Demi Lovato reveals brain damage from 2018 overdose in four-part documentary series “Demi Lovato: Dancing With the Devil”

LOS ANGELES – Demi Lovato’s drug overdose in 2018 led to the singer having three strokes and a heart attack, leaving her with physical limitations that still plague her.

Lovato publicly reveals details of the near-fatal incident for the first time in “Demi Lovato: Dancing With the Devil,” a four-part documentary series that debuts March 23 on YouTube Originals.

In the trailer, Lovato says doctors told her family she had five to ten minutes to live.

“I had brain damage, and I still suffer the effects today,” she said on a video call Wednesday. “I don’t drive a car because I have blind spots in my vision. For a long time, I had a hard time reading. It was a big problem when I got to read a book two months later. , because my vision was so blurry. “

Lovato said the lasting repercussions “are always there to remind me of what could happen if I ever find myself in a dark place.”

The 28-year-old singer, who sported pink hair on roll call, has been working since she was 10, when she appeared on the “Barney & Friends” television series. She first went to rehab at 18, after struggling with bipolar disorder, anorexia and bullying.

Lovato previously shared her private struggles in a 2012 MTV documentary and in a 2017 YouTube document in which she said she was still struggling with alcohol and cocaine addictions after undergoing further rehabilitation. She said speaking publicly about these programs gave her the responsibility that kept her sober for six years until her relapse in 2018.

“My goal in posting this is to help people who have been on the same path as me,” she said. “I wanted to set the record straight and I wanted to reveal everything to my fans.”

Lovato’s family, along with Elton John and Christina Aguilera, are among those interviewed in the document which has been filmed for over a year. In the third segment, Lovato discusses past traumas in his life.

Lovato does not relate to performers who claim to be the most creative when they are in a dark place or using drugs.

“I feel the best job I do is when I’m around and when I’m aware of what’s going on in my life,” she says. “This is when the truth comes out of me. As long as I keep speaking my truth, I will make music that resonates with people.”

Lovato relaunched her singing career at last year’s Grammy Awards and sang the national anthem at the 2020 Super Bowl before the coronavirus pandemic took hold.

Last month, Lovato sang on a TV special marking the inauguration of President Joe Biden.

Despite his near-death experience, Lovato would not change what had happened to him.

“Everything had to happen for me to learn the lessons I had learned,” she said. “I look back and sometimes I’m sad when I think about the pain I had to go through to get over what I have. I’m so proud of the person I am today. One of the main reasons why I’m running is so I never have to live this life again. ”