'When you punch someone on a plane, enough is enough': Demi Lovato on her decision to seek help after mid-air meltdown
By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 12:14 AM on 5th August 2011
Demi Lovato has opened up about her mid-air altercation with a back-up dancer and her decision to finally seek help for self-harming, multiple eating disorders and bipolar.
The 19-year-old former Sonny With A Chance star entered rehab for 'emotional and physical issues' in November after she punched Alex Welch in the face while on tour with The Jonas Brothers.
She is understood to have believed Welch, 21, snitched on her to tour managers about her antics on a night out. Demi confronted her while on a flight to Peru and the argument turned physical.
Red hot: Demi Lovato poses in a stylish new shoot for America's Elle magazine
'I just felt like she betrayed me,' Demi tells the new issue of America's Elle magazine, which features a stylish fashion shoot wit the star. 'That’s the bottom line.'
But it was ultimately a turning point for the Disney personality.
'When you punch someone on a plane, enough is enough,' she says.
Her emotional breakdown was rumoured to have been triggered by her ex boyfriend Joe Jonas' new relationship with Twilight starlet Ashley Greene. (The pair have since split).
Back on track: The young singer is back in the spotlight after a difficult year
However, Demi insists she was dealing with much bigger issues.
Mid-air drama: Demi punched dancer Alex Welch in the face in November
'I wouldn’t credit my meltdown to a guy,' she says. 'There was so much other stuff in my life.'
Demi, who was bullied over her weight as a child, says she began overeating at 8.
'Those girls never gave me an explanation for why they were bullying me.
'One of the words they called me was "fat." At that age, you think, "Oh, so I don't have friends because I'm fat.'"
Depression set in three years on and she began cutting herself. In 2008, her publicist tried to cover up the truth of her issues after she arrived on the red carpet with red marks on her wrist.
'I don't think I would have been ready to talk about [my problems] then, but I could've come up with something better than gummy bracelets,' she says. 'Needless to say, that publicist is no longer with us...I mean, she's alive.'
Demi left the Michigan rehab facility in January and after quitting her show, Sonny With A Chance, began to focus on her music.
She is now promoting her new ballad, Skyscraper.
For the full interview visit Elle magazine.
Opening up: The star discussed her high profile meltdown during the interview
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2022533/Demi-Lovato-decision-seek-help-mid-air-meltdown.html#ixzz1U6ooUuwj