Pop star Kesha enters rehab for an eating disorder

Kesha is in rehab for an eating disorder.

News that the “Die Young� pop singer, 26, was starting a 30-day stint in rehab broke on Friday, courtesy of TMZ, which said she had checked in early that morning at Timberline Knolls outside of Chicago.

That’s the same facility where Demi Lovato sought help in 2010.

“I’m a crusader for being yourself and loving yourself but I’ve found it hard to practice,� Kesha said Saturday on Facebook. “I’ll be unavailable for the next 30 days, seeking treatment for my eating disorder ... to learn to love myself again. Exactly as I am.�

By Monday the post had almost 48,000 “likes.�

Some sources are saying that pressure about her weight from her high-powered producer may have tipped the “Tik Tok� singer toward a disorder. She’s been showing off a noticeably slimmer figure in recent months, compared with her earlier looks.

Dr. Luke, the music producer who signed Kesha at age 18, reportedly slamming her appearance in a 2012 music video -- comparing her to a refrigerator -- and the pop singer took it to heart, according to TMZ. The comments had actually started when Kesha’s “Get Sleazy� tour ended in 2011, TMZ reported.

There has also been a fan petition to get the singer away from Dr. Luke, according to People, though reasons were related to the music she’s been putting out.

“I feel like my fans are really protective of me,� she told Rolling Stone in October before admitting she doesn’t really have creative control of her music. “They just want to see me grow as an artist, which I agree with. Hopefully in the future, I’ll be in a position where I can put out a ballad or a more vulnerable song.�

Rehab will no doubt put her more in touch with her vulnerable side.

ALSO:

‘Party of Five’ alum Lacey Chabert secretly marries mystery man

Jay Mohr apologizes (again) for dissing Alyssa Milano, she accepts

Will Smith on James Avery: ‘Every young man needs an Uncle Phil’

Follow Christie D’Zurilla on Twitter and Google+. Follow the Ministry of Gossip on Twitter @LATcelebs and on Facebook facebook.com/ministryofgossip.