Kesha has CVID – common variable immunodeficiency disease.
Kesha has CVID – common variable immunodeficiency disease
The 36-year-old singer, formerly known as Ke$ha, found out she was suffering the rare condition, which affects one in 25,000 to 50,000 people globally, after she started to feel exhausted.
Opening up about having the condition for the first time, she told SELF magazine about finding out she had it in 2022: “I had a really hard time saying no to interviews or photo shoots because I didn’t want to let my one chance fall away by not being able to fulfill every request. It led to severe exhaustion physically and mentally.
“I learned after my diagnosis that sleep is the most important thing. I took that for granted for, God, about 29, 30 years.
“I feel like I’m just playing catch-up on my teens and twenties, still. But I try to get as much sleep as possible, and I have to protect that fiercely,”
CVID is a primary immunodeficiency disease that puts sufferers at an especially high risk of developing recurrent and potentially serious infections.
Kesha’s SELF profile said she has kept news of her condition private until now out of fear it would attract negative attention.
She added: “I just never wanted to be the whiny, privileged girl. Also, my image had been that of going out and having fun.”
In an estimated 25% of cases CVID is associated with autoimmune issues, in which the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy parts of the body while trying to protect it.
It can trigger symptoms such as sluggishness and digestive problems as well as larger complications, like constant respiratory infections that can lead to other chronic conditions such as lung disease.
Kesha also told in the interview how she “nearly died” after freezing her eggs.
She said she spent nine days receiving hospital treatment due to complications linked to the fertility procedure, which at one stage left her too weak to perform.
Kesha added: “I finally feel recovered, but it took a couple months. It was horrifying.”
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