Addiction Recovery Systems (ARS)

Demi Lovato Gives The Dirty Details In New Series On March 23, 2021, viewers got a deep and personal look into Grammy nominated pop-star Demi Lovato’s experience with addiction, overdose, and recovery. The signer held nothing back in the first 2 episodes of her YouTube documentary series Demi Lovato: Dancing with the Devil. Lovato and her friends, family, employees, and even the doctor who worked on Lovato after her 2018 overdose spoke in the documentary, leaving no details out and nothing to the imagination. The series’ first 2 episodes previse a story that tells the real and ugly truth about addiction.Family History Of Substance Abuse When you realize someone is battling addiction, you often see them at the end of the line, after addiction has inflicted its consequences on the individual and those around them. However, typically a lot happens before things come crashing down. Everyone has a story and Lovato’s starts from a very young age. Lovato opened up about her father who she described as an alcoholic and addict. He was abusive to her mother, and according to Lovato’s mother, she witnessed some of the abuse as a child. Her father was also reportedly diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.Those with mental health disorders are much more likely to develop a substance use disorder than the general population. One study found that among those with bipolar disorder, 61% had history of a drug or alcohol use disorder. Among those with schizophrenia, 47% have a serious problem with drugs or alcohol. Using substances to attempt to self-medicate is common for those with mental illness, especially if they do not seek out professional treatment. Due to Lovato’s toxicity in her and her mother’s life, she had to distance herself from him. This made his death a heartbreaking revelation, when Lovato’s father died alone and his body was not found for a week and half.Children of parents who struggle with addiction are at a higher risk of developing an addiction themselves. Lovato’s mother also opened up about her Xanax misuse. When childhood trauma involving abuse and drug misuse is left without professional intervention, it oftentimes presents itself as a repeated cycle when the children grow up. Lovato has spoken openly about her substance abuse and the effects it has had on her life. She started using alcohol as a student and tried Cocaine for the first time at age 17. During this time, she was working for the Disney Channel. In Lovato’s new documentary, she explains that used Cocaine and Xanax together. That combination would eventually escalate to even more dangerous drug use.Get started on the road to recovery.Find Out How ⟶The Overdose Since 2010, Lovato has a history of substance abuse, receiving treatment in rehabs, relapsing, and regaining sobriety. The popstar had a long stint of sobriety, stating that she was celebrating 6 years sober in March 2018. However, in July 2018 the media was flooded with reports that Demi Lovato had suffered an overdose.When Lovato relapsed in 2018, she said in her documentary series, “I picked up a bottle of red wine that night and it wasn’t even 30 minutes before I called someone that I knew had drugs on them.” She proceeded to use drugs that she hadn’t tried before like Methamphetamine. At a party one night she explains using Meth with Molly, Cocaine, Marijuana, alcohol, and OxyContin. She reflects back realizing that that alone should have killed her. At one point she asked her dealer if he had Xanax and Cocaine and he said no, but he did have Heroin and Crack Cocaine.Lovato says at that point she began using Heroin recreationally and became physically dependent on it. Heroin is a powerful Opioid drug made from morphine that comes with severe withdrawal symptoms, such as muscle and bone pain, diarrhea and vomiting, cold flashes, and uncontrollable leg movements.The night of the overdose, Lovato shares that she told her friends she was going up to bed, but actually went upstairs to call a dealer. She used Heroin that she now assumes was actually Fentanyl. After providing the drugs and taking advantage of Lovato, the dealer left her alone. When her assistant found her in the morning, she was naked and blue. At 11:22am on July 24, 2018, a 911 call was made and paramedics rushed to the house, administering Narcan trying to save Lovato’s life.The overdose caused Lovato to suffer 3 strokes and a heart attack. She suffered brain damage from the strokes, has blind spots in her vision, and is now unable to drive. She received dialysis at the hospital as doctors tried to save her, and they did even after she suffered multiple organ failure. The documentary shares that if it had been another 5 to 10 minutes without treatment, Lovato would have died.Questions about treatment? Get confidential help 24/7. Call now for:Access to top treatment centers Caring, supportive guidance Financial assistance options (833) 573-0907 Demi Lovato’s Recovery Since the overdose in 2018, Lovato focused on her physical and mental recovery. She shared in her documentary series that the quarantine brought on by COVID-19 helped her work through her past traumas and rediscover herself. Despite her struggles with substance abuse, Lovato was able to produce 5 award winning albums from 2009 to 2017, and will be releasing a new album April 2nd, with a similar name to her documentary series: Dancing with the Devil … the Art of Starting Over.Demi Lovato: Dancing with the Devil is a reminder that addiction can reach anyone. It doesn’t matter how successful and wealthy a person is, addiction does not discriminate. Lovato’s vulnerability in this series demonstrates that fact. As the series progresses, Lovato will open up more about her history with addiction, sexual assault, an eating disorder, sexuality, and self-growth