ABCOzzy Osbourne has revealed he has Parkinson’s, in an emotional interview with his wife Sharon.
The 71-year-old rockstar revealed he is no longer able to hide his health struggles, saying he’s on a ‘whole host’ of medication to treat his condition.
He first noticed something was wrong when he suffered a fall last year and had to undergo surgery for it, after which he started experiencing nerve pain.
You can watch his emotional interview below:
Ozzy sat down with Good Morning America to make the announcement, saying doctors have had a hard time pinpointing whether the fall, the surgery, or his condition are to blame for his diagnosis.
The singer-songwriter insisted he was ‘far from’ his deathbed in the interview, but said the condition is affecting the nerves in his body. ‘It’s like you’ll have a good day, then a good day and then a really bad day,’ he explained.
The 71-year-old said he wanted to ‘own up’ to his condition for the sake of his fans, adding:
A year ago I was in a terrible state. I’m on a host of medication, mainly for the surgery. I’ve got numbness down this arm and my legs are going cold. I don’t know if it’s the Parkinson’s or what.
That’s the problem.
PA ImagesThe musician described the past year as being ‘terribly challenging’ for his family, with Ozzy and and Sharon revealing they have exhausted the medical options in the US and will travel to Switzerland in April to seek advice from a professor who specialises in the condition.
Sharon said they will go ‘wherever [they] can go’ to find answers, while Ozzy added: ‘We’re lucky we can afford to do that.’
The Black Sabbath singer said he had felt ‘guilty’ hiding the diagnosis for months, adding: ‘To hide something is hard – you never feel proper. You feel guilty. I’m no good with secrets. I cannot walk around with it anymore. It’s like I’m running out of excuses.’
However, Ozzy added he’s relieved he can finally share it with the world, stating:
I feel better now that I have owned up to the fact that I have a case of Parkinson’s.
PA ImagesEarlier this week, the rockstar was spotted walking with a cane for the first time, sparking rumours about his health.
Now, Ozzy says he is determined to get himself healthy so he can start touring again, with Sharon saying he ‘really needs to get back out now’ as this is the longest time he’s ever spent at home.
He said he ‘can’t wait’ to get on the road again, describing touring as his ‘drug’. ‘I ain’t going anywhere yet,’ he added.
Our thoughts are with Ozzy and his family at this difficult time.
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A Broadcast Journalism Masters graduate who went on to achieve an NCTJ level 3 Diploma in Journalism, Lucy has done stints at ITV, BBC Inside Out and Key 103. While working as a journalist for UNILAD, Lucy has reported on breaking news stories while also writing features about mental health, cervical screening awareness, and Little Mix (who she is unapologetically obsessed with).