Avril Lavigne ''Doing a Lot Better'' Following Lyme Disease Diagnosis: ''It's Like a Second Shot at Life''

Singer opens up about battling disease

By Brett Malec Jun 29, 2015 5:11 PMTags
Avril Lavigne John Parra/Getty Images for Clear Channel

Avril Lavigne is opening up about her battle with Lyme Disease.

In a new interview with Good Morning America, the 30-year-old singer details her rough road to recovery after being diagnosed with the illness last year while she was on tour.

"I literally became bedridden last October," Lavigne says, adding that she saw multiple specialists who had trouble diagnosing her. "They would pull up their computer and be like, ‘Chronic fatigue syndrome.' Or, ‘Why don't you try to get out of bed, Avril, and just go play the piano?' It's like, ‘Are you depressed?'"

"This went on and off for a month," she continued. "And I saw my doctor right away, got blood tests, got swabbed, and they didn't really know what was wrong with me."

After two months of symptoms Lavigne says she started to suspect Lyme Disease. "I started going to other doctors and, like, specifically telling them and asking, like, ‘I have Lyme disease. I know I do. Can you check me?' Then I finally figured out, 'Find a Lyme specialist,'" she says. "And the thing is, when you're a specialist, you also really know the disease inside and out and you can diagnose their symptoms."

Lavigne revealed it was fan letters and videos that got her through her darkest days. "I sat there in my bed and I watched the videos and, like, did exactly what I'm doing now. I cried through the whole thing," she said fighting back tears. "Honestly, I felt very, very loved. And it sounds silly saying it, but I really truly did feel my fans through the process."

Lavigne says she's doing better today but isn't fully recovered. "I'm about halfway through my treatment," she says. "I'm doing a lot better. Seeing a lot of progress...I'm just really grateful to know that, like, I will make a 100 percent recovery."

"For me, it's like a second shot at life. I really just want to go out there and truly do what I love," she added. "So I'm so excited for life after this."