Avril Lavigne: 'I was bedridden for five months'
Canadian singer Avril Lavigne was bedridden for five months as she battled a severe bout of Lyme disease.
The Complicated hitmaker was feeling lethargic and lightheaded during a trip to Las Vegas before doctors diagnosed her with the bacterial infection, which is spread to humans through infected ticks.
Reports surfaced that the star was battling a mystery illness in
September (14) and Lavigne was even forced to dispute claims she
was being treated for substance abuse and depression in December
(14).
The singer has now opened up about the severity of the debilitating
condition which made her feel so terrible she thought her life
could be over.
She tells People magazine, "I could barely eat, and when we went to
the pool (in Vegas), I had to leave and go lie in bed. My friends
asked, 'What's wrong?'. I didn't know. I had no idea a bug bite
could do this. I was bedridden for five months. I felt like I
couldn't breathe, I couldn't talk and I couldn't move. I thought I
was dying. There were definitely times I couldn't shower for a full
week because I could barely stand.
"It felt like having all your life sucked out of you. (The public)
were asking about me since I was MIA, so I mentioned to one fan
directly that I wasn't feeling good. The get-well messages and
videos they sent touched me so deeply. I'm 80 per cent better. This
was a wake-up call. I really just want to enjoy life from here on
out."
Lavigne revealed that her husband, Nickelback singer Chad Kroeger,
and mother Judith helped nurse her back to full health at her home
in Ontario, Canada.