Spasms so violent they can break ribs. Singer Céline Dion opened up about her illness in an interview with the American channel NBC, excerpts of which were broadcast on Friday. She was diagnosed in 2022 with “stiff person syndrome”, a rare neurological condition causing muscle spasms, which led her to cancel many concerts.
When the disease manifests itself, “it’s as if someone is strangling you, as if someone is pressing on your larynx”, which leads to a distortion of the voice, says the singer during the interview, which will be broadcast entirely on June 11.
She mentions the spasms she experiences in her throat, but “it can also be abdominal, in the spine, in the ribs…”. She even reports having “broken ribs at one point”, due to the violence of these spasms.
Celine Dion also describes the forms of cramps that she experiences and which immobilize her limbs. “If I point my feet, they will stay” in this position, she explains, “or if I cook, because I like to cook, my fingers, my hands will put themselves in a position” and “you can’t unlock them.”
A documentary about his fight against illness
These symptoms “affect my everyday life”, declared the singer in 2022, when she publicly announced her illness. “I sometimes have a lot of difficulty walking, and I can’t always use my vocal cords to sing as I would like,” she explained at the time.
The performer is undergoing treatment and has not given up on the idea of returning to the stage one day. A documentary about his fight against the disease, entitled “I am”, will be released on June 25 on the Amazon Prime platform.
