Selena Gomez says past boyfriends made her feel ‘less’ and ‘not equal’

American singer Selena Gomez has opened up about her past toxic relationships and how she moved past them.

During a recent interview for Vogue Australia, the Rare hit maker spoke about the ink on her neck and how it keeps reminding her of how she wants to live her life.

“I think most of my experiences in relationships have been cursed. I’ve been way too young to be exposed to certain things when I was in relationships. I guess I needed to find what was that word for me, because I felt so less than in past relationships, and never really felt equal,” she said.

Gomez added that the word “rare” was a constant reminder of how she wants to live her life.

“It wasn’t even necessarily like: ‘Oh, I feel that way, let me sing it.’ It was almost like: ‘Actually, I need to feel that way about myself.’”

“I think that my family, and my chosen family—I feel like I’m surrounded by real people,” she added.

Earlier in an interview with The Newsette, Gomez talked about how she keeps herself focused on her self-care and mental health.

“None of what I’m doing now would have stemmed from the mindset I had before. My best stuff is happening now. And then the greatest thing ever in my music was ‘Lose You to Love Me’ [her breakup song about Justin Bieber].”

“I remember I had a moment where I couldn’t believe it, because the first and second day, the reactions were crazy, and I remember I smiled and I was like, ‘That’s why it’s worth it. All of these years of confusion and being in love, and all of this stuff… and it was finally a clean slate,’” she continued.

“And it wasn’t even because everyone liked it; it was just a realization of why I went through everything I went through…” she added.