Entertainment
Celine Dion’s ribs broke during ‘severe’ spasms amid harrowing stiff-person syndrome battle-Rishma Dosani-Entertainment – Metro
Utterly devastating.
Celine Dion has opened up about her ‘severe’ stiff-person syndrome symptoms, revealing that she broke her ribs at one point.
The My Heart Will Go On singer went public with her health issues at the end of 2022, explaining that she had to cancel a string of tour dates to focus her recovery.
Ahead of the release of her upcoming Amazon Prime Video documentary, I Am: Celine Dion, the 56-year-old has detailed her agonizing condition in a sit-down interview.
‘It’s like somebody is strangling you. It’s like someone is pushing your larynx pharynx backwards. It gets into a spasm,’ she told Hota Kotb in a snippet from their discussion, which will air on June 11 in full on NBC.
The music icon also shared that the spasms and stiffness often appear in other areas of the body, causing serious pain, discomfort and broken bones.
‘It can also be in the abdominal, in the spine, in the ribs. If I point my feet, they will stay in it [a stuck position],’ she continued.
Celine Dion revealed that singing feels like she’s being ‘strangled’ (Picture: Amazon Prime Video)
‘If I cook – because I love to cook – my fingers, my hands, will get in a position.
‘It’s cramping but it’s in a position where you can’t unlock them. I had broken ribs at one point because sometimes when it’s very severe, it can break some ribs as well.’
Introducing the teaser clip on the Today show, Hoda shared that Celine is ‘on the fight of her life right now, and it’s on full display’.
The singer opened up about her illness in 2022 (Picture: Amazon Prime Video)
The presenter previously unpacked Celine’s condition in a chat with co-host Jenna Bush Hager last month, after getting a preview of her documentary.
‘It was so jarring to me and moving, I couldn’t believe what they were able to capture in that documentary,’ she recalled.
‘Celine Dion at some point, she is now much better, but at some point she almost died, which is something she says.’
She has been focusing on her health (Picture: Getty)
The Grammy-winner forced to cancel a string of concerts before revealing that she had been diagnosed with stiff-person syndrome – and has been working hard on her recovery ever since.
At the time, she told fans that she had been diagnosed with a rare autoimmune movement disorder that affects the central nervous system.
It affects the central nervous system and is said to turn people into ‘human statues’ – there is currently no known cure for the condition.
What is stiff-person syndrome?
Stiff-person syndrome (SPS) is a rare autoimmune movement disorder that affects the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord).
SPS is characterised by fluctuating muscle rigidity in the trunk and limbs and a heightened sensitivity to stimuli such as noise, touch, and emotional distress, which can set off muscle spasms. Stiff-person syndrome is extremely rare.
Only about one out of every one million people have been diagnosed with this syndrome. Twice as many women have stiff person syndrome as men. Symptoms can occur at any age but usually develop between ages 30 and 60.
Celine has fronted a candid new one-off special, taking fans behind the scenes of the last few years.
In the trailer for the documentary – which is released on June 25 – she gave a glimpse into her illness, sharing in a voiceover: ‘My voice is the conductor of my life. When your voice brings you joy, you’re the best of yourself. I need my instrument.
Celine’s documentary is out later this month (Picture: Prime Video)
Revealing the toll that the diagnosis had taken, she became emotional as she vowed to return to the stage for her fans.
‘It’s not hard to do a show, it’s hard to cancel a show,’ she insisted through tears. ‘I’m working hard every day but I have to admit, it’s been a struggle. I miss it so much, the people, I miss them.
‘If I can’t run, I’ll walk. If I can’t walk, I’ll crawl. But I won’t stop.’
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