In a new interview with The Business of Fashion, the 25-year-old singer and actress encouraged young people to educate themselves about mental health and surround themselves with supportive people.

“Ask somebody you respect,” she said. “I asked teachers, coaches, managers, people that I respected [because of] the way they’ve lived their life. I asked them, ‘How did you get to this place? What were you like when you were 25? What were the things that you were thinking about?’ And then from there, being with like-minded people. You are who you surround yourself with — 100 percent. If you’re around people who think that stuff is dumb, that think it’s ridiculous — ‘You’re crazy! You’re fine!’ — but you don’t feel that way, then maybe it’s time to reevaluate that.”

Gomez added: “It’s a lonely journey to really figure out where all this stuff is coming from. And to detach from it. It becomes an addiction, it becomes a habit, retraining your mind to not go to these negative places when you say something wrong, do something wrong, when you wear a certain thing or represent a certain culture. But it is lonely, I had to lose a lot of people in my life to get there.”

She also touched on how fame has been isolating. “You have to figure out the people that are in your circle,” said Gomez, who participated in the TIME Firsts series this month and is the most followed person on Instagram. “I feel like I know everybody but have no friends. I have like three good friends that I can tell everything to, but I know everyone. I go anywhere and I’m like, ‘Hey guys, how’s it going?’ And it feels great to be connected to people, but having boundaries is so important. You have to have those few people that respect you, want the best for you and you want the best for them. It sounds cheesy, but it’s hard.”

“I think it’s safe to say that all of you know my life whether I like it or not,” she said. “I had to stop because I had everything and I was absolutely broken inside. I kept it all together enough to where I would never let you down but I kept it too much together to where I let myself down.

“I don’t want to see your bodies on Instagram; I want to see what’s in here,” she continued, clutching her chest. “I’m not trying to get validation nor do I need it anymore.” She then thanked fans and added, “If you are broken, you do not have to stay broken.”

Read Gomez’s full interview at The Business of Fashion.