Musician and “A Star is Born” actor Kris Kristofferson died Saturday at age 88, his family said.

“It is with heavy hearts that we share the news that our husband/father/grandfather Kris Kristofferson passed away peacefully at home on Saturday, September 28,” said Ebie McFarland, a spokesperson for the family, in a statement to NBC News. “We are all so blessed for our time with him. Thank you for loving him for all these many years, and when you see a rainbow, you know he’s smiling down on us all.”

How did Kris Kristofferson die?

Kristofferson’s family did not release a cause of death. In the statement, they said he died “peacefully” at home.

The singer and his family had spoken openly about some of his health issues before his death. Here’s what they shared.

Memory loss

As Reuters reported, Kristofferson began suffering from crippling memory loss at age 70.

According to a 2016 Rolling Stone article, doctors initially assumed it was either Alzheimer’s or dementia. He had played contact sports in his teenage years, which can increase the risk of certain cognitive disorders.

Rolling Stone reported that Kristofferson suddenly couldn’t remember what he was doing and that he eventually wrote a song about his memory loss.

“I see an empty chair/Someone was sitting there,” the lyrics go. “I feel like it was me/And I see a glass of wine/I’m pretty sure it’s mine.”

Lyme disease

According to Rolling Stone, Kristofferson tested positive for Lyme disease in 2016. Lisa Meyers, Kristofferson’s wife, told Rolling Stone she believes he was bitten by a tick while filming the 2006 film “Disappearances.”

Meyers said her husband had been taking medication for Alzheimer’s and depression, but many of his symptoms disappeared after he stopped taking them and completed three weeks of treatment for Lyme disease.

“He’s been taking all these medications for things he doesn’t have and they all have side effects,” she said.

She said she was shocked by his condition after treatment for Lyme disease.

“Suddenly he was back,” she said, adding that there were still bad days, but “some days he’s completely normal and it’s easy to forget he’s even fighting anything.”

Meyers described her husband’s early symptoms in a 2016 interview with LymeDisease.org.

“He was diagnosed with fibromyalgia about 12 years ago, which in retrospect should have been the first indication that testing for Lyme disease was warranted,” she said. “But we suspect he was infected with Lyme disease between the ages of 14 and 30 because he used to suffer from these chronic muscle spasms, which is a common symptom.”

Kristofferson’s fibromyalgia caused so much pain that he was unable to work for eight months, Meyers said.

“He had massive, painful cramps all over his back and legs – it was so horrible – his nerve endings were causing golf ball-sized, painful contractions, which we combated with acupuncture, heat and massage and finally a spinal cortisone injection by a rheumatologist.” and a low-dose antidepressant,” she explained.

“He had sore knees and annual knee shots, a pacemaker for cardiac arrhythmias – which we now know could be from Lyme,” Meyers said.

After taking iron supplements for a year, Meyers said her husband didn’t look healthy, and she took him to another doctor.

“As he examined Kris and observed the muscles in his forearms constantly twitching, (the doctor announced, ‘He has Lyme disease’ and ordered a blood test,” she said, adding that the test came back positive in February 2016 had failed.

Sleep apnea

After filming “Disappearances,” Kristofferson was diagnosed with moderate to severe sleep apnea, Meyers said. He tried a bi-level CPAP machine but refused to use it, she added.

Bypass surgery

According to Rolling Stone, Kristofferson underwent bypass surgery in 1999.

Coronary artery bypass graft surgery involves removing a healthy blood vessel from the chest or leg, creating a new path for blood flow around a blocked or partially blocked artery in the heart, according to the Mayo Clinic.

As he was wheeled into the operating room, a doctor told Meyers and Kristofferson it was a good place to say goodbye, Rolling Stone reported.

“I hope it’s not goodbye,” she said.

He replied, “What if it were?”

Retired in 2020 at age 84

According to Variety, Kristofferson made the decision to retire in 2020, but this was not announced until 2021.

“Kris is aging; Kris is 84. It didn’t seem like such big news to us. That’s why there was no announcement: it was just kind of a slow changing of the guard,” Kristofferson’s longtime manager Tamara Saviano told Variety.

“It doesn’t feel like retirement because Kris’ music isn’t going anywhere. There will still be new projects,” she said, referring to archival or tribute works. “But he won’t be on the road anymore.”

Saviano denied that Kristofferson retired for health reasons.

“Kris’ work will live on – and hopefully for much longer,” says Saviano. “He’s really healthy and in good shape.”