Celine Dion Says She 'Could've Died' From High Valium Usage After Stiff Person Syndrome Diagnosis

Celine Dion has opened up about a near death experience that she had, due to the high dosages of Valium that she had been taking amid her Stiff Person Syndrome diagnosis.

Celine Dion who released her documentary I Am: Celine Dion yesterday (June 25), was diagnosed with Stiff Person syndrome in 2022, which affects the brain, spinal cord and causing muscle spasms, as well as sensory and posture issues. 

Such was the extreme pain that she was experiencing, the singer said that she resorted to taking high doses of Valium, admitting that she "could've died".

At one point, Dion was taking up to 80 or 90 mg of Valium each day to get through her tour. Usually, adults are normally prescribed up to 10mg, taken three of four times daily. While it is rare to die from an overdose of benzodiazepines, death can occur from mixing these medicines with other drugs or substances. 

“That’s just one medicine", Dion revealed. “I don’t want [to be] dramatic, but I could’ve died".

She added: “I was taking those medicines because I needed to walk, I needed to be able to swallow. I needed medicine to function. One more pill, two more pills, five more pills. Too many pills. The show must go on". 

In another interview, Dion said that she  “did not know honestly that it could kill me”, adding: “Ninety milligrams of Valium can kill you, you can stop breathing. And at one point, the thing is that my body got used to it at 20 and 30 and 40 until it went up". 

“And I needed that, it was relaxing my whole body for what, for two weeks, for a month, OK the show must go on. Here we go, I’m fine. But you get used to it, it doesn’t work anymore. More, more, more".