Shania Twain has revealed how she struggled with her changing body during the menopause.
The 60-year-old opened up about her insecurities in a new interview and admitted that a particularly "raging period of menopause" led to her suffering a painful injury while on stage in Las Vegas in 2019.
Shania admitted that she was so malnourished at the time because of her limited diet that she was carried off stage after sustaining her injury.
"I ripped two muscles in my thigh, and a lot of it was dehydration because I wasn't really adapted to the Nevada climate," she told People.
"I wasn't drinking enough water, I was not eating enough protein, and I was really going through a raging period of menopause. I was just getting this bloat that I didn't understand."
She continued: "I wasn't eating enough salt, I wasn't retaining any water, and I wasn't drinking enough water. It was just this perfect storm for disaster, and I ripped these muscles."
© Thomas NiedermuellerDiscussing the physical changes her body went through, Shania confessed that she didn't like seeing her new curves in the mirror.
"I go from being this young, stunning figure, beautiful skin, everything's in the right place [to a] time in my life where I couldn't look in the mirror because all I could see were imperfections and not wanting to be that curvy thing," she recalled.
However, Shania has now embraced the change and chosen to "enjoy every day for what it is."
© Getty Images"It is well-being first, always," she explained. "To becoming an older woman and now looking in the mirror, no problem.
"I'm like, I just have to get over this because every day that goes by, I'm getting older; the dips and bulges and the sags are just getting more and more prominent."
She added: "I'm not trying to be 30. I'm not trying to be 25, and I won't be ever again. That's my own fault for not looking in the mirror when I was younger, and shame on me.
"I encourage everybody: enjoy yourself the way you are right now and love it. Vanity is not worth torture."
© Getty ImagesThe "You're Still the One" singer has learned to "adapt" to her changing body and now accepts that there are certain things she can't do the same post menopause.
"I'm just learning every phase that I go through, and I adapt," she said. "I can't play tennis like a maniac the way I used to in my 30s because I'm going to break my body.
"My wrist started to go because I planted so many trees in my youth, and I've got this big carpal lump. The first thing to go for me in tennis was my backhand.
© Getty Image"So I'm like, 'It's time to take on the double-handed backhand.' And it's more wicked than my one-handed backhand!"
And to anyone who feels the need to express their unwanted opinions about Shania's appearance, her stance is clear.
"My body is not shameable. That courage comes with time and maturity," she stated. "Body shaming is nothing that's going to affect me."
