After checking into rehab amid reports of violent and distressed behaviour, it was speculated Demi had everything from depression to a drug problem.
"I wish I could tell every young girl with an eating disorder, or who has harmed herself in any way, that she's worthy of life and that her life has meaning," the 18-year-old wroote in Seventeen magazine.
"You can overcome and get through anything.
"Yes, there have been times when I definitely have been tempted to get rid of my dinner. But I will deal with it for the rest of my life because it's a life-long disease.
"I don't think there's going to be a day when I don't think about food or my body, but I'm living with it, and I wish I could tell young girls to find their safe place and stay with it.
"I don't let anyone's insecurities, emotions, or opinions bother me. I know that if I am happy, that's all that matters to me. And it's okay to be selfish like that sometimes, when it comes to your well-being. Do what makes you happy, and don't care what others think."
