What appeared to be a picture-perfect family moment at a lakeside castle in Salzburg was also a deeply personal milestone for singer Sheela Newley.
When the 42-year-old married artist Alexander Newley, the son of Dynasty actress Dame Joan Collins, the ceremony brought together her young daughter Deia, her husband and her famous mother-in-law.
But behind the celebration was a story of years spent battling an illness that once left Sheela struggling to perform even the simplest everyday tasks.
Today, she is a mother, musician and performer.
Her journey to that point, however, began when she was just 23.
A Sudden Decline Left Her Searching for Answers
Sheela had always considered herself fit and active.
After graduating from Brown University, she was working as a newspaper reporter in Florida and regularly ran several miles to stay in shape.
That changed dramatically when exhaustion began taking over her life.
At first, she found herself unable to complete her usual runs. Soon, even walking became difficult.
She also lost a significant amount of weight despite eating normally, dropping from around 110 pounds to below 100.
Other troubling symptoms followed. Her periods became extremely painful, her sleep was repeatedly disrupted and she developed severe brain fog.
For someone who had always regarded herself as mentally sharp, the cognitive problems were particularly distressing.
Her First Diagnosis Did Not Explain Everything
A doctor initially discovered that Sheela’s thyroid levels were slightly abnormal. Anxiety and depression were suggested as possible contributors, and she was prescribed anti-anxiety medication.
But Sheela remained convinced that something physical was happening.
Her concerns intensified when she became so dizzy and nauseous while driving to work that she was forced to pull over. The experience convinced her that she could no longer continue working normally.
She left her job, returned to New York to be closer to her family and continued searching for an explanation.
Doctors eventually found inflammatory nodules on her thyroid and diagnosed her with Hashimoto’s disease, an autoimmune condition in which the immune system attacks the thyroid.
Treatment Improved Her Tests But Not Her Life
Sheela began taking levothyroxine, a standard hormone-replacement treatment used for an underactive thyroid.
Although her blood-test results improved, she said her overall health did not follow the same trajectory.
Her heart frequently raced, the brain fog remained and the crushing fatigue continued. She also developed muscle pain and sensations of numbness and tingling in her legs.
At one point, doctors suspected Lyme disease and started her on intravenous antibiotics.
But the treatment was stopped after only three days when she developed severe shooting pains.
Hospital tests showed that her liver enzymes had climbed to four times the normal level.
Doctors warned that the medication had placed significant stress on her liver and could have put her life at risk.
The episode left Sheela frightened and feeling as though the treatment options available to her were rapidly disappearing.
Her Health Crisis Forced Her Back Home
By the time she was 26, Sheela was struggling so badly that she had to abandon her New York apartment, stop her freelance work and return to live with her parents in Princeton, New Jersey.
She remembers reaching an emotional low during that period.
Looking at her reflection one morning, she saw a pale and noticeably thinner version of herself with dark circles beneath her eyes. She began to cry as she contemplated how much of her former life she had lost.
Her career ambitions, physical abilities and sense of identity all seemed uncertain.
But during that difficult period, another part of her identity began demanding attention.
Music Became Her Reason to Keep Going
Sheela had dreamed about singing and songwriting since childhood, although she had previously chosen journalism because of her parents’ concerns about financial security.
The daughter of Indian immigrants, she understood why her parents valued stability.
A career in music had seemed to them like an unnecessary risk.
Yet as her illness worsened, music became increasingly important to her.
A friend introduced her to New York jazz pianist Matt Ray, who helped her record a demo.
Sheela later described those early recording sessions as the beginning of her journey back toward herself.
Rather than simply being a creative outlet, singing gave her something to look forward to at a time when her physical health had left her feeling increasingly hopeless.
A Move to Tuscany Changed Her Path
Frustrated by the lack of answers and limited improvement, Sheela decided she needed a different environment.
She sold her car and moved to Tuscany, where she tutored English and lived among artists.
It was there that she met Alexander Newley through mutual friends.
Alexander, an accomplished artist whose portraits of figures including Gore Vidal and Christopher Reeve are held by the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery, was living in New York at the time.
She had already told him about her health problems, but he did not fully understand how serious they were until he visited her in Tuscany.
The pair attempted a long walk, but Sheela’s physical limitations quickly became obvious.
She feared that seeing the reality of her condition would make Alexander reconsider their relationship.
Instead, he moved closer to her.
Alexander Became a Crucial Source of Support
As Sheela struggled with daily life, Alexander helped with ordinary tasks that had become unexpectedly difficult.
