Kelly Clarkson 'feels like she's 45' because of her 'pressured' music career.

The 29-year-old songstress rose to fame after winning the first season of television series American Idol in 2002.

The star has released four albums to date including her double-platinum debut album Thankful and her Grammy-Award winning album Breakaway. She is set to release her fifth studio album later this month, Stronger.

Kelly says her hectic foray into music left her feeling burnt out.

' feel like I'm 45. Because my career went from zero to 100, there was no 'growing'. I learnt well under pressure, but like, four years passed by and I hit rock bottom. It was four years of non-stop ' Breakaway just exploded everywhere,' she explained in an interview with Closer magazine.

'Everyone was making a lot of money, so everyone was pushing the train.'

Kelly's hectic schedule finally took its toll.

The singer took a step back from the industry after the release of All I Ever Wanted in 2009. She believes it is the best decision she ever made.

'That's when it finally all caught up with me. I came down with 'walking pneumonia' for the second time in a year. My body was physically giving up. I took six months off and went home,' she revealed.

' love working, but at the end of the day you've got to take care of yourself.'