Singer and performer Celine Dion recently released scary footage of her going through an intense seizure as she battles Stiff Person Syndrome (SPS). The footage is a part of the Prime Video documentary titled I Am: Celine Dion, which shows the singer experiencing unbearable pain, and a scary 10-minute seizure. The full-body seizure leaves the 56-year-old singer paralysed for a while.
In the video, the 56-year-old is seen lying down on a massage table as her body continues to spasm uncontrollably. As the singer cries due to immense pain, medics attend to her, comforting her with gentle strokes on her back and administering a nasal spray designed to alleviate cluster seizures.
”Part of the disease is that as soon as you go into a contraction, sometimes … the signal to release it, doesn’t understand, so it ends up just staying in a contracted position,” sports medicine therapist Terrill Lobo explains.
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The Grammy award-winning singer wanted the footage to be kept in the documentary to show viewers the reality of her battle with Stiff Person Syndrome and raise awareness about the disorder. However heartbreaking it might be for the viewers, it is a battle Dion is fighting every single day. While Celine had been experiencing the symptoms of SPS for over 17 years, she was diagnosed with the disease in 2022. It has also affected her ability to sing and perform, both of which she dearly loves.
What is Stiff Person Syndrome?
According to a definition in Mayo Clinic, Stiff Person Syndrome is “a rare disorder of motor function characterized by involuntary stiffness of axial muscles and superimposed painful muscle spasms, which are often induced by startle or emotional stimuli.”
As per Yale Medicine, “The cause of this extremely rare disease is still unknown. But researchers suspect that it may be the result of an autoimmune reaction where the body attacks nerve cells in the central nervous system that control muscle movement.”