He would shop for groceries, wash dishes, prepare vegetables and cook when necessary.
His support gave Sheela the chance to conserve enough energy to focus on music and continue researching possible ways to improve her health.
Their relationship also developed around their shared appreciation of art, literature and creativity.
Sheela has credited Alexander’s patience and encouragement with helping her through some of the darkest periods of her illness.
The couple eventually moved to London in 2015, where Sheela continued looking for ways to manage her condition.
She Explored Alternative Approaches to Her Health
After conventional treatments failed to provide the relief she wanted, Sheela began investigating alternative approaches.
She explored Ayurvedic medicine and became increasingly interested in the relationship between physical health, emotional wellbeing and creativity.
Her research eventually brought her to an alternative health practitioner in London who used hair mineral analysis to assess mineral and metal concentrations in her hair and develop an individualized health programme.
The programme included a strict diet that removed sugar, gluten and most dairy products while emphasizing cooked vegetables and high-quality animal protein.
She also took supplements and used near-infrared sauna sessions.
Sheela said she noticed improvements in her energy and concentration within about a month.
Over subsequent months, she reported that the numbness in her legs eased, her antibody levels declined and thyroid scans improved.
She also underwent a liver flush and used natural peptides as part of her personal approach to recovery.
These methods are not standard treatments for Hashimoto’s disease, and Sheela emphasizes that she is sharing her own experience rather than recommending them as medical treatment.
She Refused to Give Up on the Possibility of Recovery
For Sheela, recovery was not the result of one dramatic breakthrough.
Instead, she believes that taking a more active role in understanding her own health gave her a renewed sense of control.
Music remained central to that transformation.
She felt that singing helped lift her mood and gave her a reason to keep imagining a future beyond illness.
The stronger her connection with music became, the more determined she felt to continue searching for ways to improve physically.
Love and Family Became Part of Her New Chapter
Sheela and Alexander eventually built a family together.
In 2022, at 38, she moved to Vienna shortly before giving birth to their daughter, Deia.
The couple had deliberately waited until Sheela felt physically and emotionally prepared to have a child.
By then, she said she had developed a greater understanding of her body and confidence in her ability to cope if her symptoms returned.
Her relationship with Dame Joan Collins also became closer over time.
Sheela explained that she and Joan did not initially have many deep conversations about her illness because Joan was busy travelling and working.
By the time they became closer, however, Sheela had already made significant progress and had begun developing her musical career.
Joan has since encouraged her music and recently told Sheela that she particularly liked her upcoming song, “Shapeshifter.”
A Songwriting Career Emerged From Her Experience
As Sheela’s strength returned, her music moved from a source of emotional survival into a genuine career.
In 2018, while living with Alexander in West London, she borrowed a guitar from their neighbour Howie Payne and wrote “Shapeshifter” in a single sitting.
Another song, “Driftwood,” was inspired by pieces of weathered wood she encountered on a Cornish beach.
The image resonated with her own experience.
The battered pieces of wood had been shaped by years of being thrown around by the sea, yet had emerged smooth and beautiful.
She saw something of her own transformation in that image.
Sheela Is Now Building the Life She Once Thought Was Impossible
Earlier this year, Sheela released her debut single, “Zeros and Ones,” which explores the unrealistic images of beauty and success promoted online.
“Shapeshifter” and “Driftwood” are set to follow as part of her forthcoming debut album, with UK performances also planned.
The contrast between her past and present is striking.
There was a period when Sheela could barely manage a short walk, had been forced to give up work and depended on her parents for support.
Today, she describes herself as a mother who performs, writes and records music, dances and strength trains.
Her years of illness have also become part of the material she brings to her songwriting.
Rather than seeing the experience solely as something she lost years to, Sheela now views it as a source of stories, perspective and resilience.
What Is Hashimoto’s Disease?
Hashimoto’s disease is an autoimmune disorder in which the immune system attacks the thyroid gland.
Because the thyroid produces hormones involved in regulating numerous bodily functions, damage to the gland can eventually result in an underactive thyroid.
Symptoms can include fatigue, sensitivity to cold, constipation, dry or flaky skin, facial puffiness, brittle nails, hair loss, unexplained weight changes, joint pain, weakness, prolonged or heavy periods, depression and problems with memory.
The exact cause of Hashimoto’s disease is not known, although genetic factors and certain infections have been suggested as possible influences.
While anyone can develop the condition, it is more common among women, middle-aged people and those with a family history of the disease.
