American musician Carly Simon has opened up about her health following years out of the spotlight.
The 83-year-old You’re So Vain singer issued a statement to fans, confirming that she has Parkinson’s disease and was previously diagnosed with a form of cancer.
‘So many people have written to me, kindly wondering about my relative silence, asking how I am and what I have been doing. The truth is, I’ve been learning how to live with Parkinson’s disease,’ she began in her personal message.
‘It has taken me some time to understand the diagnosis, to adjust to it, and to decide how much I wanted to say about it publicly. Parkinson’s is different for everyone, and it can be unpredictable.
‘Some days I’m so tired I can’t get the day moving at all. On others, it gives me a little more room to move, think, work, and feel like myself.’
Simon recalled to People how she first noticed symptoms of Parkinson’s – a disorder of the nervous system that affects movement and worsens over time – when she underwent surgery.
‘The problems began with arthritis in both knees and one hip. I eventually had all three joints replaced, out with the old and in with delicate bouquets of metal and plastic.
‘After three replacement surgeries, I assumed my difficulty walking was simply an unfortunate and rather ironic part of the recovery process.
‘But my mobility continued to worsen. I had trouble standing up from low chairs and deep couches without someone offering me an arm. Overstuffed furniture became my enemy.
‘Once seated, I could feel as though I had been swallowed by the chair and might remain there permanently, like a guest who had badly overstayed her welcome.’
Simon said she eventually encountered periods where she could not walk at all without ‘considerable help’.
Her family also recognised that something was not right. After an ‘extensive evaluation’ at the Mayo Clinic, she was diagnosed.
While there is no cure for Parkinson’s disease, she began treatment to manage her symptoms shortly after. Symptoms typically include tremors, muscle stiffness, and slowness of movement.
At the same time, however, she learnt that she had basal cell carcinoma on her face. BCC is the most common type of skin cancer, accounting for approximately 70% of all skin cancers.
While she was able to have the cancer removed, the procedure had a devastating impact.
‘The surgery affected my appearance and made me more self-conscious about being seen in public.’
Simon also survived breast cancer in 1997. She underwent a double mastectomy (surgical removal of both breasts), reconstructive surgery, and chemotherapy.
‘I have always been more critical of my appearance than anyone else could possibly imagine,’ she confessed, name-checking the ‘ironic’ lyrics of You’re So Vain and explaining how her health battles only ‘gave [her] inner critic new material’.
Signs of Parkinson’s disease
Parkinson’s is a progressive condition, but it impacts each person differently.
As explained by Parkinson’s UK, the symptoms you experience, the order they appear, and how they progress will be personal to you. Symptoms can even change by the hour.
The most common symptoms of Parkinson’s are:
- tremors
- rigidity (muscle stiffness)
- slowness of movement
There can also be non-motor symptoms, which include:
- anxiety and depression
- sleep problems and insomnia
- mild memory loss and thinking problems
- pain
Ultimately, this led to her withdrawing from public life.
‘If a person is allowed to hibernate during both winter and summer, then I have become an all-season bear.’
Still, she has vowed to keep going, expressing her ‘deep’ gratitude for her children, family, and friends, plus medical professionals, for their support on days when ‘[her] own reserves were not enough’.
What’s more, she’s been in the recording studio, with new music on the way.
‘I have not stopped living, and I have not stopped working.’
Titled Comes in Waves and set for release on August 14, it marks her first record release in almost 20 years, her last one being in 2008.
‘The album includes songs and fragments of songs that had been waiting for me, some for years. There were melodies, verses, and ideas written down and tucked away for some unknown future when I would have the time and attention to finish them,’ she shared.
‘Apparently, that future is now.’