“I had three strokes. I had a heart attack. My doctors said I had 5 to 10 more minutes,” pop star Demi Lovato revealed in the trailer of her new tell-all youtube documentary, Demi Lovato: Dancing With the Devil.

The documentary features personal accounts of Lovato and her friends and family, opening up about her 2018 overdose and the way in which it has affected her health and quality of life.

Speaking to reporters at the Television Critics Association panel, on Wednesday, 17 February, she said, "I was left with brain damage, and I still deal with the effects of that today. I don't drive a car, because I have blind spots on my vision."

The former Disney star has in the past grappled with an eating disorder drug abuse, and self-harm for years, and has been vocal about her struggle, keeping her fans posted on her progress. She also suffers from bipolar disorder.

In a previous 2017 YouTube documentary, Simply Complicated,
Lovato spoke about years of substance abuse, eating disorders, and drinking, saying she first started using cocaine when she was 17.

Now 28 and recovering, Lovato feels like she’s in a place where she can put all her cards on the table, having grown out of the person she used to be.

"I'm grateful for those reminders, but I'm so grateful that I was someone that didn't have to do a lot of rehabbing. The rehabbing came on the emotional side," she added.

She also goes on to say that she ‘wouldn’t change a thing’ as everything that she’s been through has led her to learn important lessons. She also goes on to tell reported that talking about it is her way of holding herself responsible.

Hard drugs such as cocaine, heroin, and various forms of amphetamine, affect the central nervous system.

In addition to causing addiction, they can also cause drastic changes in body temperature, heart rate, and blood pressure. They can also disrupt the heart’s electric signals, as well as lead to the stiffening and thickening of arteries and blood vessels, all of which can lead to heart attacks.

According to WebMD, nearly 60% of younger patients whose strokes were not caused by brain injuries had cocaine in their blood.

(If you or someone you know suffers from addiction, please contact the National toll-free drug-deaddiction helpline at 1800-11-003.)

(Written with inputs from People)