Avril Lavigne cries over doctors who called her crazy: 'Lyme disease exists' - Los Angeles Times
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Avril Lavigne cries over doctors who called her crazy: ‘Lyme disease exists’

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For Avril Lavigne, one of the worst parts of suffering through Lyme disease was having doctors treat her like she was a crazy person.

The “Hello Kitty†rocker was in tears Monday on “Good Morning America†as she described her struggle to find a diagnosis.

“I was seeing every specialist,†she said, “literally the top doctors and ... it was so stupid, they would pull up their their computer and be like, ‘Chronic fatigue syndrome,’ or ‘Why don’t you try to get out of bed, Avril, and just go play the piano?’ It’s like, ‘Are you depressed?’â€

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She fought through her emotion to add, “This is what they do to a lot of people who have Lyme disease ... they don’t have an answer for them, so ... they tell them, ‘You’re crazy.’â€

Lavigne, who was experiencing flu-like symptoms, night sweats, fatigue and more, did her own research and — about two months into an ordeal that whisked her totally out of the public eye — decided she had to find a Lyme disease specialist.

The 30-year-old singer is now about halfway through her treatment, which she said includes antibiotics and rest. “The thing that’s good for me to know, I’m just really grateful to know I will make 100% recovery,†she explained.

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Last December, Lavigne went public with an acknowledgment of “health issues†but didn’t reveal her diagnosis until April.

“I had no idea a bug bite could do this. I was bedridden for five months,†she told People at the time, noting that she thought she’d been bitten by a tick last spring.

Adding insult to injury: In September, right before the worsening Lyme disease took her out of circulation, rumors were circulating that she and husband Chad Kroeger were about to divorce. She dismissed all of it in her People interview, saying simply of the Nickelback frontman, “He’s been very supportive.â€

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Around midday Monday, Lavigne checked in publicly via Instagram.

“Driving around after a big morning with my GMA interview,†she wrote, posting a selfie taken in an Aston-Martin. “Cried on national television this am. So embarrassing. Lol. Thankful to God that I am recovering, finally getting on with my life and ready to help other people.â€

Follow Christie D’Zurilla on Twitter @theCDZ and Google+. Follow the Ministry of Gossip on Twitter @LATcelebs.

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