For years, Halsey was one of pop music’s most visible stars. Behind the scenes, however, the Grammy-nominated artist says she was quietly battling symptoms that left her feeling exhausted, sick, and increasingly isolated long before doctors finally diagnosed her with lupus. Speaking on the Friends Keep Secrets podcast with Benny Blanco, Halsey opened up about the lengthy road to understanding what was happening to her health. Looking back on the period when her career was skyrocketing, she explained that physical illness was a major factor behind her struggles. “I felt like garbage all the time and didn’t understand why,” she said, recalling years of unexplained symptoms. According to the CDC , lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks healthy tissues and organs, causing inflammation that can affect everything from joints and skin to the kidneys, heart, lungs, and brain.…