The singer’s candidness about her recovery journey helped de Lesseps feel like she wasn’t struggling alone.
Luann de Lesseps is nearing 90 days of sobriety, and says one of her main inspirations is singer and actress Demi Lovato.
The 54-year-old Real Housewives of New York City star first sought treatment for alcohol use disorder in 2017, according to the Daily Journal. This was after an incident in which she was charged with “disorderly intoxication, battery on an officer/firefighter/EMT, resisting arrest with violence and threatening a public servant.”
She pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Then, the Daily Journal reports, she again entered treatment the following year.
De Lesseps tells Access Hollywood that Lovato has been an inspiration when it comes to her own recovery.
“You know who’s really been inspirational also is Demi Lovato, because she’s been very public about her struggle and I think it’s important,” she said. “It’s kind of a private thing. But there’s a lot of celebrities at meetings, and so I don’t feel so alone.”
Lovato has long been open about her own struggles with substance use disorder. In July 2018, after more than six years of sobriety, Lovato overdosed in her Hollywood Hills home. She was hospitalized and then sought treatment.
In the time since, Lovato has spoken publicly about the overdose and appears to be back on track with her recovery. On March 15, which would have been Lovato’s seventh sober anniversary, she took the time to speak to her fans via Instagram .
“Today I would’ve had 7 years sober,” Lovato shared at the time. “I don’t regret going out because I needed to make those mistakes but I must never forget that’s exactly what they were: mistakes.”
“Grateful that AA/NA never shuts the door on you no matter how many times you have to start over,” she added. “I didn’t lose 6 years, I’ll always have that experience but now I just get to add to that time with a new journey and time count.”
“If you’re alive today, you can make it back,” Lovato concluded. “You’re worth it.”
Rough Couple Years
In her interview with Access Hollywood, de Lesseps also noted that she has a sponsor and touched on some of the stressors in her life that may have contributed to her struggles.
“The last couple years [have been a whirlwind] — married, divorced, jail … It’s been a rough couple of years for me,” she told Access Hollywood.
She added that she’s “at the end of the tunnel now.”
“I can see the light now, it’s all good,” she said.
