Céline Dion Is Back on Stage. What Happens to the Body After Years with Stiff-Person Syndrome?

Global music icon, Céline Dion, recently returned to the stage after suffering from stiff-person syndrome (SPS).

SPS is a rare neurological and autoimmune disorder that can cause progressive muscle stiffness and painful spasms that can affect someone’s ability to walk, speak, or perform everyday activities. It affects one to two people in a million and is more commonly found in women than men.

When a neurological disorder affects the body for years, the condition can have long-term effects on a person’s quality of life. When possible, rehab can be an effective form of treatment to make SPS symptoms more manageable.

Leslie Morse, DO, chief medical officer at Christine E. Lynn Rehabilitation Center for The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis at UHealth/Jackson Memorial, emphasized that, “The overarching goal of neurological rehabilitation is to maximize function, independence, safety, and quality of life. We work toward helping people perform meaningful activities in their real lives.”

Dion publicly described her rehab as years of training like an athlete, doing ballet and Pilates several times a week, as well as voice therapy.

Pilates and ballet focus on skills that are important in neurological rehab, including balance, flexibility, coordination, and controlled movement.

Dr. Morse added, “The specific exercise is less important than selecting movement that’s safe, appropriately challenging, repetitive, and connected to the functional goal the person is trying to achieve.”

For Dion, that goal was returning to the stage. For another person, it may be walking independently, returning to work, or being able to participate in everyday life.

At Lynn Rehabilitation Center, that patient-centered approach is fundamental to neurological rehab. To learn more about our services, visit jacksonrehabcare.org.

Image credit: Celine Dion Concert Singing, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons