This pop star ignored advice to get a nose job and fix her lisp. At 55, she's celebrating her 'uniqueness.'

You don’t become a pop princess at age 16 and then spend four decades in the spotlight without collecting a vault of backstage stories and life lessons.

Debbie Gibson, the phenom behind ’80s chart-toppers “Only in My Dreams,” “Foolish Beat” and “Electric Youth,” shares that journey in her new memoir, Eternally Electric. The book, out now, reflects on the highs and lows of her career — and, much like her music, delivers a message about empowerment and staying true to yourself.

“As time has gone on, I really appreciate my uniqueness,” the 55-year-old tells me during our conversation for Yahoo’s Unapologetically series. “I was told by so many agents and casting directors: ‘Get your nose done. Get your lisp fixed.’ Being a young female in showbiz, you constantly get told your quirks are what's wrong with you. Now I look at myself and I'm like: I just love that I am an original. We are all originals. Be distinctive, be authentic — that’s what I’ve really grown into.”

While songwriting came naturally, young stardom didn’t. Gibson experienced paralyzing anxiety attacks early in her career. Her 40s brought another health challenge. In 2013, the performer was experiencing debilitating pain, which left her unable to get out of bed, and it took nine months to get a Lyme disease diagnosis. The illness is something she’s had to continue to manage, which has been a lesson in resilience.

“One of the purposes of writing this book on every level was to say, ‘Hey, I’ve been through all this stuff and I’m thriving now,’” says Gibson, who lives in Las Vegas with her dogs. “I’m happier than ever. My last decade was horrible, and this decade is amazing. So that turns the idea of aging on its ear.”

Here’s what she has to say about her health, aging and being happily unmarried and child-free.

Given all the adult responsibilities you had at a young age, do you ever wish that you had a more traditional childhood?

I'm so at peace with how it unfolded. Even if I didn't have the passion I had for the arts and for my career at such a young age, I would have been weirdly uncomfortable being a “normal” kid. I love that I had the perfect out not to go to parties that were gonna threaten my innocence, because I wasn't into it. I wasn't into sneaking off … with the boys and the beer. I had that focus and distraction of holing up in my studio, making music. It really was an unconventional childhood … but it was all so perfect for me.

Your mother, Diane Gibson, who died in 2022, was your manager for 25 years before you eventually replaced her. In the book, you compare that professional split to a divorce, though you remained very close. What did you learn from her?

She taught me how to be a strong woman in a man's world and a creative visionary in what was a very male landscape at the time. People use the word “fearless” a lot. We were not fearless, but we were brave. She used to say, “I came out of the kitchen in Brooklyn with a rolling pin, bad perm and my roots showing and figured out how to transform to represent you in these conference rooms.” She would acknowledge how scary meetings were with record executives. Her knees were shaking, her palms were sweating, but she did it anyway. That's what she taught me: “You're gonna be afraid … but if you want something badly, you just move past that and you do it.” That's how I've lived my whole life.

You open up for the first time about your mom’s death. You wrote that she suffered a hemorrhagic stroke while under sedation for a laser facial. She pulled through, but her health declined, and she died not long after, at age 76. How difficult was it to relive that chapter?

It was very hard to write — and cathartic. My first call was to my sisters and aunt to make sure they were all cool with me sharing. They were unanimous: “Not only are we cool with it, we think this story needs to be told to help people.” I have friends my age who have had laser facials; it’s like numbing cream, and then they’re out and recovering. But if you're on medications [like my mom was], and you already have blood pressure issues or you're prone to an aneurysm, [complications could occur]. You have to understand that any treatment has risks.

I ran into Kris Jenner, and I told her about [my mom]. She was like, “Oh, my God, you have to share that.” That's coming from a woman who has work done and can handle it. I think that especially my diehard fans were probably like, What happened to Diane? One minute, she was youthful and healthy. So this will resolve that mystery for people. But it’s one of those things — I really felt like she could have lived to 95 years old if that didn't happen. … I write about it as a cautionary tale for people to look at their medical history, look at the practitioner they’re going to, the integrity of a facility that is doing aesthetic procedures and all of those things.

