'I Feel Like I Might Just Die On Stage'

She is famous for her brash confidence, but pop icon Madonna has revealed she suffers from crippling panic attacks on stage.

Panic attacks: MadonnaThe 49-year-old singer admitted she sometimes 'expects to die' while performing and that she has to take extreme actions to control her nerves.

In an interview with magazine Dazed & Confused, she said: "I have moments where I feel incredibly invincible and know that I have the audience in my hand - I know that everything is absolutely perfect.

"And then I have panic attacks where I feel like everyone is breathing my air and I cannot live up to everybody's expectations and I might just die on stage."

In her 30-year career Madonna has played in front of millions of people from all over the globe.

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The singer explained that she has to take extreme action to restrain her attacks.

"I normally try to turn my back to the audience, take a deep breath and remind myself that it's all temporary. I'm not worried about f***ing up - I really have a panic attack that everyone else is breathing my air. It's hard to describe," she said.

"When you have panic attacks you cannot rationalise them.

"Obviously there's enough oxygen for me but it never happens outdoors, it's normally in indoor sports arenas that feel very close when suddenly I feel claustrophobic," she explained. "It's not a fear of performing," she added.