Avril Lavigne has said that she 'thought [she] was dying' after contracting Lyme disease after being bitten by a tick last year.

The Canadian singer told People magazine that she was bedridden for five months after the diagnosis. "I could barely eat, and when we went to the pool, I had to leave and go lie in bed," she said. "My friends asked, 'What's wrong?' I didn't know. I had no idea a bug bite could do this… I felt like I couldn't breathe, I couldn't talk and I couldn't move. I thought I was dying."

Lyme disease is typically carried by deer ticks and can cause joint pain, severe headaches, exhaustion and problems with memory in severe cases.

The 'Sk8r Boi' singer, who is married to Nickelback's Chad Kroeger, has not released an album since 2013's 'Avril Lavigne' - although she recently made a video and released an old song, 'Give You What You Like', for charity.