Just a day after Bella Hadid shared a series of concerning hospital photos to Instagram, her mother, Yolanda Hadid, opened up in a heartbreaking post of her own, offering a rare look inside the family’s ongoing battle with Lyme disease.
“Watching my Bella struggle in silence cuts the deepest core of hopelessness inside me,” Yolanda wrote. “The invisible disability of chronic neurological Lyme disease is hard to explain; I try to lead by example on our Lyme journey, but my own pain cannot compare to watching my baby suffer.”
© yolanda.hadid/InstagramThe emotional caption accompanied a set of intimate images. Bella, 28, can be seen lying in a hospital bed with IVs attached, wrapped in wet towels, and hooked to oxygen. Yolanda could be seen hugging her daughter, while other shots captured the lineup of medication Bella now requires to manage her symptoms.
© yolanda.hadid/InstagramWhile she was diagnosed herself in 2012, Yolanda admitted that she’s pulled back from publicly discussing her own health in recent years to focus on recovery and on finding a treatment path accessible to others. “Hopefully soon I will share whatever we have learned and the places we have been with our Lyme community as soon as lab results reflect our victory,” she said.
In a direct message to her daughter, whom she affectionately calls “Bellita," Yolanda praised her resilience through what she described as an unimaginable ordeal.
© yolanda.hadid/Instagram“To my beautiful Bellita: You are relentless and courageous. No child is supposed to suffer in their body with an incurable chronic disease,” she wrote. “I admire your bravery and your willingness to keep fighting for health despite the failing protocols and countless setbacks you have faced.”
© yolanda.hadid/Instagram“There simply aren’t words big enough for the darkness, the pain, and the unknown hell you’ve lived through since your diagnosis in 2013,” she added. “You didn’t really live, you learned how to exist inside the jail of your own paralyzed brain.”
Bella’s condition, diagnosed over a decade ago alongside her brother Anwar and mother, has led to ongoing hospital visits, long absences from the public eye, and intense rounds of treatment. Her most recent flare-up has once again landed her under medical care.
© yolanda.hadid/Instagram“I’m sorry, I always go MIA I love you guys,” Bella wrote on Wednesday on Instagram, posting several hospital room photos, including one of a pizza she was eating and another of a peaceful double rainbow outside her window. The post quickly drew messages of love, including one from sister Gigi Hadid: “I love you! I hope [you] feel as strong and good as u deserve, soon!!!!!!”
© yolanda.hadid/InstagramYolanda expressed her thoughts after seeing her daughter's post. “I am so proud of the fighter that you are. You are not alone, I promise to have your back every step of the way, no matter how long this takes. You have fought through another month of treatment and I know god is good, miracles do happen everyday. I pray for your speedy recovery my love. This disease has brought us to our knees, but we always get back up. We will continue to fight for better days together. You are a survivor… I love you so much my badass Warrior.”
Bella, who has spoken openly about the psychological and physical toll of the disease, has used her platform to raise awareness. In a prior post, she reflected on her long journey. “If I had to go through all of this again, to get here, to this exact moment I’m in right now, with all of you, finally healthy, I would do it all again,” she wrote. “It made me who I am today.”
