Shania Twain is riding high - at 60, she’s preparing to release her seventh studio album, Little Miss Twain and she recently declared that "never will" slow down or stop looking for new things to explore.
However, the country icon has revealed that regaining her confidence after menopause was a hard won battle, after resorting to "unhealthy things" to take control of the changes in her body.
Speaking with The Sunday Times magazine, Shania shared, "In menopause you lose control of your body. So all of a sudden I’m bloating and I’m definitely not in control. I can’t just lose five pounds."
She added, "I was malnourished. To be thinner… I was doing very unhealthy things. I was working my body more than I was feeding it, to keep up with the strain.
"I stopped looking at myself in the mirror. I hated my body. I'm like, 'Oh, I cannot stand this changing body.' But that was so unhealthy. Who cannot look at themselves in the mirror?"
Fortunately, the Man! I Feel Like a Woman! Chart-topper had an epiphany when the strain she was putting on her body worsened an existing injury and slowed her recovery.
Realising she had to be kinder to her body, Shania has come out the other side feeling grateful for the lessons menopause taught her - and with a confidence that can't be stopped.
She said, "Now I’m like, ‘Bring on the mirrors, I’m going to look at myself all day long!’ Menopause has been very good for me because I’ve learnt that some things you cannot control."
"This is my 60-year-old menopausal self and I have been through these phases and now I’m, like, yeah! I’m very happy to be myself. Bring it on."
A post shared by Shania Twain (@shaniatwain)
A photo posted by on
With her new album coming in the summer and plans to keep touring - she joined Harry Styles for his Wembley dates - Shania declared, "I’m not slowing down and I’ll tell you why. I just keep finding new things that I love to do.
"I’ve got a genuine explorer’s heart and I haven’t run out of things to explore. I never will."
Shania’s final inspiring message for anyone who might have felt a change in themselves is to always keep the hope and remember that there are new horizons to discover.
"There’s always a new flower, new recipe, new horse - there’s always something new."
