Bella Hadid opens up on painful struggle with Lyme disease

LOS ANGELES: Supermodel Bella Hadid has shared a series of photos from a hospital bed, offering fans another glimpse into her long battle with Lyme disease.

On Wednesday, September 17, the 28-year-old posted images on Instagram showing her connected to IV drips, resting with a small crochet angel by her side, eating pizza, and enjoying a rainbow from her hospital window.

Other photos revealed visits from family and friends, card games, and a moment in an elevator where she sat with wet hair and a coffee cup.

“I’m sorry I always go MIA, I love you guys,” Bella wrote in the caption.

Her mother, former reality TV star Yolanda Hadid, commented on the post calling her daughter a “❤️Lyme warrior.” Yolanda later posted her own set of emotional photos, describing Bella’s “paralyzing” struggle with chronic neurological Lyme disease.

In one picture, Yolanda embraced Bella, who was lying in bed hooked up to several IVs. Other images showed the model with an oxygen machine, wrapped in wet towels, and surrounded by medications.

“As you will understand, watching my Bella struggle in silence has cut the deepest core of hopelessness inside me,” Yolanda, 61, wrote.

She described Lyme disease as an “invisible disability” and said her own suffering could not compare to watching her daughter endure it.

Bella’s sister, Gigi Hadid, also shared words of support: “I love you! I hope you feel as strong and good as you deserve, soon!!!!!!”

While the exact reason for Bella’s current hospital stay remains unclear, the model has been open about her health journey. In 2023, she revealed she was “finally healthy” after undergoing more than 100 days of treatment for Lyme disease and related infections, reflecting on nearly 15 years of “invisible suffering.”

“The little me that suffered would be so proud of grown me for not giving up,” she wrote at the time, thanking her mother for “never leaving my side, protecting, supporting, and believing me through all of this.”

Bella, her mother Yolanda, and her brother Anwar were diagnosed with Lyme disease in 2012. The illness, caused by Borrelia bacteria, is transmitted through the bite of infected ticks. It is most common in the northeastern and upper midwestern United States, as well as parts of Europe and Canada.

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