In a revealing interview with In Touch, Lindsay Lohan celebrates her new life

At 11 p.m. on a Sunday night, Lindsay Lohan is curled up on a chair at the Sundance Resort in Utah. Makeup-free, wearing a gray sweat suit and with her long blond hair still damp from the shower, the 21-year-old is giving her first post rehab interview exclusively to In Touch. Refreshingly frank during the hour-long chat on October 7, the only topic she shies away from is her romance with Riley Giles, the 25-year-old snowboarder from California she met during her two-month stay at Cirque Lodge in Utah. But she confirms their relationship and admits that her love life, like everything else, is looking up these days.

In Touch Weekly (ITW): How will your life be different now?

Lindsay Lohan (L.L.): The biggest thing is not being in LA and staying away from the nightlife. Going out all the time was very self-destructive. Partying and having all of those pictures taken distracts from the work that I do. It’s not why I started acting. I didn’t get into acting to be written about. It kind of just happened — so I accept that it’s my life. But there are some things that I can do to make changes and grow up. I want to act like a woman rather than a teenager. I am doing the best I can.

ITW: You’d been at Cirque Lodge since August. Why did you stay longer than you needed to?

L.L.: There is that urge to want to leave early, obviously, and be back in the real world. But it was safer at Cirque and I was learning more. I felt it was necessary, and other people I worked with felt that it was important.

ITW: What was the hardest part about rehab?

L.L.: It was hard surrendering and having people tell me what to do. It was really humbling for me, but I liked how I was treated as a normal person. I had to look out for myself.

ITW: You also had to do chores.

L.L.: I kept the common areas clean. I liked making coffee for the gym the best.

ITW: How did the reunion with your father, Michael Lohan, happen?

L.L.: There were a lot of phone conversations, figuring out a way for him to come here. We hadn’t connected in three-and- a-half years. But it was really good for me. My mom [Dina] thought it was a good idea, as well. I think it was really important for me to get a connection back with my dad because I hadn’t had that in a while.

ITW: What’s it like now having your family reunited?

L.L.: It’s wonderful! I can relate to other people who don’t have both parents or have parents that are separated. It can be hard and draining on the children and the family. I think the trouble in my family resulted in me rebelling and doing things to try to get my parents’ attention. But all in all, it’s better for me now to have them [in my life]. It’s healthy.

ITW: There were rumors that you had fallen off the wagon in rehab.

L.L.: It’s just really hard when people put out rumors about a relapse. It’s hard for me to maintain my sobriety when people are doing that, because it hurts. I would like support from people.

ITW: The wife of another patient, Tony Allen, blames you for breaking up their marriage.

L.L.: Rumors are rumors. I don’t really have anything to say about that. Tony and I were just friends and if anyone has anything negative to say, I would just like to ask, “Why?� We were just friends and that was it.

ITW: Are you dating anyone now?

L.L: Yes, I am seeing someone. His name is Riley. I am really happy and taking it day by day.

ITW: Have you cut people out of your life who were bad influences?

L.L: I have good people in my life now. I am surrounded with people that don’t use me and who love me for me. They are people I can trust and love in return. I have found people that are there for the right reasons. They don’t need anything from me and they just treat me like a person.

ITW: But how do you know who your real friends are?

L.L.: My real friends are the ones who are appreciative of what I have done to take care of myself and change my life. They condone that. They want me to be happy and to still be in Utah. They are the ones who don’t want me back in LA to go party. Those are the ones who are around me for the wrong reasons. The people who want to go out and party, that’s not what I am about now.

ITW: Have you learned any useful advice you’d like to share?

L.L.: Just to stay true to yourself and respect yourself. Don’t do things for the hell of it. Karma’s a big deal, so treat others how you want to be treated.

ITW: Do you have any new movie projects lined up?

L.L.: I’m going to start filming a movie called Dare to Love Me. That should last about two weeks. Then, I am going to spend time with my family. I want to try something different, and do my job and see what that is like.

ITW: Are you moving to New York permanently?

L.L.: Well, I will be in New York to see my brothers and sister. I think that it’s important that I am there for them. It’s good for me, too. I’ll be back and forth, bicoastal, as I have been.

ITW: There has been talk that you’ve got a big charity trip in the works, too.

L.L.: I’m planning a trip to Africa during the second week in December. I’m working with the American Red Cross, but it is not finalized yet.

ITW: Do you have a message for your supporters from all this?

L.L.: I just want to apologize to any of my fans that look up to me, especially my younger fans, for setting the examples that I didn’t mean to set. That is one of the reasons that I want to change things. I don’t want to be known as that person. I have a younger sister and she looks up to me, too. All the negative stuff that gets said hurts my feelings, it hurts my sister, Ali, and my family. Maybe me not going out as much will help. I want to do what’s right for my family as well as what is right for me.

ITW: What was the biggest lesson you learned from all this?

L.L.: I learned who I am — the real me, stripped from everything else.

ITW: So was your time in rehab a good experience?

L.L.: It’s been a great experience. I’m really grateful. Everything happens for a reason and I am in the right place now.