortly after leaving school, Demi was in a car crash. Due to an injury, Demi was provided with pain killers, and her drug abuse began.
It was not long after Demi’s accident that her career skyrocketed. Most seemed to believe she was living the life. Despite her promising career, Demi continued to harm herself and abuse drugs, and this abuse only got worse.
After attending rehab, and coming to the public with her problems, Demi decided to create something positive out of her experience. Demi turned to her music instead of soaking in the situation, and released her album “Skyscraper.” Along with her music, Demi turned to service work to work past her struggles. On her 21st birthday, Demi spent her time in Kenya building a village school instead of going out and drinking. She also has continued her career, and worked on the X Factor. Demi did not stop pursuing her passion when her life got rough, but instead went on to work past her mistakes and teach others how to persevere.
“Getting sober was difficult. 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. But I like to focus on what I’m doing now, which is giving back.”- Demi Lovato
