Cher

From MEpedia, a crowd-sourced encyclopedia of ME and CFS science and history

Cher (born Cherilyn Sarkisian) is a world-famous US singer and actress.[1]

Illness[edit | edit source]

In the late 1980s, Cher contracted the chronic Epstein-Barr virus (CEBV) and developed chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), which was complicated by pneumonia. Too exhausted to continue with her music and film careers, Cher was forced to stop working for two years while she recovered.[2]

Cher turned to infomercials to make money before she was able to restart performing on stage and her film career.[1]

Interviews[edit | edit source]

"What sounds like jaded ennui is really Epstein-Barr. Cher discovered she carried the energy-sapping virus during the filming of The Witches of Eastwick in 1986, but she wasn't fully aware of the disease's debilitating force until she began her latest film, Mermaids, which opens next month. Production had to be shut down while she regained her strength.

"I was so sick I thought I was going to die. I went to doctor after doctor." — Vanity Fair (1990)[3]

In an interview with USA Today in 2008, Cher was reported as saying:

"I was sick a long time," she says. "I went to Germany for some medicine and treatment. They have things overseas we never dreamed existed. When I was first diagnosed in the late '80s, I had doctors telling me I was crazy. I was sick constantly and almost died from pneumonia. You never lose it, and it really takes the life out of you."[4]

In 2007, Cher suffered from another debilitating bout of Epstein-Barr virus, but recovered.[5]

When asked in a BBC interview if she thought the illness was psychosomatic, Cher replied, "My experience was that it was really a physical illness — but it does make you depressed as well ... Boy, it was devastating for me."[6][7]

Online presence[edit | edit source]

See also[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. 1.0 1.1 "She got married in her bathroom? 10 facts about Cher on her 75th birthday". Bang Showbiz. May 20, 2021.
  2. Holden, Stephen (June 30, 1996). "Queen of the Comeback, Cher Tries Yet Again". New York Times. After lying low for several years, nearly flattened by a severe case of chronic fatigue syndrome complicated by pneumonia and an embarrassing interlude as an infomercial queen, Cher is again on the comeback trail.
  3. Sessums, Kevin (November 1, 1990). "Cher: Star-Studded". Vanity Fair.
  4. Gundersen, Edna (February 6, 2008). "Cher shares: Life, love, tattoos, politics". USA TODAY.
  5. "Contrary to rumors, Cher is doing just fine". Today. October 30, 2008 – via Access Hollywood.
  6. Prohealth - 10 Celebrities with ME/CFS
  7. "BBC Live Chat transcript". BBC. December 8, 2000 – via Cher World.