NEW YORK • Pop-punk heroine Avril Lavigne has managed to keep her head above water after a struggle with health issues.

On Thursday, she announced her first song in five years as she revealed that she was so ill with Lyme disease she feared death.

The Canadian singer-guitarist, who became a global star in the 2000s as one of the most successful women in the hard-charging world of skater rock, said she would release the first song from her upcoming album on Sept 19.

Her last album came out in 2013. She did not provide a release date for the new album.

Lavigne, in a letter to fans on her website, said the song, Head Above Water, was written as she lay incapacitated on her couch.

"I had accepted death and could feel my body shutting down. I felt like I was drowning. Like I was going under water and I just needed to come up for air," she noted.

Lavigne described her past several years as the worst in her life, but said: "I was able to turn that fight into music I'm proud of."

The 33-year-old, whose best-known songs include Girlfriend (2007) and Complicated (2002), revealed that she was initially reluctant to discuss her illness.

However, she wanted to raise awareness of Lyme disease, which is spread by tick bites and can lead to severe headaches and an incapacity to move.

Lavigne announced an effort through a foundation to help other sufferers and support research efforts to eradicate the illness.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE