Jenelle Evans Speaks out About Addiction Following Demi Lovato Overdose

Jenelle Evans has some encouraging words for Demi Lovato following the pop star's apparent [...]

By Libby Birk

Jenelle Evans has some encouraging words for Demi Lovato following the pop star's apparent overdose on Tuesday.

The Teen Mom 2 star took to Twitter to wish Lovato a healthy recovery and to encourage those struggling with drug addiction to reach out for help.

"If you need help or support in time of immediate need, please seek it. Hearing this news about @ddlovato breaks my heart. I hope she's okay," Evans wrote Tuesday evening. "You're strong girl, don't let the devil drag you down."

In a follow-up tweet, Evans directed a more general message at her 1 million followers. "Please find someone you trust, tell them the truth, ask for help," she said. "It's ok, I promise. It's scary, it's emabarrssing, but being sober is better than being dead."

Lovato was rushed to the hospital Tuesday morning after police and paramedics responded to her Hollywood Hills home on an apparent overdose call. While the overdose was widely reported as heroin initially, several sources for different media outlets have said she was not using heroin.

Like Lovato, Evans has been open about her past with drug addiction. In her book, Read Between the Lines: From the Diary of a Teenage Mom, Evans wrote that she once used heroin four or five times a day during the peak of her addiction.

"Before I knew it, I was shooting up four or five times a day. I was hooked," she wrote.

In February, Evans admitted that she tested positive for THC after giving birth to her daughter, Ensley, last year.

"I'm not going to lie about that," she said on Vince Russo's The Brand podcast. "I tested positive for THC and Ensley did not test positive. I did. So CPS were like — I was in the hospital — they said, 'Did you smoke when you were pregnant?' I said, 'I did within the past 30 days. I said I have really bad esophageal spasms and I throw up every 5 minutes, I can't even eat.' And they said, 'Okay, some moms do that. We are not here to judge, we are writing down your information.'"

In the past, Lovato has opened up about her addiction to drugs and alcohol. She had been sober for six years before releasing her song, "Sober," in June that revealed she had relapsed.

"Momma, I'm so sorry, I'm not sober anymore," Lovato sings on the track. "And daddy, please forgive me for the drinks spilled on the floor. To the ones who never left me, We've been down this road before. I'm so sorry, I'm not sober anymore."

Multiple sources for Entertainment Tonight reported that her relapse took place during her ongoing "Tell Me You Love Me" world tour, sometime in between April and the end of May. The relapse was reportedly only in regards to alcohol.

"Demi relapsed and started drinking alcohol again," a source said. "Her song ('Sober') is intense, but that's how she deals. She has to be brutally honest and put it out there so that she's not burdened with holding on to her struggles privately."

Lovato's representatives confirmed that the 25-year-old was recovering Tuesday night.

"Demi is awake and with her family who want to express thanks to everyone for the love, prayers and support. Some of the information being reported is incorrect and they respectfully ask for privacy and not speculation as her health and recovery is the most important thing right now," the statement to Entertainment Tonight read.

When police arrived at Lovato's home on Tuesday, she reportedly refused to tell responders what she took before the apparent overdose. Those close to Lovato said an overdose was "absolutely what so many people feared."

"This is absolutely what so many people feared would happen. She has not been sober for quite some time but more tragically, has had no interest in being sober," a source told PEOPLE.

"The disease Demi has is a vicious liar and it's been telling her for some time that she can use just a little, just one or two drinks, nothing too serious, nothing bad will happen, she can keep it under control," the source said. "And when she could, for a few months, it seemed like vindication to her, proof that she could keep it under control."

The source continued, "It led to her believing in the myth of moderation and controlled consumption, which absolutely does not work if you are an addict."

0comments
Start the Conversation

of