The 54-year-old Canadian famous singer Celine Dion has released a solemn and emotional video on Instagram, explaining her debilitating ultra-rare stiff person syndrome diagnosis.

Celine Dion ‘Remains Hopeful’ After Ultra-Rare Stiff Person Diagnosis

Rabat – The 54-year-old Canadian famous singer Celine Dion has released a solemn and emotional video on Instagram, explaining her debilitating ultra-rare stiff person syndrome diagnosis.

The singer, best known for her 1997 hit My heart will go on among many other famous songs, looked riddled with sadness as she tried to stay composed throughout the video. Appearing frail yet elegant she opened with “Hello everyone, I’m so sorry it has taken me so long to reach out to you, I miss you all so much.”

Later in the video, she prided herself on being an “open-book” and mentioned she now feels ready to talk about her diagnosis after a painful moment of hesitation and soul searching. “I have been dealing with health problems for a long time…I have been diagnosed with a disease that affects around 1 in a million people… called stiff person’s disease.”

Of her symptoms, the singer said she has been dealing with spasms that affect her ability to walk and stop her from using her vocal cords in the way she used to. “Unfortunately these spasms affect my daily life,” Dion commented in a voice filled with pain.

One of the singer’s motives behind her public explanation of her medical condition was to justify the postponement of her 2023 Europe tour. “It hurts me to tell you that I will not be ready for my tour,” she sighed.

The Canadian icon explained that while she always wants to give 100% at her shows, her condition is not allowing her to do so. She said she is choosing to concentrate on her health, remaining hopeful that she will recover .

Stiff person syndrome (SPS) particularly affects the brain and spinal cord. The symptoms include spasms that are so forceful they can cause bone fractures.

This syndrome is incredibly rare although it is more common in women, who have double the risk of contracting the syndrome than men. According to the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, “SPS is caused by increased muscle activity due to decreased inhibition of the central nervous system.”

Despite the severe setback to the singer’s health, she said she is working every day to rebuild her strength and has reset her tour dates for 2024.

“Singing is what I have done my whole life and it is what I love to do the most,” Dion sniffed, holding back tears.