8 Times Demi Lovato Got Real About Mental Health And Body Image
"One of the scariest moments in life, is when you come to the realization that the only person that can save you is yourself..."
Demi Lovato is one of the baddest bitches out there. Especially in Hollywood. She's confident, smart, hilarious and not afraid to speak her mind. The other thing that makes Demi the best is that she reminds us that she's also simply a human being. The singer has been extremely vocal about her past struggles with addiction, bipolar disorder and and an eating disorder.
For anyone struggling with mental health issues, it's really exhilarating to have a celebrity role model like Demi speak up and prove that you can overcome your struggles. In a shallow celeb world, it's a breath of fresh air to listen to someone who actually gets it.
Here are 8 times Demi got candid about mental health and body image.
1. When she spoke about being a Disney star—a period in her life when she didn't think she'd make it 21
Demi revealed that when she was shooting "Camp Rock" at age 15, she was afraid she would become the next Britney Spears or Lindsay Lohan—who were each going through a downward spiral at the time.
"Making Camp Rock, I was definitely like, 'Oh crap. In three years, that's going to be me," she told American Way. As her fame grew, she feared that she would one day burn out. "I lived fast and I was going to die young. I didn't think I would make it to 21."
Now, she reveals that it's her fan's energy that keeps her going.
"When I have meet-and-greets, I can't tell you the amount of times that girls will show me their arms covered in scars or cuts", she said. "They'll tell me, 'You helped me get through this. Because of you, I stopped self-harming, or I got sober.' Hearing those things gave my life new meaning."
2. When she posed naked for Vanity Fair and opted against Photoshop, reminding us our natural bodies are beautiful
This photo shoot paralleled her 2015 album, "Confident" where she posed nude and without makeup to show off her body, flaws and all.
"Well, you can't get any more raw or authentic than no makeup, naked with no Photoshop," Demi told Extra. "I wanted to show people that you can go from having body-image issues your whole life to feeling comfortable enough to show your body to the whole world without Photoshop."
She also said of the photo shoot, "I've worked really hard on my body. This is the first time in my life I felt the freedom to do these kind of photo shoots. To go against everyone's standards and say, 'No, this is what I'm gonna do based off of what you think perfection is or what beauty is, this is just me,' that was so incredibly empowering."
3. When she tweeted this groundbreakingly real statement about battling depression and low self-esteem
When we let depression consume us, it's easy to lose sight of ourselves. The first step is to self-aware enough to get help.
4. When she launched Be Vocal, a campaign to encourage people struggling with mental illness to talk about it
Demi founded Be Vocal to inspire people living with bipolar disorder to start speaking up about it. She believes that leading the conversation will break the stigma of mental illness.
"With addiction, there are times that people think, 'Well why doesn't this person just stop drinking? or Why doesn't this person just eat something?," she said. "For people who have eating disorders. It's not that simple. If it were, so many people wouldn't be struggling with it. Lives wouldn't be lost. I wish that people could understand that the brain is the most important organ in your body. Just because you can't see it like you could see a broken bone doesn't mean it's not as detrimental and devastating to a family or an individual."
5. When she inspired everyone to make healthy lifestyle changes and to love themselves
Yessss girl.
6. When she said that "people are uneducated about bipolar"
"For me, I suffered a lot with bipolar depression, which is not talked about," Demi said about living with her illness. "And, I wish people knew it wasn't as easy as just becoming happy."
A lot of people struggling with depression have probably been told that it's a choice to be miserable. Hearing Demi's words and spreading awareness is why we love her.
7. When she shut down society's obsession with the thigh gap
Demi spoke out about her bikini Instagram post, basically dissing the whole idea of a thigh gap in general.
"I keep hearing this thigh gap thing and when you hear it so many times it starts to get embedded into your head," she said. "I think it's important that somebody says, 'Hey if you don't have this, it doesn't mean that you're not beautiful and it doesn't mean that you don't have a beautiful body. I don't naturally have one, but I feel really confident in my shape and I've worked on it and gotten to a really healthy place. I know that I may not have one, but I've come really far and I'm proud of the body that I'm in today and I just want women to feel that way as well."
8. When she revealed her personal treatment plan, inspiring us all
"Some people go on a treatment plan for a couple years, go off it," she said. "And they're fine; [mine] may last my entire life, or it may not. I take it day by day."
Demi's tool for getting through the day? Personal mantras. "I don't think I could choose just one favorite one," she says. "I have so many favorite mantras and quotes that I put them in a book."
It's great that Demi can relate to her fans on such a personal level. She really is an inspiration to us all and is living proof that anyone can overcome even their most difficult struggle.