Selena Gomez says she was attacked for gaining weight during her battle with lupus

Selena Gomez is opening up about her life and health.

After the singer was diagnosed with lupus, she tells the vodcast “Giving Back Generation” that she discovered the disease has a direct impact on her weight, which made her struggle privately.

The side effects of high blood pressure and taking medications for the disease has caused her to fluctuate, Gomez explained, saying people were “attacking” her over her weight without knowing she was actually sick.

“It depends on even the month, to be honest, so for me I really noticed when people started attacking me for that,” she explains. “That got to me big time. That really messed me up for a bit.”

The comments and attacks also caused her to briefly leave social media, she added. She’s since returned, but barely glances at the comments.

“I’m very happy with living my life and being present. Because that’s it. Similar to me posting a photo and walking away; for me that’s it. I will do a red carpet, I will do whatever; I don’t need to see it; I participated; I felt wonderful and that’s where the extent of it is. I don’t care to expose myself to everyone and hear what they have to say,” Gomez says.

And she wants to spread her message to “so many beautiful girls and amazing different characters” who are being “demolished by an image that they’re trying to chase.”

“They’re wanting to be a completely different person, but that’s not what’s inside of them,” Gomez said. “But I get it, I look at other people’s pages — or I used to — and I’d be like, ‘Okay, I need to fix myself.'”

She says these days she leans on her faith and her friends, saying, “I don’t believe that I could do this life alone.”