Shakira Opens Up About Suffering ‘Depression’ Due to Vocal Cord Hemorrhage: ‘It Was Unbearable’

Shakira has opened up about the trauma of losing her voice.

The Colombian singer — who suffered a hemorrhage of her right vocal cord in 2017 — said the experience of not being able to sing was “unbearable.”

“It was my identity,” she told The Guardian. “There were times I couldn’t even get out of bed – I was so depressed.”

This, in turn, had a major impact on her family life with Barcelona soccer star Gerard Piqué and sons Milan, 6, and Sasha, 4 — not least because at times the “Hips Don’t Lie” singer was only able to communicate through sign language. She also had to postpone her El Dorado World Tour because of the injury.

“I was not positive. I was so pessimistic. I was a bitter person to be around,” she said. “Gerard saw the worst of me.”

Away from the limelight — and ignoring doctor’s advice to have surgery — Shakira tried hypnosis, meditation, and even some holy water from the French city of Lourdes to try and correct the damage to her singing voice.

“Either I needed surgery or divine intervention,” she told the paper.

Thankfully, the three-time Grammy winner was proven right and naturally rediscovered her singing voice, returning to the stage in June 2018 — something she said was like “having some kind of religious experience.”

Every night of her subsequent El Dorado tour — which has now been turned into a movie — was “a gift,” she adds.

In February, the Colombian will spread a huge scoop of icing onto the top of this cake by performing with Jennifer Lopez on the biggest stage of all: the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

Lopez recently told Extra that she and Shakira are already deep in the planning stages of their half-time, which takes place at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida, on Feb. 2, 2020 — which also happens to be Shakira’s 43rd birthday.

“Shakira and I have spoken a few times already,” Lopez, 50, said. “She’s putting her thing together, [I’m] putting my thing together, thinking about who we want to join us onstage if we want that.”

Despite being from Colombia, the significance of playing the halftime show isn’t lost on Shakira, either. While many performers have refused to play the gig in response to the NFL’s treatment of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick — who famously took a knee during the 2016 national anthem — Shakira believes the Latin-themed show will highlight another cause that’s close to her heart.

“I think it’s the right thing to do for the Latino community because we’ve also been through so much in Trump’s America, with walls being built,” she told The Guardian.

“It’s an opportunity to celebrate our culture, you know?”