Demi Lovato: Unbroken and Confident
黛咪．洛瓦特：永遠不向困境低頭
-M. M. Leonard
11/20(MON)

She’s only 25 years old, but Demi Lovato has already had quite an exceptional career. As a singer, she was chosen to perform the smash-hit song “Let It Go” in the closing credits of the film Frozen. She has also released five albums, including Unbroken and, most recently, Confident. These accomplishments aren’t all, though. Lovato has also battled tough personal issues and come out as the winner.

Lovato got her start in the entertainment industry when she was very young. At the age of seven, she was chosen to play the character of Angela in the children’s television series Barney and Friends. Her talent was soon noticed by the Disney Channel, which offered her leading roles in various TV movies and series, including Camp Rock and Sonny with a Chance. Recently, she voiced Smurfette in the film Smurfs: The Lost Village.

But at the same time that her career was soaring, Lovato’s personal life was beginning to fall apart. She was battling against depression, drug abuse, and an eating disorder. “I basically had a nervous breakdown,” Lovato later said in an interview. “I wanted to start my life over.”

黛咪．洛瓦特才二十五歲，但她已經擁有相當出色的職業生涯。身為歌手，她獲選演唱電影《冰雪奇緣》片尾的暢銷金曲〈Let It Go〉。她也發行過五張專輯，包括《堅固柔情》和最新的《玩美自信》。但這些成就並不是全部。洛瓦特也努力對抗艱難的個人問題，成功走出陰霾。

洛瓦特很小的時候就開始在娛樂業發展。她七歲時被選中在兒童電視節目《小博士邦尼》演出安琪拉一角。她的才華很快就被迪士尼頻道注意到，提供她在好幾個不同的電視電影和影集主演的機會，包括《搖滾夏令營》和《加油！桑妮》。最近她為電影《藍色小精靈：失落的藍藍村》裡的小美人配音。

但就在事業一帆風順的同時，洛瓦特的私生活開始分崩離析。她一路和憂鬱症、藥物濫用和飲食失調奮戰。洛瓦特之後在一次訪談中說：「基本上我已經精神崩潰。我想要重新開始我的人生。」

11/21(TUE)
To give her life a new start, Lovato put her career on hold and entered a treatment facility in 2010. When she completed treatment, instead of trying to sweep it all under the rug, Lovato became a public voice for those with mental disorders and other problems. She spoke openly about her own experience with drug abuse and self-harm to let others know they were not alone. Her advocacy didn’t stop there, though. Lovato, who had been bullied as a child, has also campaigned against bullying.

Today, Lovato is drug-free and as active as ever. In 2013, she set up a scholarship program to help patients with mental illness pay for their treatment costs. More recently, she completed a YouTube documentary series called Demi Lovato: Simply Complicated, in which she looks at her life and brings her fans into her world.

Demi Lovato is proof that mental illness can be overcome with strength, determination, and help. “If you’re going through that dark period, go to your family and closest friends. Don’t put yourself in danger,” she said. Lovato thus demonstrates that all of us have the power to face our problems and come out the other side.

治療機構。當洛瓦特完成療程，她沒有隱瞞這一切，而是替那些有心理疾病和其他問題的人公開發聲。她公開談論自己藥物濫用和自殘的經驗，讓其他人知道他們並不孤單。不過，她的主張還不僅於此。小時候遭受霸凌的洛瓦特也發起反霸凌的運動。

如今，洛瓦特遠離藥品，依舊積極活躍。二○一三年，她設立獎學金計畫來幫助精神病患者支付醫療費。最近，她完成了一個YouTube紀實系列節目《Demi Lovato: Simply Complicated》，在裡面她檢視自己的生活並帶粉絲進入她的世界。

黛咪．洛瓦特證明了靠著力量、決心和幫助，精神疾病是可以被克服的。她說：「如果你正經歷黑暗時期，向你的家人和摯友尋求協助。別讓自己置身危險中。」洛瓦特以這樣的方式展現出我們每個人都有力量面對自己的問題並走出陰霾。

《詳細內文請翻閱NO.199 11月號Live互動英語雜誌》