Demi Lovato ''sees herself as a fighter''.

The 27-year-old singer - who suffered a near-fatal overdose in July last year, and spent time in a treatment centre for addiction - says the most important thing in life is to live ''for yourself'' and never be ''someone you're not''.

She said: ''Over the past five years I've learned life is not worth living unless you're living for yourself. If you're trying to be someone you're not, or you're trying to please other people, it's not going to work out in the long run. If you want to dye your hair purple, dye your hair purple. If you want to love someone of the same sex, love someone of the same sex. Be yourself and don't be afraid of what people think.''

And Demi has ''overcome'' a lot in her life and says she will ''continue to fight''.

She added: ''What I see in the mirror [is] someone that's overcome a lot. I've been through a lot and I genuinely see a fighter. I don't see a championship winner, but I see a fighter and someone who is going to continue to fight no matter what is thrown their way. I have a lot of confidence now because I have said the things I believe in. I know I can hold my own on a first date with someone, in a conversation with someone. That's what I see when I look in the mirror - a strong woman.''

The 'Skyscraper' singer has dealt with an eating disorder for ''so many years'' and even when she went to the gym, she got to an ''unhealthy extreme''.

Speaking to Teen Vogue, she shared: ''For so many years I dealt with an eating disorder. What I wasn't ever open with myself about was, whenever I was in the gym I was doing it to an unhealthy extreme. I think that's what led me down a darker path - I was still engaging in these behaviours. Embracing my body as it is naturally is why I took the month of October off the gym.''