Home » Celebrities » Jessie J reveals she is unable to sing after 6 months of health issues
Jessie J reveals she is unable to sing after 6 months of health issues
'I still cannot get through a full day without pain!' Tearful Jessie J reveals she is unable to sing after six months of mystery health issues
In December, the singer, 33, was diagnosed with Ménière's disease, a condition of the inner ear, and was hospitalised over Christmas
The condition can cause sufferers to feel like they or everything them you is spinning, lose their balance and feel sick
Jessie was also been suffering with vocal nodules, painful lumps on the vocal chords that impact singing range
But the singer has now revealed the issue isn't her vocal chords, explaining that it is 'something around them' which is yet to be diagnosed
Jessie mused: 'Spine, thyroid, allergy. Who knows. The tests continue'
The BRIT Award winner first burst onto the music scene in 2011 when her single Who You Are, went platinum
Jessie J has revealed that she is unable to sing.
The Bang Bang hitmaker took to Instagram on Thursday evening where she opened up about the mystery health issues which she has now been suffering with for six months.
The tearful popstar, 33, admitted: 'I still cannot get through a full day without pain!' as she explained that her condition has not yet been diagnosed.
Oh no! Jessie J, 33, has revealed that she is unable to sing, taking to Instagram on Thursday evening to announce the news to her fans (Pictured in 2011)
Jessie has been battling a mystery problem for several months, which has left her in pain every day and feeling frustrated because its having an impact on her voice, even though her vocal chords are not the issue.
The Domino singer admitted on Instagram: 'Yesterday I tried to sing a song I can usually sing with with ease, and I couldn't. The issue I'm having isn't my voice but is effecting my voice. And well…I sobbed. For hours.
'I let myself feel the broken part of me that sometimes I know I ignore when I shouldn't. Like fell the floor TV show type s***.
'6 months in and I still cannot get through a full day without pain in my mid neck / throat. Some days are so much better than others.
Devastating: On Thursday evening, the Bang Bang hitmaker opened up about the mystery health issues which she has now been suffering with for six months
'Worst part is that it's not my vocal chords. They are healthy and in there with their hands up like. Not us J, we got you. It's something around them. Spine, thyroid, allergy. Who knows. The tests continue.'
The star usually tries to stay positive but admitted there are moments when she can't help but feel 'lost and alone'.
She added: '95% of the time I am good. Positive and strong. Which is what I portray on here mostly. But that 5% will grow if not acknowledged. So yes, sometimes like yesterday. I break. All hope disappears. I feel so lost and so alone in what's going on.'
And Jessie thinks it is important to be honest about how she feels and sent love to those who are also struggling.
Worrying: The tearful popstar admitted: 'I still cannot get through a full day without pain!' as she explained that her condition has not yet been diagnosed
She continued: 'I guess I'm sharing this because people are always saying to me 'how do you stay so positive all the time' and truth is I don't. I definitely don't unpack and live in how I felt yesterday.
'But I don't take pride in always pretending I'm ok. It's not healthy. That old line 'it's ok not to be ok,' I wrote it because it's true and I still believe this platform is to inspire through truth.
'To anyone else going through a testing time. I feel you. I see you. We will get through this. Love you all [heart emoji].'
A post shared by J E S S I E J (@jessiej)
Back in June, Jessie broke down in tears as she updated fans on her battle with Ménière's disease, a condition of the inner ear.
The singer shared a tearful video of herself quietly singing her new single I Want Love, revealing it had been requested by her a speech therapist to monitor her progress.
According to the NHS website, an attack of Ménière's disease may cause sufferers to feel like they or everything them you is spinning, lose their balance and feel sick.
Jessie also revealed she had been diagnosed with having acid reflux and vocal nodules, painful lumps on the vocal chords that can have a devastating impact on singing.
Promising her fans to be 'honest' with her post, Jessie penned: 'I was asked to send a speech therapist a video of me singing something quietly, so she could hear my voice.
'I'm in pain every day': Back in June, Jessie broke down in tears as she updated fans on her battle with Ménière's disease, a condition of the inner ear
'(I am not naked I am wearing a boob tube. Well more of a tube in my case) I'm laughing. Thank god. We gotta laugh.
