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Celine Dion shows terrifying health scare: 'I don’t know how to express it'

“It’s scary, I know. It’s hard. This is not the end of your journey," her medical team says.


Daniel Neira - Los Angeles
Senior WriterLos Angeles
JUNE 25, 2024 4:20 PM EDT

Celine Dion has been open about her battle with stiff person syndrome since revealing the diagnosis to her world. The iconic singer recently attended the premiere of her new documentary “I Am: Celine Dion,” in which she can be seen talking about her health struggles and her professional career. 

One of the most vulnerable moments of the documentary includes Celine suffering a seizure for several minutes. “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 explained in the clip.

Celine Dion© Prime Video
Celine Dion

Celine can be seen lying down on a massage table while spasming, with Lobo warning that it could “lead to a crisis.” She then indicates that she is conscious by squeezing one of the medical expert’s hands. The vulnerable moment continues when Celine breaks down in tears after the seizure.

Following the terrifying moment and after two doses of a nasal spray, the doctor admits that if she hadn't come out of the seizure they would have had to rush her to the hospital. Celine reveals that her health struggles make her feel "so embarrassed.

Celine Dion

“I don’t know how to express it, like, it’s just … you know, like, to not have control of yourself?” she says, admitting that it was caused because her brain "was overstimulated" after singing in the studio. "If I can’t get stimulated by what I love, and then I’m gonna go onstage and, like, you’re gonna put the pulse oximeter on me and you’re gonna turn me on my back?” she asks.

“It’s scary, I know. It’s hard. This is not the end of your journey — we all know that. But this is always that step on that journey," her doctor responds.