Celebrity News

Demi Lovato: I was suicidal at 7

Demi Lovato has opened up about her struggles in a revealing new interview.

The former Disney star, who has openly admitted to cutting and cocaine abuse in the past, says the new issue Cosmopolitan that she felt suicidal before the age of seven and that she was bullied as a youngster.

On her first acting gig at age 7 on “Barney & Friends,” she said, “At the time, I was just so grateful to be on TV, but I was also really struggling.”

“Even before Barney, I was suicidal. I was 7,” she said.

At the tender age of 20, Lovato already had her fair share of struggles: “I’ve talked about being bullied and the years of being a teenager, but I went through things when I was younger that I’ve never talked about that probably caused me to turn out the way I ended up turning out.”

On her past struggles with bulimia and cutting, the “Warrior” singer told the magazine, “I’m not super religious, but I grew up Christian and I believe in God. When I’m in LA, I don’t talk about it that much because people are very judgmental, but I just feel like God gave me a voice, not just to sing with. He put me through those things, which seemed horrible at the time, but they were so worth it. With the obstacles I’ve overcome, I can help people.”

Lovato said she doesn’t find herself relating to the hard-partying celebrity lifestyle. “When I look at someone who’s out there partying excessively or rappers rapping about doing drugs, who people look up to, and think, Oh that’s a G; that’s a gangster. I think, You’re actually being a giant [bleep].”

She added, “If you’re spending your entire early 20s chasing the next party, what are you running away from? That’s not a badass. What’s a badass is when you can sit through your problems and feel emotions when you don’t want to have them.”

Lovato concluded, “There have been nights where I’ve had to sit on my hands, because I want to act out, because I physically can’t sit still in the pain I’m dealing with, from looking back and being bullied or other things that happened. And now, as hard as it may be, I will do that. That’s what makes me a badass. Being a badass is handing your [bleep].”

Lovato’s biological father, Patrick, died last weekend at age 54 after battling cancer. The singer has been estranged from him, but she tweeted recently that attending the funeral was the “hardest thing” she’s ever done.

“I put my Daddy to rest…. hardest thing I’ve ever done.. But I know great things will come of this… #LovatoTreatmentScholarship,” she tweeted. “There’s an overwhelming sense of peace knowing my dad is no longer battling his demons anymore and that makes me so happy…”