'The first song I sang was I want love. Just hearing myself sing it and feel so vulnerable whilst singing bought me to tears.
'I have never ever to this day (since recording it) been able to to sing it because of the pain I am experiencing. Man it's been hard not singing.
'It's literally my life line and my happiness. Being quiet is not something I'm good at. Or makes me feel like myself. Lord knows I'm loud af.
What is Ménière's disease?
Ménière's disease is an ear condition that can cause sudden attacks of vertigo (a spinning sensation).
During an attack of Ménière's disease you may feel like you or everything around you is spinning, lose your balance and feel sick.
During an attack of Ménière's disease, you may:
feel dizziness with a spinning sensation
feel unsteady on your feet
feel sick or vomit
hear ringing, roaring or buzzing inside the ear
have a sudden drop in hearing
These symptoms, which typically happen all at once, can last minutes or hours, but most commonly last 2 to 3 hours.
The condition usually starts in 1 ear, but can spread to both ears over time.
SOURCE: NHS.UK
'It was in that moment I knew I needed to be honest with myself and honest with you all about where I am at and explain what is going on…
'To be totally real, to have your support and love would help me get through this faster I'm sure
'I've always been honest however hard it feels. It's important to be strong enough to be weak. Especially on a platform like this.'
Jessie then took to her Stories to share a more detailed analysis of her problems, revealing that as well as battling Ménière's disease, she had struggled with singer's nodules.
Vocal nodules are hard, rough, noncancerous growths on your vocal cords that can be caused by overusing your voice and continue to grow if the voice isn't rested.
The growths can prevent vocal cords from vibrating normally, which in turn changes the pitch and tone of your voice.
Jessie revealed her problems first began in February when she began to feel a constant burning sensation in her throat, which she initially put down to fatigue from recording.
However, the singer then began to suffer with major acid reflux and nodules and was prescribed antacid and a cocktail of other medications, but to no avail.
Jessie then revealed she had to endure having eight cameras going down her nose and examinations from six different doctors, who were left stumped by the cause.
The singer added that she was then put on an extremely strict diet which saw her eat 'the same six foods for three months'.
Jessie did not specify if the doctors put her on the diet to help with her Ménière's disease, with some sufferers claiming their symptoms improve by eating a low-salt diet, avoiding alcohol and avoiding caffeine.
Ouch: Jessie also revealed she had been diagnosed with having acid reflux and vocal nodules, painful lumps on the vocal chords that can have a devastating impact on singing
Shocking: Jessie then revealed she had to endure having eight cameras going down her nose and examinations from six different doctors, who were left stumped by the cause
Feeling good: Despite being left physically and emotionally drained by the process, Jessie vowed to remain positive
The BRIT-winning artist added that she also had her bloods taken, throat swabs, acupuncture massages and soul work, but confessed she was 'still in the same pain every day'.
After being told to rest and reduce all her talking and singing, Jessie's nodules disappeared, but she has been warned by doctors that singing again will cause them to return.
She added there has still not been any reasoning provided for her problems with acid reflux.
Jessie revealed: 'I'm still seeing different doctors and doing everything I can to resolve it, I promise you that.'
Despite being left physically and emotionally drained by the process, Jessie vowed to remain positive.
She explained: 'My biggest lesson my whole life has been my health. And I'm in it. Living it. This is my real life and I know I'm being faced with this because I can handle it. It could be so much worse'.
She added that she would be taking a step back from plugging her single as she 'refuses' to mime but hoped fans could appreciate her honesty.
What are vocal nodules?
Vocal nodules are hard, rough, noncancerous growths on your vocal cords. They can be as small as a pinhead or as large as a pea.
You get nodules from straining or overusing your voice, especially from singing, yelling, or talking loudly or for a long period of time.
Vocal nodules go by other names based on their cause. They've been called singing nodules, screamer's nodules, and teacher's nodules.
Vocal nodules change the sound of your voice, making it: hoarse; raspy or scratchy; tired-sounding; breathy; crack or break; lower-pitched than usual
Singers can have a hard time reaching higher octaves because nodules reduce their range. Some people lose their voice entirely.
