The singer shared how talking away from their engagement to a straight man helped them realize and fully be their true self.
All good things must come to an end, and in Demi Lovato's case, ending their engagement to Max Ehrich helped them find their true self. In a new interview with The 19th, Lovato shared how saying goodbye to that relationship changed everything for them.
"I was able to stand on my own two feet without needing someone else to validate me or to make me feel accepted," they said. "And when I said goodbye to that relationship, I also said goodbye to everything that was holding me back from being my most authentic self."
While Lovato was already identifying as non-binary, they got into a relationship with Ehrich that caused them to ignore the other parts of themself.
"I met someone and I got into this straight relationship, and that was great, but that led me to ignoring all the parts of myself that I didn't think were digestible for my partner at the time, who ended up becoming my fiancé," they explained.
After calling it quits in September 2020, Lovato began to explore their gender more, and eventually came out as non-binary in May during an episode of their podcast, 4D with Demi Lovato, changing their pronouns to they/them.
But that doesn't mean Lovato's gender journey is over. The singer told the publication that it's something that will last forever.
"There might be a time where I identify as trans. I don't know what this looks like for me. There might be a time where I identify as non-binary and gender-nonconforming my entire life," Lovato shared. "Or maybe there's a period of time when I get older that I identify as a woman, I don't know what that looks like, but for me, in this moment right now, this is how I identify."
"And I have a feeling that it's not going to ever go back to one way or the other, but it's about keeping it open and free and just I'm a very fluid person, and so that goes with how I express myself as well," they continued.
It's something that their friends and family are still adjusting to as well. Lovato took to Instagram in July to thank their fans and the public for their effort to remember their gender pronouns and gave a pass to those misgendering them, in what they said can be a "confusing" change.
"I felt the need to post this because I often find that the change in pronouns can be confusing for some, and difficult to remember for others. It’s all about your intention. It’s important to me that you try, but if you make a mistake, it’s okay 😊🙏🏼💞 remember that I love you, and to keep going 🤟🏼☮️💗 #nonbinaryawarenessweek," they captioned the explainer.
The post read: "If you misgender - That's okay. I accidentally misgender myself sometimes! It's a huge transition to change the pronouns I've used for myself my entire life. And it's difficult to remember sometimes!"
"As long as you keep trying to respect my truth, and as long as I remember my truth, the shift will come naturally," they continued. "I'm just grateful for your effort in trying to remember what means so much to my healing process."
For more on Lovato, watch the video below.
RELATED CONTENT
