In a recent interview on 20/20, Disney star Demi Lovato explains her surprise on learning that she was bipolar.
“I had no idea that I was even bipolar until I went into treatment, the “Camp Rock” actress admits. “I was actually manic a lot of the times that I would take on workloads, and I would say, ‘Yes, I can do this, I can do this, I can do this.’ I was conquering the world, but then I would come crashing down, and I would be more depressed than ever.”
Lovato not only suffered from deep depression but over the years had an eating disorder (bulimia) and she regularly cut herself. Luckily, however, her family was on hand to step in to lend support and help her. “They sat me down and said, ‘You can’t live like this,'” she says of her family.
Once confronted she checked into the Timberline Knolls treatment facility in Illinois and began to work on her recovery. She said of the process: “For the first time in my life, I started to feel.”
Earlier this year Lovato attacked her back-up dancer and friend Alex Welch by punching her in the face, which she now says: “I take 100 percent full responsibility. I feel horrible. She was my friend.”
Taking down her workload a notch, the singer/actress will not be returning to the show that made her a household name, ‘Sonny With a Chance.’
Be sure to watch Demi’s full interview which airs tonight at 10pm EST on ABC. Check out a preview below:
