Celine Dion: Stiff Person Syndrome Diagnosis and Comeback Timeline

June 2024: Dion promises to sing again during her first broadcast interview since announcing her diagnosis.

On June 11, Dion recalled in a pre-taped “Today” interview how she first noticed her SPS symptoms in 2008 before a show in Germany for the “Taking Chances” tour.

“I said to my assistants and people, ‘I don’t know if I can do the show. I don’t know what’s going on’ and all that,’ she said. “I was very, very, very scared.

Dion said the panic made it worse, and when she got on stage, she started to sound more nasal.

“I didn’t know what to say. Everyone said I looked flawless. I was out of control and I want to be in control,” Dion said, adding that the team had to tone down her songs to perform it. night.

“I did everything I could because my fans accepted my invitation and I didn’t know what to say to them,” Dion continued.

“Today” host Hoda Kotb said that in Dion’s upcoming documentary, the singer said she felt bad for lying about her illness, telling fans she had a sinus or throat infection when she canceled shows.

Dion told Hotb that he didn’t know what else to say to them.

“I didn’t know what was going on,” Dion said. “I should have stopped. Take your time to figure it out.”

Dion said she struggled during this time because her husband, René Angélil, was diagnosed with throat cancer and eventually died in 2016.

“I had to raise my children. I had to hide. I had to try to be a hero, feeling like my body was leaving me. To hold on to my own dreams,” Dion said. “The burden was too much of a lie for the people who got me to where I am today. I couldn’t do it anymore.”

Dion also said that sometimes her muscle spasms are so severe they break her ribs, but she vowed to continue performing.

“I’ll get back on stage even if I have to crawl,” she said, “even if I have to talk with my hands.”