It has been a bittersweet year for Justin Bieber fans. While he has brought his iconic era of both music and merch around the globe on the Purpose world tour, fans haven’t had many opportunities to meet and connect with him.

In an understandable effort to take care of his mental health and overall well-being, Justin canceled all of the scheduled meet and greets for the entirety of the tour and officially declared that he was done taking pictures with fans. He even took a break from the emotional exhaustion by temporarily deleting his Instagram account.

In Bodyguards: Secret Lives from the Watchtower, an upcoming documentary about the work of the people who protect well-known public figures, Justin’s security team discusses how they have helped Justin have his own space and sanity among the uncontrollable crowds that constantly surround him and explain how the fans have been changing as they get older.

“Having security creates space for me, it creates boundaries, it creates a safe place for me,” Justin admits. “As the fans get older and are knowing themselves more, they start understanding how to act and they actually want to act a little bit more sane so that maybe they get my attention because at this point they’re screaming and super overwhelming, it’s hard for me to connect with you.”

Mikey Arana, Justin’s director of security, recalls young, emotional girls having the strength to rip off his shirt and hoodie and added that as they have grown, they’ve become more likely to engage in a conversation with him rather than physically attack him to get his attention.

The documentary directed by Jaren Hayman also features stories from the security teams of 50 Cent, Kanye West, and Nelson Mandela, to name a few, and will be released to theaters and on demand December 2.