It was such a long journey getting your own Lyme disease diagnosis in 2014. What did that teach you about yourself?

I can get through anything. That disease — and certain doctors and people who saw how debilitated I was for so long — really had me counted out. There were several times where I was like, I don’t know if I’m getting through this day. People go, “Oh, were you bitten by a tick?” They don't understand the gravity of how it takes your system down on every level: your neurological system, your immune system. I'll never forget being in a wheelchair going through the airport and being like, I hope nobody sees me, because I don’t plan for this to be my norm. … To go from singing and dancing on stage to being wheeled onto your plane, it’s humbling, to say the least. The gift in it has really been: I have a lot of compassion for people who are in chronic pain, who can’t get answers to their health issues.

You said you had to revamp your whole life to get your body back on track. Talk about that.

My life was not in harmony. There were a lot of things going on in my life that were kind of toxic. … It made it a lot easier for an illness to take over. It was a big wakeup call. Sometimes we have to be pushed into a corner to start looking at every aspect of our lives, like whatever food sensitivity is coming up, or chemical sensitivities like perfumes and colognes. [Now] when I shoot a music video, I have to ask everybody not to wear perfume. I hate [having to do it], but I have to be really diligent about all of that. You know how when people are dealing with cancer and they're told to take all the toxic chemicals out of their home? I had to do all of that. … But I’ve learned how to manage it all pretty well. I’ve become knowledgeable in what works for me and what doesn’t.

You write about having a bad reaction to Botox because of your weakened immune system and describe it as feeling like you had been poisoned. What happened, and were you done with injectables forever after that?

At the time I got the Botox treatment, I didn’t know I was dealing with Lyme. This doctor swore it stays localized, but there’s no way that it didn’t do what it did. I didn’t blame him, I didn’t sue him, but I took note for myself … putting a foreign chemical in your body, for supersensitive people, our bodies go “mayday, mayday.”

And, no, I’m actually not done with doing it forever. At a later time, I did a tiny amount of Dysport and [I also tried] Xeomin. In moderation, and at a time when I’m feeling strong, those things can work for me now, but at that time … it was too much — the wrong chemical at the wrong time. But, no, I’m not sworn off of anything in my life. … I can’t imagine ever wanting to have any sort of frozen look in general, but also I see myself in certain lighting and I’m like, Oh, I wonder what kind of refreshers are out there that would be safe for me and effective and not make me look like somebody else.

What’s something getting older has helped you make peace with or let go of?

I really learned to embrace the seasons of life and my body, and that it’s going to do different things. And [I’ve learned to be] happy when my body is serving my needs in a day. I celebrate wherever I am. Sometimes I find myself going, I’m a little tired today, but you know what, I have just enough of what I need to do what I need to do today. Or, You know what, I look good enough today. Everything doesn’t have to be perfect all the time. Dropping the type A, perfectionist quality that is drummed into so many of us has been really liberating.

You write about having a full, happy life without marriage or children. You dote on your dogs, you’re an aunt and you mentor young songwriters. What do you wish more people understood about choosing that path?

It's so important for people to hear different perspectives on marriage and children. I was just somebody who was not feeling like the next step would be to get married. I think: “Oh, my God, if I had married any one of several of my boyfriends…” Not that they weren’t amazing guys, [but] they were not meant to be life partners. There's so much conditioning where people feel like they reach a certain point in a relationship and that's just the thing you're supposed to do.

I'm here to say: It's not that I don't want love … but I don't feel this profound lack of anything right now in my life. Life is so full, and if someone comes along who can add to my happy, as I put it — not make me happy, but add to my happy and enhance my life and give me an outlet for romantic love — then great. But if not, I'm so grateful I'm not stuck in the wrong situation. Partnering up would be like icing on the cake at this point, but the cake on its own is already very fulfilling.