Tragic Last Days Of 'Blind' Stevie Nicks: Fleetwood Mac Icon, 76, Opens Up About Suffering Late-Onset Eye Disease
Oct. 25 2024, Published 1:54 p.m. ET
Stevie Nicks has spent years suffering from terrible sight due to a late-stage eye disease.
The Fleetwood Mac singer believed her eye problems stemmed from her use of glass contacts that she "forgot to take out" in the past, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
During a recent four-hour interview, Nicks, 76, recalled her band celebrating the news of their album going platinum and partying for nearly 48 hours straight. The singer claimed she forgot to take out her contact lenses, scratching her corneas and almost leaving her completely blind.
The band’s tour manager was able to bandage up her eyes at the venue for the first Rumours World Tour date, which helped prevent her from losing her sight.
Nicks claimed it was "trippy" when she first noticed something was dramatically wrong with her vision.
She explained: "I was seeing all these colors, big things of purple.
"I was having, like, acid trips. And I'm going, 'I'm not taking any acid.'"
During the same interview, Nicks opened up about her prior issues with substance abuse and about how she completely lost control of her behavior at the height of the band's popularity.
She explained: "All of us were drug addicts, but there was a point where I was the worst drug addict.
"I was a girl, I was fragile, and I was doing a lot of coke. And I had that hole in my nose. So it was dangerous."
The legendary singer has taken time to reflect on her career, which includes being the first woman to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame twice — first with Fleetwood Mac and then as a solo artist.
Despite this recognition, she feels a deep void following Christine Anne McVie's passing in 2022.
She shared: "I had her from 1975 until she died, and I miss her every day."
Nicks attributed the camaraderie between herself and McVie as the glue that held Fleetwood Mac together.
Following McVie's death, Nicks reflected on her own health challenges.
Diagnosed with wet macular degeneration, she must now receive regular treatments to maintain her vision.
This condition has guided her toward prioritizing her artistic works as she contemplates the fragility of her eyesight.
She stressed the "importance of creativity" in the face of adversity, telling Rolling Stone: "You need to finish these drawings because what if you start to lose your sight?"
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