Bella Hadid’s Health: Everything To Know About The Model’s Lyme Disease

Frequent Vogue cover model and runway star Bella Hadid has become a household name for fashion lovers within the last few years. Not only is she a favorite of many high-end fashion designers, but she has also become a style inspiration for many on social media. Although the 26-year-old lives a lavish life jet-setting around the world for work, Bella is often in pain due to her ongoing Lyme disease diagnosis. In July 2023, she reportedly took a medical leave from her modeling gigs to deal with the disease. While it’s unclear if she’ll be taking on any modeling deals in the near future, her sister Gigi, 28, shared a short update on her sister’s health on her Instagram Story, revealing she completed an intense treatment at the end of July.

Although she was diagnosed years prior, the brunette beauty did not come forward to the public about her condition until 2016. That year, her mom, Yolanda Hadid‘s own struggle with Lyme disease became a main topic of conversation during Season 7 of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. Many of the Yolanda’s co-stars “questioned” her health struggles, including Lisa Vanderpump (watch here), however, she also revealed that two of her children also had the disease that same year. In recent years, Bella has since become very open about her battle with Lyme disease, in addition to some of her mental health struggles. Keep reading to learn all about her disease, how Bella is doing today, and more.

Bella Hadid Diagnosed With Lyme Disease

Although the style icon did not go public with her health condition until 2016, she was first diagnosed with Lyme disease in 2013, per Yolanda’s official Bravo blog. In the post, the proud mother-of-three discussed how her health became an ongoing conversation on The Real Housewives franchise, but she also wrote about Bella and her son, Anwar Hadid‘s condition.

“Bella and Anwar were diagnosed at the end of 2013 and have been in extensive holistic treatment ever since,” the TV personality wrote at the time. “It’s very common for multiple family members to be affected by Lyme disease. The children and I lived on a horse ranch in Santa Barbara for 10 years and spent the majority of our time outside in nature.” Later in the post, Yolanda revealed that her daughter, then 16, had to forego her dream of becoming a professional equestrian.

“Bella had to give up her lifelong dream of having a professional riding career and a shot at the Olympics due to her severe symptoms and inability to ride,” Bella’s mom continued. “This was the biggest heartbreak of her life and an extremely sensitive subject for her. She is resilient and focused on a new direction–she’s made a name for herself in the modeling industry while she struggles with symptoms of chronic Lyme every day.”

What Is Lyme Disease?

Lyme disease is a vector-borne disease, meaning it is contracted by humans when bitten or stung by “blood-feeding arthropods,” according to the official CDC website. These arthropods can include mosquitoes, ticks, and fleas and affects about 30,000 people per year in the United States, per the health organization’s website. A common way to treat Lyme disease includes rounds of antibiotics or holistic therapies.

Those who suffer from Lyme disease often report being in chronic pain, having fatigue, as well as having a fever, chills, headaches, muscle and joint aches, and swollen lymph nodes. The CDC also reports that about “70 to 80 percent” of those infected can develop a rash known as Erythema migrans (EM) rash. More so, many cases of the condition can be cured with a few weeks of oral antibiotics, however, many experience Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome (PTLDS) following treatment. PTLDS can include symptoms of pain, fatigue, and brain fog.

How Long Has Bella Hadid Been Sick?

Bella was diagnosed with Lyme disease when she was around 16 years old, meaning she has had it for about a decade of her life. Following her mother’s blog post about her and her children’s health condition, Bella was honored at the Oct. 2016 Global Lyme Alliance’s second annual “Uniting for a Lyme-Free World” gala in New York City (watch here). At the event, she gave a powerful speech about what is was like to be diagnose with Lyme disease and have her teenage years “taken” from her.

“I know where you’re coming from, you’re not alone,” Bella told the audience and those who suffer with the illness. “My teenage years were taken from me. I was forced to start homeschooling my second year of high school, which of course I didn’t want to do because I’d rather go hang out with my friends, go to parties.” During the speech she also revealed that she had to “give up” her horseback riding career due to her treatments.

“It was my dream of my life and what I did every single day until I just stopped and realized I didn’t have the brain power to ride horses anymore, so that was the end of that,” she added. “I know what it feels like to not want to get out of bed from bone pains and exhaustion and days on end of not wanting to socialize or be around people because the anxiety and brain fog just isn’t worth it. After years of this, you begin to get used to living with the sickness, instead of getting cured and moving on with your life.”

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