Demi Lovato Says She Had To Learn To Set Boundaries After Recovering From Her 2018 Overdose

Demi Lovato shared how putting her foot down with the people around her was an essential step to her recovery.

The 27-year-old songstress has been vocal about her past substance abuse and eating disorders. She explained to Jameela Jamil on the actress’ podcast, I Weigh, how her attitude to her relationships — both platonic and romantic — triggered her addictions. Lovato also said after almost losing her life to a heroin overdose back in October 2018, she knew she had to make serious changes to work on her health, per Us Weekly.

“Learning to set boundaries with other people — that was something that I have just learned over the past year and a half,” Lovato shared with Jamil. “I had to learn that not setting boundaries put me in the position I was in. [I was] talking about every detail of every part of my life, whether it be a relationship or whether it be my recovery, nothing was sacred to me anymore.”

For Lovato, setting boundaries also applies to past relationships. Throughout her stardom, she has publicly dated celebs like Wilmer Valderrama and Joe Jonas. While she said she used to try and maintain the friendships she had with her exes, she doesn’t have the same mindset today. She admitted she isn’t friends with the majority of her former partners, which she feels is for the best. She said she had to “fully let go” of “toxic people” in her life in order to thrive.

While she didn’t share who she’s had to cut out of her life, Lovato has cut ties with several of her famous friends. Although she and Valderrama were still close and kept in contact after ending their six-year relationship in 2017, Lovato confirmed during her Harper’s Bazaar cover interview she and the actor are no longer speaking to one another. She did express her happiness for her former boyfriend, who recently got engaged to Amanda Pacheco after an eight-month courtship.

Lovato also ended her friendships with fellow Disney stars Selena Gomez and the Jonas Brothers. She was recently “canceled” by Gomez’s fans after allegedly making negative comments about her. Despite the rumors, Lovato has said she will always care about her childhood friends.

Now that she has let go of past relationships, Lovato is looking to the future. She has been working on music and recently launched an athleisure line with Fabletics. Earlier this year, she made her return to the stage after an almost two-year hiatus. The songstress performed her first single of the year, “Anyone,” at the Grammy Awards back in January. She then went on to sing the “Star-Spangled Banner” at the Super Bowl in February.