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Time and disease continue to come for some of our culture’s most iconic figures.
At 83, legendary singer Carly Simon is disclosing her diagnosis.
She has Parkinson’s disease, and it has transformed her life.
But there is a major silver lining to this story: she has exciting news to share.
‘I’ve been learning how to live with Parkinson’s disease’
In a statement to Page Six on Monday, July 27, the music legend disclosed her diagnosis.
“So many people have written to me, kindly wondering about my relative silence, asking how I am and what I have been doing,” Simon began.
“The truth is,” she revealed, “I’ve been learning how to live with Parkinson’s disease.”
Parkinson’s is a neurodegenerative disease that impacts both motor and non-motor functions. It is most recognized by physical tremors.
Simon explained that 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,” Simon explained.
“Some days I’m so tired I can’t get the day moving at all,” she acknowledged. “On others, it gives me a little more room to move, think, work, and feel like myself.”
Simon underwent three joint replacement surgeries after arthritis attacked her knees and one hip. During her recovery, new mobility issues presented themselves.
“I had trouble standing up from low chairs and deep couches without someone offering me an arm,” Simon recalled.
She shared that it reached a point where she could no longer walk without “considerable help.”
‘I do not consider Parkinson’s a gift or a blessing’
“There is no tidy or predictable schedule to the illness. It does not consult my calendar before deciding what kind of day I am going to have,” Simon explained bluntly.
Additionally, she shared, she had a basal cell carcinoma — a form of cancer. Though she treated it with surgery, she has felt self-conscious about her appearance as a result.
“Between my mobility issues, the Parkinson’s diagnosis, the surgery, and the emotional effects of it all, withdrawing from public view was the most palatable reaction,” Simon reasoned.
“I do not consider Parkinson’s a gift or a blessing. It is neither. It is difficult, frustrating, and sometimes frightening,” she described.
Simon affirmed: “I am still learning how to live with it and how to accept it without feeling that I have surrendered something essential.”
We mentioned that there was good news, and there is!
Simon’s new album, Comes in Waves, releases on August 14.
“Working on the music gave shape to days that did not always have much shape,” Simon expressed. “It gave me somewhere to go without having to leave the room.”
She added: “It reminded me that illness can change your life without becoming the whole of your life.”
Simon concluded her statement: “I have learned to accept that every day will look a little different. But I am still very much here.”
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