Justin Timberlake Reveals Lyme Disease Diagnosis: ‘Living With This Can Be Relentlessly Debilitating’

One day after closing out his Forget Tomorrow World Tour, Justin Timberlake has revealed that he was quietly suffering with Lyme disease throughout the trek.

In a vulnerable Instagram post Thursday (July 31), the pop star shared photos from his time on the road and wrote, “As I’m reflecting on the tour and festival tour — I want to tell you a little bit about what’s going on with me.”

Timberlake went on to announce, “Among other things, I’ve been battling some health issues, and was diagnosed with Lyme disease — which I don’t say so you feel bad for me — but to shed some light on what I’ve been up against behind the scenes.”

“If you’ve experienced this disease or know someone who has — then you’re aware: living with this can be relentlessly debilitating, both mentally and physically,” he continued. “When I first got the diagnosis I was shocked for sure. But, at least I could understand why I would be onstage and in a massive amount of nerve pain or, just feeling crazy fatigue or sickness. I was faced with a personal decision. Stop touring? Or, keep going and figure it out. I decided the joy that performing brings me far outweighs the fleeting stress my body was feeling. I’m so glad I kept going.”

According to the Mayo Clinic, Lyme disease is caused by borrelia bacteria, which is carried by some ticks. Humans who contract the illness usually do so after being bitten by one of those ticks, often in a wooded area. Symptoms of the disease include rashes, body pain and stiffness, muscle weakness and immune-system issues.

Timberlake isn’t the first musician who’s publicly shared his Lyme diagnosis, with Shania Twain, Avril Lavigne, Justin Bieber and more stars also previously speaking about their struggles with the illness.

Timberlake’s post marks the end of more than a year of touring on his Forget Tomorrow trek, which kicked off in April 2024, about one month after he released album Everything I Thought It Was. The trek made Timberlake the 10th top touring artist of Billboard‘s midyear Boxscore report, grossing $73.2 million across 41 shows as of late May.