Canadian pop singer Justin Bieber is suffering from a rare viral infection that has partially paralysed his face, the singer said in a video he shared on Instagram on Saturday.

In his post, Justin said that he is suffering from a syndrome called the Ramsay Hunt syndrome and he will not be able to perform anytime soon.

The Baby singer had displeased his fans after cancelling his shows in Toronto, Canada and Washington DC, United States. He extended his apologies to the disgruntled followers through this social media video captioned “IMPORTANT PLEASE WATCH. I love you guys and keep me in your prayers”.

“I have this syndrome called Ramsey Hunt syndrome,” Justin said in the Instagram post, elaborating that the condition was caused by a viral infection in his ear that had led to the partial paralysis of his facial muscles on the right side of his face.

The Ramsey Hunt syndrome is caused by the varicella-zoster virus which is the same virus that causes chickenpox and shingles. As the virus affects the facial nerves in the inner ear it can cause severe pain, rashes, hearing loss and facial paralysis. Recovery from the syndrome can range from weeks to months depending on the extent of the infection and the treatment.

Justin elaborated and displayed how his face had been affected by the viral infection. He showed that he was unable to blink one of his eyes and is unable to even smile.

Sharing a bit of his treatment plan, the singing sensation said that he will be taking rest for an indefinite period of time. He implored his fans to be patient, “My body’s telling me I’ve got to slow down. I hope you guys understand.”

Fans along with celebrities like DJ Khaled, Diane Keaton, Bear Grylls, Shawn Mendez and Lenny Kravitz shared their support and love for the artist in the comment section of the post.

Despite being affected by the “pretty serious” syndrome, Justin seems optimistic. He said, “I’ll be using this time to just rest and relax and get back to a hundred percent, so that I can do what I was born to do.”