Céline Dion describes the effects of stiff person syndrome on her voice: “Like someone is strangling you”

“It’s like someone is pressing on your larynx/throat,” Dion said in an interview with Hoda Kotb that aired in full on Tuesday, June 11.

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Céline Dion speaks openly about the effects of stiff person syndrome on her voice.

The 56-year-old five-time Grammy winner spoke to NBC News’ Hoda Kotb about her condition. It will be her first televised interview about her health since she announced her diagnosis in 2022.

“It’s like someone is strangling you. It’s like someone is squeezing your larynx/throat area,” she said in a preview of the conversation, which was broadcast on Today Show on Friday, June 7, raising her voice to demonstrate the impact. “It was like you’re talking like that and you can’t go any higher or lower.”

“It becomes a spasm,” Dion continued. “It started (in the throat). (And I thought), ‘No, OK, it’s going to be fine.’ But it can also be in the stomach, can be in the spine, can be in the ribs.”

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Related: Céline Dion gives a ‘raw’ look at her ‘life-changing’ illness in I am Documentary trailer: “I’m ready now”

She further noted that sometimes it can feel as if the stiffness is stuck.

“It feels like my feet stay in that position when I stretch them out,” said the “Power of Love” singer.
Or when I cook – because I like to cook – my fingers, my hands get stuck in a position. … It gets cramped, but it’s like you’re in a position that you can’t get out of.”

“I broke my ribs once, because if it’s really bad, sometimes fractures can happen,” she said.

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In December 2022, Dion announced that she had been diagnosed with stiff person syndrome, a rare and incurable neurological condition that can cause debilitating muscle spasms, prompting her to cancel all upcoming performances.

The vocalist said at the time: “Unfortunately, these spasms affect every aspect of my daily life… sometimes they cause difficulty walking and do not allow me to use my vocal cords to sing as I am used to.”

“All I can do is sing,” she added. “That’s what I’ve done my whole life. And it’s what I love doing most.”

Related: 10 Times We All Felt Love for Celine Dion

According to the Stiff Person Syndrome Foundation, the condition affects the central nervous system, particularly the brain and spinal cord.

“Patients may be disabled, wheelchair-bound or bedridden, unable to work or care for themselves,” they say, adding that the neurological disease with autoimmune features can include symptoms such as “hyperrigidity, debilitating pain, chronic anxiety” and muscle spasms “so severe they can dislocate joints and even break bones.”

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Speaking about her interview with Dion last month to co-host Jenna Bush Hager, Kotb, 59, said: “(Céline) is doing much better now, but at one point she almost died, and that’s what she says.”

“It was a scary time and she has to deal with it,” Kotb added.

Dion’s conversation with Kotb will air in full on NBC on Tuesday, June 11 at 10 p.m. ET. Today airs weekdays starting at 7:00 a.m. ET on the network.

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