Rumors have been swirling around Avril Lavigne lately that she might be pregnant or possibly fighting a drug addiction since she’s been conspicuously missing from the Hollywood scene lately. Our only lead was a cryptic Twitter message to her fans in which she said she was “having some health issues.” But in an interview with People magazine, Lavigne finally opened up and disclosed she had been suffering from a severe case of Lyme disease.
“I felt like I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t talk and I couldn’t move, I thought I was dying,” said the pop star of her illness. She believes a tick bit her back in the spring of 2014, E! Online reports.
Lyme disease is spread through deer ticks, who bite their host (human or animal) and spread a nasty bacteria, according to the Mayo Clinic. It typically announces itself with a rash or red bump at the site of the tick bite, which often turns into a bull’s-eye pattern. The rash is followed by intense flu-like symptons, including body aches, headaches, joint pain and extreme fatigue. In extreme symptoms, it can cause neurological problems, like facial palsy (Bell’s palsy). Lyme disease can be treated with antibiotics, but becomes more severe the longer it goes untreated.
“There were definitely times I couldn’t shower for a full week because I could barely stand,” she shared. “It felt like having all your life sucked out of you.” Her extreme fatigue, lack of appetite and lightheadedness caused the singer to be bedridden for months. To assist in her recovery, her mother has moved in while her husband, Chad Kroeger, checked in on her regularly while on tour with his band Nickelback. Being a private person, no one was sure of her condition until her most recent interview with People, in which she disclosed how serious it actually was.
Needless to say, life has been pretty ‘complicated’ for the punk pop star recently, but now that she’s feeling a self-proclaimed “80% better,” the singer is ready to jump back into the spotlight. She’s set to release new music in the coming months, with her new single “Fly” being released later in April to support the 2015 Special Olympics.
