Avril Lavigne felt ‘like she was dying’ and spent two years in bed as she battled Lyme disease
The rocker opened up about fighting the crippling illness in an interview with Billboard
AVRIL Lavigne has revealed she felt "like she was dying" as she battled Lyme disease.
The rocker, 34, opened up about fighting the crippling illness in an interview with
Avril, 34, told the publication: "I was in bed for f****** two years."
The star felt like she was being held captive by her own body.
She explained: "It's a bug - a spirochete - so you take these antibiotics, and they start killing it.
"But it's a smart bug: It morphs into a cystic form, so you have to take other antibiotics at the same time.
"It went undiagnosed for so long that I was kind of f*****."
The rocker admitted that she struggled to accept her illness for a long time.
She confessed: "I put on a brave face because I didn't want it to be a part of my identity.
"So the second I was up, I would take a picture and post it on Instagram and act like my life was f***ing great.
"This is me being totally vulnerable with you right now."
She added: "I don't want to talk about it. I don't want to relive it. But it's my responsibility."
The 34-year old star has previously opened up about the tick-born illness that left her out of the limelight and bed ridden for years.
Avril said she had "accepted death" after being struck down with Lyme disease, which caused her body to "completely shut down".
She revealed she had been diagnosed with the illness in April 2015 in a letter .
In the open message to fans, she suggested the process was far longer and more difficult than fans might have realised.
She wrote: "Five years have gone by since I released my last album. I spent the last few years at home sick fighting Lyme disease.
"Those were the worst years of my life as I went through both physical and emotional battles.
Describing Lyme disease as "the battle of my lifetime", Avril added: "I had accepted death and could feel my body shutting down. I felt like I was drowning.
"Like I was going under water and I just needed to come up for air. Like I was in a river being pulled in a current. Unable to breathe.
WHAT IS LYME DISEASE?
Lyme disease is a bacterial infection spread to humans by infected ticks.
Ticks that carry the bacteria responsible for Lyme disease are found throughout the UK and in other parts of Europe and North America.
It's estimated there are 2,000 to 3,000 new cases of Lyme disease in England and Wales each year, with about 15 per cent of cases occurring when people are overseas.
Early symptoms:
Many people develop a distinct circular rash at the site of the bite, usually around three to 30 days after being bitten.
It is often described as looking like a bullseye and can span six inches across.
Some people also experience flu-like symptoms such as tiredness, fatigue, muscle pain, headaches and high temperature.
Later symptoms:
More serious symptoms develop weeks, months, or even years after the bite.
- pain and swelling in the joints
- problems with the nervous system - numbness, tingling, paralysis
- heart problems
- inflammation of membrane surrounding brain and spinal chord
A few people with lyme disease may go on to develop long-term symptoms similar to those of chronic fatigue syndrome.
Treatment:
If you develop the symptoms you will normally be given a course of antibiotics for two to four weeks.
If your symptoms are particularly severe, you may be referred to a specialist to have antibiotic injections.
Some of the antibiotics used to treat Lyme disease can make your skin more sensitive to sunlight.
There's currently no clear consensus on the best treatment for post-infectious Lyme disease because the underlying cause is not yet clear.
Source: NHS Choices
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"Part of me doesn’t want to talk about being sick because I want it to all be behind me, but I know I have to.
"Because not only is it a part of my life, I need to bring awareness to the severity of Lyme disease. A single bug bite can f*** you up hard."
She has launched a charity in her name to help others suffering from Lyme disease.
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