Everclear frontman Art Alexakis revealed this week that he is living with Multiple Sclerosis.
In an open letter on the band’s website, the 56-year-old singer said he received the diagnosis after undergoing an MRI for a pinched nerve he suffered in a car accident. Doctors told Alexakis he’s had MS for 10 to 20 years.
“I went and sat in my car and called my wife, and cried for about half an hour,” he shared. “I’m sure people in the parking lot thought I was losing it, and I guess I kind of was.”
Alexakis said the MS diagnosis helped him make sense of some balance and gait issues he has had over the past decade.
“It helps explain why I have had a higher sensitivity to heat and cold, and why I don’t have the energy, vigor, and razor sharp memory that I had ten years ago. I thought it was just me getting older.”
Alexakis, who said living with MS hasn’t affected his Everclear work, gives himself injections three times a week.
“My neurologist says as long as I stay on the medication, I should live into my 80’s without progression,” he wrote. “We shall see.”
The singer said he went public to stop people speculating that he is drinking or using drugs again “because they have seen me look unsteady on stage or around town.”
He added: “So, if you see me stumbling...sweaty, looking both tired and anxious at the same time, maybe a little more confused than usual, or forgetting lyrics yet looking happy (which is weird for me), please know that I have not fallen off the wagon. I am just learning how to be the new me.”
Read his full message here.