Shania Twain says speaking is ‘more difficult’ than singing after undergoing ‘very scary’ open-throat surgery
Shania Twain, who contracted Lyme disease in 2003, has been open about her battle with dysphonia, a medical condition that causes vocal paralysis.
While the 54-year-old country star feared she would never be able to sing again, due to complications from the unpredictable tick-borne illness, she ultimately underwent a ‘very scary’ open-throat surgery to correct the condition.
In an interview with Loose Women on Monday, the Canadian icon revealed the procedure stabilized ‘the weakness in the vocal cord function’ with crutch-like installations.
Open book: Shania Twain previously feared she would never be able to sing again, after undergoing an open-throat surgery when she contracted Lyme disease
The Queen of Country Pop, who was bitten by a tick while horse back riding in a forest, disclosed the bacterial infection has affected her speaking voice.
‘It took years to get to the bottom of what was affecting my voice. I would say probably a good seven years before a doctor was able to find out it was nerve damage to my vocal chords directly caused by Lyme disease,’ she said.
She added: ‘You start avoiding speaking on the phone, you start avoiding going to places with any ambient noise where you have to speak over the volume of others. It’s very debilitating.
Hitmaker: The 54-year-old country star, who contracted the tick-borne illness in 2003, has been open about her battle with dysphonia, a medical condition that causes vocal paralysis; seen in November
‘Our voices are such a big part of our self expression and for a vocalist it’s devastating in so many ways,’ the singer said, noting it has made her self-conscious.
She continued: ‘Until I got to the bottom of why I was having a problem with my voice, there wasn’t much I could do about it.’
Additionally, the crooner said it ‘took a long time’ to believe she would ever ‘be able to sing again.’
Scared: Speaking on Loose Women on Monday, the Canadian icon said: ‘There was a long time where I thought I would never sing again’
‘It took years to get to the bottom of what was affecting my voice. I would say probably a good seven years before a doctor was able to find out it was nerve damage to my vocal chords directly caused by Lyme disease
Since undergoing the risky operation, she has been able to return to singing and is embracing her new sound.
‘Thankfully I persevered and I’m making records again and putting on concerts,’ she said.
However, she noted her ‘voice has changed’ and her speaking voice ‘is definitely the biggest effort.’
‘It took a long time and I did believe I would have to accept at some point I was never going to be able to sing again,’ she said in her latest interview; pictured in 2018
‘As you can hear I get quite raspy and sometimes I have to make adjustments as I’m speaking. But singing because there’s more projection involved is easier,’ the Grammy winner pointed out.
‘I have more power when I’m singing now. I have more character I find and I enjoy singing again, speaking is the more difficult challenge for me than singing but I’ll take that.’
Throughout her recovery, she has leaned on her husband Frédéric Thiébaud and her 19-year-old son Eja Lange, from a previous marriage.
Strong: The operation has had permanent effects on her voice, but she has embraced the new sound