Avril Lavigne's new song is inspired by her battle with Lyme Disease.
Avril Lavigne
The 33-year-old singer dropped her new track 'Head Above Water' - her first release in five years - earlier this week and she has admitted the lyrics are based on the feelings that encompassed her when the infection was particularly bad.
Speaking to PEOPLE.com, she said: "One night, I thought I was dying, and I had accepted that I was going to die. My mom laid with me in bed and held me. I felt like I was drowning. Under my breath, I prayed 'God, please help to keep my head above the water.' In that moment, the song writing of this album began.
"It was like I tapped into something. It was a very spiritual experience. Lyrics flooded through me from that point on."
'Head Above Water' starts off as a ballad before it transitions into rock with the lyrics: "God keep my head above water / Don't let me drown, it's getting harder / I'll meet you there at the altar/ As I fall down to my knees / Don't let me drown."
The 'Sk8er Boi' hitmaker developed Lyme Disease, which is passed on via infected ticks, at the beginning of 2014 but it wasn't until she flew to Las Vegas to celebrate her 30th birthday in the October that she realised she wasn't well.
She said at the time: "I could barely eat, and when we went to the pool, I had to leave and go lie in bed. My friends asked, 'What's wrong?' I didn't know."
After months of feeling lethargic and light headed, she finally got her diagnosis.
She explained: "I had no idea a bug bite could do this...I was bedridden for five months. This was a wake-up call. I really just want to enjoy life from here on out."
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