Lil’ Wayne is an epileptic. According to the Grammy-award winning rapper, who granted L.A.-based Power 106 DJ Felli-Fel’s radio-show the first interview since his much publicized hospital stint a few weeks back, he’s struggled with this condition for some years now but kept it concealed from the public.

“The bad news is I’m an epileptic, I’m prone to seizures,” Wayne said.

“Like, this isn’t my first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh seizure. I’ve had a bunch of seizures, y’all just never hear about them. But this time it got real bad ’cause I had three of them in a row and on the third one, my heart rate went down to like 30 percent. Basically, I could’ve died, so that is why it was so serious. But the reason being for the seizures is just plain stress, no rest, overworking myself.” 

Many industry bloggers and insiders are wondering aloud whether Lil’ Wayne’s consistent use of sizzurp (Promethazine/Codeine) led to his multiple seizures a few weeks back.

He released his 10th album, I Am Not a Human Being II, this week. He’ll embark on a 40-city tour in July with rappers T.I. and Future.

Epilepsy is the name given to a set of neurological inconsistencies that at times results in a person experiencing seizures. It’s very hard to pinpoint why Wayne is experiencing such severe seizures, since a combination of factors can cause an interruption in normal brain activity.

According to WebMD, there is only a small amount cases where a known cause can be attributed to a patient’s epilepsy, usually when a traumatic head injury is involved. But there are some factors that can trigger an episode, such as abusing of alcohol, ecstasy, or prescription drugs, which can interfere with other medications used to help control seizures.