Céline Dion Reveals 17-Year Battle With Stiff-Person Syndrome Ahead of Paris Residency
Céline Dion has revealed that her struggle with Stiff-Person Syndrome lasted 17 years before a formal diagnosis in 2022 — far longer than previously known — and that she is determined to return to the stage for a 16-show residency at Paris' La Défense Arena, scheduled to begin on 12 September and run through 17 October, with a further 10 shows planned for May 2027.
The disclosures come from a Harper's Bazaar September 2026 cover story, titled 'Céline Dion Goes On,' in which the 58-year-old singer described the rare, incurable neurological condition that causes muscle stiffness, spasms, balance issues and seizures. Stiff-Person Syndrome is believed to affect roughly one or two people per million. Dion said her spasms were so intense at onset that they broke her ribs.
She experienced symptoms for nearly two decades before doctors identified the disorder. When symptoms flared at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Dion went off the radar for three years — afraid, she said, that fans might think she was living carefree while cancelling shows. She had already scrapped a 2022 North American tour and a 2023–2024 European tour because of the condition's effects.
Since diagnosis, Dion has attacked the syndrome with medications, physical therapy, vocal therapy and immunotherapy. Because no treatments for the disorder are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, her foundation donated $2 million toward research into autoimmune neurological disorders, Billboard reported.
Dion has performed only once in the past six years — a rendition of Édith Piaf's 'Hymne A L'Amour' from the Eiffel Tower at the 2024 Paris Olympics. To prepare for her return to regular performing, she is now training with 90-minute Pilates sessions three times a week and ballet classes two days a week with a local company, according to the Harper's Bazaar profile.
'It's been so long, I would like to offer them something to show how I've missed them,' Dion said of her upcoming shows and her fans. She added: 'They bought my records. They gave me that luxury. So the least I can do is tell them that…'
The profile traces the thread of physical discipline back to Dion's childhood in Quebec, where she dreamed of becoming a gymnast after watching Nadia Comaneci earn perfect scores at the 1976 Olympics. At 58, she is still moving toward the stage the same way — through the body.
'I'm LIVING the LIFE,' Dion told Harper's Bazaar. The magazine's September 2026 issue carries the full interview.
