Céline Dion is shedding light on and how seriously her stiff person syndrome has affected her ability to sing. In her first broadcast interview since she revealed in 2022 that she has the rare neurological condition, the Canadian superstar spoke with Hoda Kotb for an upcoming primetime special about what it's like to try to sing with it. "It’s like somebody is strangling you," Dion said in an excerpt of their conversation that aired on June 7 on TODAY.
"It’s like somebody is pushing your larynx/pharynx this way." Dion then raised her voice. "It was like talking like that, and you cannot go high or lower," she demonstrated.
"It gets into a spasm." Dion, 56, first shared in December 2022 that she has stiff person syndrome. The disorder not only causes stiffness in the torso and limbs, but it also can produce intense muscle spasms, according to the .
She said in a May 23 interview with that she while on tour in 2008. “Quite rapidly, I was having difficulty controlling my voice,” Dion said. The singer told Hoda that she first began feeling it in her throat and initially thought, "OK, that's going to be fine.
" However, the muscle spasms and stiffness in her hands and feet soon became a serious issue. "It can also be in the abdominal, can be in the spine, can be in the ribs," Dion said. "But it feels like if I point my feet, they will stay in a (stuck position), or if I cook — because I love to cook — my fingers, my hands, will get in a position.
" "My feet — it's cr.