Tionne ‘T-Boz-‘ Watkins named her 2017 memoir, “A Sick Life: TLC ‘n Me: Stories from On and Off the Stage.” The outspoken icon has said that choosing the title ‘meant so much to her’ because it encapsulated two of her biggest life challenges: a legendary, yet tumultuous career, and her health.
Since childhood, the chart-topping singer/songwriter has battled sickle cell anemia, a crippling, incurable disease that attacks the autoimmune system due to flawed hemoglobin cells. It disproportionately affects Black Americans, with approximately 1 out of every 365 diagnosed every year. Like the thousands of others facing the disease, Watkins has dealt with debilitating pain and has tried a myriad of tactics to manage the symptoms. What’s finally worked? CBD.
“I was able to make it through four tours without getting sick,” Watkins told ESSENCE in a sit down conversation. “And everybody who’s been on tour with TLC knows that’s astronomical for me, honey, because I am known for messing up a tour,” she shared transparently.
The pain can occur anywhere, but most often occurs in the chest, arms, and legs, according to Johns Hopkins. A sickle cell crisis can leave a patient with swelling of the hands and feet, vision problems and frequent infections among other uncomfortable markers.
Watkins said she struggled with pain most of her…