Pain is another common symptom of nodules. It may feel like: a shooting pain that goes from ear to ear, neck pain, a lump stuck in your throat
Treatment starts with vocal rest.
Voice therapy is another part of treatment.
You also need to get treated for any medical conditions that may have caused your vocal nodules, such as: acid reflux; allergies; sinusitis or thyroid problems
If your vocal nodules don't go away after a few weeks or they're very large, you may need surgery to remove them.
She said: 'I don't always get it out but I am honest and I hope you can respect that. Love you all… Stress will only make it worse. And speaking my truth since I was a little girl helps with my stress of anything.'
After pouring her heart out to her followers, Jessie penend: 'Your comments are making me cry. Your support inspires me to keep pushing. Thank you thank you thank you'.
Jessie first spoke about her battle with Meniere's disease last year after sharing a selfie in hospital at Christmas.
Amid a list of things she'd done that day, the star told how she was forced to watch television with a finger in her ear as she described how her illness felt.
She told her Instagram followers: 'I woke up and felt like I was completely deaf in my right ear, couldn't walk in a straight line.
'Basically I got told I had Meniere's syndrome. I know that a lot of people suffer from it and I've actually had a lot of people reach out to me and give me great advice, so I've just been laying low in silence.
'Now's the first time I've been able to sing and bear it. I just miss singing so much and being around anyone.'
Describing her symptoms she said: 'I haven't sung for so long and when I sing loud, it sounds like there's someone trying to run out of my ear.'
Jessie went on to reveal that her ear 'sounds like someone crawled in and turned a hair dryer on'.
Jessie has always been candid with fans about her health woes, previously revealing that she can't conceive children naturally.
The former Voice Kids judge told fans she discovered she had fertility issues nearly five years ago and detailed her 'pain and sadness' at the situation as she took to the stage at London's Royal Albert Hall in late 2018.
Jessie previously penned a song called Four Letter Word to help other people in her situation so they don't feel alone in a speech at one of her concerts.
Jessie said, according to Metro.co.uk: 'I was told four years ago that I can't ever have children.
'I don't tell you guys for sympathy because I'm one of millions of women and men that have gone through this and will go through this.
'It can't be something that defines us but I wanted to write this song for myself in my moment of pain and sadness but also to give myself joy, to give other people something that they can listen to in that moment when it gets really hard.
'So if you've ever experienced anything with this or have seen somebody else go through it or have lost a child, then please know you're not alone in your pain and I'm thinking of you when I sing this song.'
Struggles: The Flashlight singer disclosed her illness on a recent Instagram live in which she revealed that she struggled to hear, sing or even walk in a straight line (pictured in 2020)
Jessie has made no secret of her desire to have children, with the Bang Bang hitmaker previously telling The Mirror: 'I still believe in miracles. And as women know, it sometimes doesn't just happen, it's a process.
'The reason I spoke about it before wasn't for sympathy and it still isn't, it's to just be open about it.'
The media personality is currently in a relationship with dancer Max Pham Nguyen.
She confirmed her new romance in February, four months after splitting from Channing Tatum.
Songstress Jessie and Magic Mike hunk Channing had rekindled their romance in April 2020 after calling it quits in 2019.
New journey: The media personality is currently in a relationship with dancer Max Pham Nguyen and has expressed her desire to have children despite having fertility issues
Jessie has just released her new single I Want Love, which sets the stage for her long-awaited fifth full-length album, which will be released later this year.
Back in 2011, Jessie J quietly emerged with the biggest voice in pop when she released Who You Are, which went platinum.
The record also made history as the first album by a British female artist to produce six or more Top 10 hits in the UK, while she picked up the 2011 Critics' Choice BRIT Award and BBC's Sound of 2011.
On its heels, 2014's Sweet Talker crashed the Top 10 of the Billboard Top 200 and housed the eight-times platinum Bang Bang with Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj.
The ex files: The media personality confirmed her new romance in February, four months after splitting from Channing Tatum (pictured in 2020)
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