Demi Lovato Used Opiates At 13 “Looking For An Escape”

If Demi Lovato is consistent in one thing, it’s in her ability to surprise. The singer has always been extremely candid about her life, whether it’s her journey with addiction or her staunch belief in the dignity of extraterrestrials.

On the latest episode of Call Her Daddy, Lovato shares her history of substance abuse, which she says started as early as age 12, when she was prescribed opiates after a car accident.

“My mom didn’t think she would have to lock up the opiates from her 13-year-old daughter but I was already drinking at that point,” she told host Alexandra Cooper.

“I had been bullied and was looking for an escape,” Lovato continued, saying that her mom locked up the pills after she discovered how many Lovato had taken.

Lovato also talked about her relationship with alcohol. She says she “drank a lot” as a teenager, would steal beer from her stepdad’s refrigerator and was alone the first time she drank.

“[That] should have been a major red flag,” she said.

Her love of alcohol bloomed, as it can, into a love of harder substances. “At 17, it was the first time I tried coke and, like, loved it too much,” she said. She went to rehab shortly after she turned 18, which she says was a “long time coming.”

In 2018, Lovato had a nearly fatal overdose, causing her to have three strokes and a heart attack, after which she went back to rehab. In 2021, she shared that she was “California sober,” but later wrote on Instagram that, "sober sober is the only way to be."

In other areas of her life, Demi seems to be thriving. She recently celebrated her 30th birthday with her boyfriend in Los Angeles earlier this week, and just teased releasing a re-recording of “Cool for the Summer” to Elle. “You never know what I might do in the future,” she said. If anything about this star is true, it’s that!