Is Demi Lovato suffering from bipolar disorder? Here's the truth behind pop sensation's bipolar diagnosis
Demi Lovato is undoubtedly one of the most talented musicians of this generation and has given a plethora of soul-touching tunes. The 28-year-old singer-songwriter has made a fortune by creating best-selling albums over the years and made herself a household name. However, her journey has been not that easy. From battling addiction to enduring heartbreaks, Lovato has seen everything and still managed to get right back up on her feet.
One of the most baffling situations occurred when she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. The diagnosis made her feel miserable and changed her as a person. However, her life changed when she got to know that everything about her bipolar disorder was a “lie.”
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Before going into the specifics of what really happened, let’s take a look at how Lovato got to know about the disorder and how she became so vocal about it.
What is bipolar disorder?
According to Health Line, bipolar disorder is a mental illness associated with extreme shifts in mood. Symptoms can include an extremely elevated mood called mania along with episodes of depression and anxiety. The disease is also known as manic depression.
The exact cause of bipolar disorder isn’t known, but a combination of genetics, environment, and altered brain structure and chemistry may play a role.
When and How Lovato was diagnosed with the disease?
In 2012, MTV premiered a documentary about the musician entitled ‘Stay Strong’ which followed her recovery after leaving rehab and her return to the music industry. The documentary touched a lot of aspects of her life and one of them was living with a deadly disease like bipolar disorder. In the documentary, she revealed that she was diagnosed with the illness in 2010 and got herself admitted to the Timberline Knolls Residential Treatment Center for treatment.
From October 30, 2010, to January 27, 2011, Lovato received intense in-patient treatment at the medical facility, which specializes in the treatment of eating disorders, substance abuse, and addiction, and mood disorders in women.
In the film, Lovato also noted that she wanted to talk about it because some people need to hear my story. The ‘Sorry Not Sorry’ hitmaker further stated that she did not know she was sick and thought that writing seven songs in one night was “normal.”
“I thought that writing seven songs in one night was normal. I thought that staying up until 5:30 in the morning is normal. Last night, I stayed up until five in the morning. I just couldn't sleep. My mind was racing and it's an ongoing thing and I still learn how to cope with it,” Lovato said in the documentary.
She credits Mike Bayer, a personal development coach, for saving her life and believes that he helped her through her substance abuse and mental health issues to become the pop-icon she is today.
Meanwhile, Bayer admitted the singing-sensation was indeed a “tough” client and went through a lot during her life. He credited Lovato for saving herself and taking this very seriously.
The singer has never shied away from talking about the problems she is facing or faced in her life. The singer said, “I knew that there were two options: I could either not talk about my stint in rehab and hope that it went away, or I could talk about it and inspire people to get help for their issues, as well, so that’s exactly what I did.”
The 'misdiagnosis' of Lovato’s mental health
By now, you must have got to know how many difficulties she faced after being diagnosed with bipolar disorder. She went away from music and locked herself up in a medical facility so that she could come to her senses.
She quickly became a poster child of sorts of bipolar and associated herself with a number of organizations to remove the stigma around mental illness.
However, in the recent YouTube docuseries ‘Demi Lovato: Dancing with the Devil’, the musician revealed that she believes she was misdiagnosed with a mental illness. In the documentary, Lovato also shared that she was having difficulties when she turned 18 and was “acting out” for many reasons.
But Lovato says that she has confirmed from multiple medical professionals about all the things she endured during that time. To her horror, every single one of them told her that it was “NOT” bipolar disorder.
“You take something public you become an advocate for it. I was acting out when I was 18 for many reasons, but I know now from multiple different doctors that it was not because I was bipolar. I had to grow the (explicit) up,” Lovato explained.
The shocking story of her misdiagnosis has baffled everyone because being a patient of bipolar disorder is not something that anyone would like. Going through her previous work, makes people believe that she did have some similar symptoms. The fear of abandonment, idealization, explosive temperament, self-harm, impulsivity, and identity issues was all evident.
But, Lovato has set the record straight that she was misdiagnosed and had to undergo a lot of difficult situations. The only way that we can get some confirmation about what she said is if the doctors come forward and talk about it.