Shania Twain makes live performances look effortless, but a hidden health struggle once made life on and off stage very difficult. As Woman’s World reported, the country music star spoke candidly about her battle with Lyme disease in the documentary, “Not Just a Girl.” She contracted the tick-borne illness back in 2003 while riding a horse.
“I was losing my balance. I was afraid I was going to fall off the stage,” Twain said of her frightening early symptoms. “I was having these very, very, very millisecond blackouts, but regularly, every minute or every 30 seconds.” The condition even impacted her voice as it progressed, nearly putting an end to her days as a singer. Although the disease changed her life forever, Twain eventually started on a healing journey and made a triumphant return to performing.
Twain Thought She Would Never Sing Again
It’s hard to imagine never hearing another new Twain song again, but that was almost a reality. As the singer explained on an episode of The View, Lyme disease complications changed her voice forever. “There were seven years where I could not, for example, yell out for my dog,” she said. “My voice would just cut out in certain places.” It took a long time for her medical team to determine the cause of the issue, but as Twain shared, a neurologist finally solved the mystery.
“It was just a very unfortunate, ironic problem, since I’m a singer,” Twain said of the vocal cord nerve damage her Lyme disease caused. She subsequently received treatment, which allowed her to return to singing after nearly ten years, but her voice was never the same. However, Twain has adopted a positive outlook. “I’ve made the most of a bad situation,” she said. “I have a different voice now, but I own it. I love my voice now.”
The Singer Has Plans For a New Album
GettyIn recent years, Twain has made a stunning return to music, and she’s showing no signs of slowing down. In April 2025, the singer announced a limited-run summer tour, with shows starting in July. She included the full list of stops in an Instagram post, which she captioned: “I can’t wait to hit the road this summer and celebrate what has been an incredible couple of years with you all!”
What’s more, Twain reportedly has big plans for a new album. However, as the singer shared, it’s still in the planning stages. “Right now, all I’ve got are a million ideas,” she told Bustle. “And I need to wander around and explore until I land on where I’m going.”
