Disney Channel star Debby Ryan has revealed further details about her relationship with an abusive male friend , just a few months after sharing for the first time the level of abuse she had suffered at his hands . The 21-year-old star of Jessie and The Suite Life on Deck told People how the friend , whose identity is not known , was 'emotionally and mentally abusive ' - and how she finally decided enough was enough . ' I was like , `` I 'm a powerful woman and I 'm a producer '' , ' she said . ' I never thought that this [ would be ] happening to me , and it was absolutely happening to me . It was kind of late in the game by the time I realized that this was not healthy . ' Scroll down for video . Severing ties : Disney star Debby Ryan , 21 , says it took her a long time to realize one of her close friendships was deeply unhealthy . 'It was a couple of years ago , ' the Alabama-born actress explained , adding that the abuse first began at a time when her life seemed 'amazing ' - she was the star of one hit Disney Channel show and already had another one under her belt . But she says one of her close friends began growing increasingly jealous and demanding of her time and attention . The star described how on one occasion , her obsessive friend followed her to her car , grabbed her wrists , and took her keys , before crawling into her passenger side window so Debby could n't leave to see her other friends . False friends : Debby says her friend would call her phone up to 40 times a day and would grow angry if she did n't answer his calls immediately . The abusive friend - who Debby insists is not her ex-boyfriend , Twenty One Pilots drummer Josh Dun - also tried to move in with her , so Debby paid for a nearby hotel room to to give him another place to stay . 'That was literally just for sleeping , ' she explained , adding that the pair would still see each other 'every day , hours a day , month on month on month ' . When her friend threatened to kill himself if Debby did n't spend more time with him , the actress realized that it was time to put an end to the relationship once and for all . On top of her game : Few of her other friends knew about Debby 's struggle ; most of the time , like on the set of her show Jessie , the star 's life seemed carefree . Back to normal : Now free of her destructive friendship , the actress was all smiles at her show 's 100th episode party on February 12 . ' I realized I 'd done everything that I could do , ' she said . 'It 's not my purpose to sacrifice my own happiness and sacrifice my own mental health so that this guy does n't overdose . ' I called someone and had someone go and be with him , and I removed myself from the situation and realized he 's no longer mine to deal with . ' Now , Debby has decided to speak up to help other young people cope with abusive relationships . She has teamed up with Mary Kay and Love Is Respect 's Do n't Look Away campaign , which offers abusive relationship counseling over text message to those who text 'loveis ' to 22522 .
Debby , 21 , says her friend chased her , grabbed her , and would n't let her spend time with other friends . The abuser would call Debby up to 40 times a day and he tried to move in with her . The star finally broke it off when her friend threatened suicide if she did n't spend time with him .