A-listers battling chronic health conditions

The lavish lives of the rich and famous are lusted after by millions, yet as Robin Williams once said: “Everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about. Be kind. Always.” 

If it is true of everyone, then it sure is true of the A-list and there are many stars who appear to have it all who are often engaged in behind-the-scenes health battles.

Some, like Selena Gomez, who has lupus, are open about their diagnosis. Others, like rapper Lil Wayne, who has epilepsy, are far more reserved. 

There’s no right or wrong way to be but an awareness that we aren’t alone in our health struggles is, ironically, good for our health in and of itself! 

So read on to discover which celebrities are battling chronic health conditions. Maybe you will find you have something in common after all…

The tennis champion first noticed that something was wrong in 2004. “No matter how hard I worked, I was exhausted, short of breath, and never felt in shape. It was really frustrating. My symptoms got progressively worse, to the point where I couldn’t play professional tennis anymore,” she told Prevention.com. 

It was seven years before her puzzling symptoms became a diagnosis: the autoimmune syndrome Sjögren’s, most commonly revealing itself in the form of dry eyes and a dry mouth. 

Venus felt “out of control” after doctors were unable to find anything medically wrong for so long, but her experience is not abnormal.

“Unfortunately, that’s typical of people with autoimmune disease. They’re misdiagnosed or too sick to function,” she said. “I literally had professional tennis taken away from me before I got the right diagnosis.” 

Since receiving her diagnosis and medication to treat the syndrome, Venus has encouraged others to come forward and speak about their symptoms.

Kate Moss’s daughter Lila surprised viewers in an interview with Vogue when she revealed she carries an insulin pump to manage her Type 1 diabetes. 

“I control my insulin with it,” she said, joking “I tell everyone it’s a bat phone.” 

She also shared how impactful she found the scene in Hannah Montana where Hannah’s brother, Oliver, is told he has diabetes.

“When Oliver gets diagnosed with diabetes, that was my only insight into it ever. When [the doctors] told me, I was kind of just like in shock. I was like, I didn’t even know what that means, and then the reality set in of like, you’re gonna have this forever.” 

In 2021, Lila walked the runway for a joint collection by Versace and Fendi, wearing her insulin pump. The 22-year-old was widely praised for her openness. 

Another famous diabetes sufferer, Nick described being diagnosed with the disease aged 13 as “one of the most frightening moments of my life”. 

His lifestyle wasn’t exactly conducive to condition management, either. When on the road with the Jonas Brothers, he tested up to 12 times a day!

While Nick initially struggled with his diagnosis, he now sees it as an opportunity to let fellow diabetes sufferers know that they are not alone. 

“I want to let kids know that it doesn’t have to be so hard. The most important thing is to never ever let yourself get down about having diabetes because you can still have a really great life. 

“Whenever I meet another diabetic buddy, as I call them, I give them a [guitar] pick, it’s cool little thing.”

Singer and actress Lady Gaga suffers with fibromyalgia, a condition which causes chronic pain, fatigue and issues with mood and sleep. 

While the condition is widely misunderstood, Lady Gaga believes it came about as a trauma response to a sexual assault she experienced as a 19-year-old, and worsened from the pressures of touring and fame. 

In an interview with Vogue, Lady Gaga opened up about how perceptions of the condition affect her. She sad: “I get so irritated with people who don’t believe fibromyalgia is real. For me, and I think for many others, it’s really a cyclone of anxiety, depression, PTSD, trauma, and panic disorder, all of which sends the nervous system into overdrive, and then you have nerve pain as a result.  

“People need to be more compassionate. Chronic pain is no joke. And it’s every day waking up not knowing how you’re going to feel.” 

Thankfully, things appear to be improving for the ‘Poker Face’ singer, who performed pain free for the first time on tour in 2022.

Writer and actress Lena made the brave decision to have a hysterectomy in 2017, when the chronic pain she’d experienced from her endometriosis became too much to bear despite having had multiple surgeries to try and help the pain. 

Endometriosis is a disease which affects an estimated 176 million women worldwide, in which tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows elsewhere in the body, causing chronic pain.  

In a personal essay for Vogue, the Girls actress wrote of her decision: “With pain like this, I will never be able to be anyone’s mother. Even if I could get pregnant, there’s nothing I can offer.” 

She described how she became “delirious” with the “unbearable” pain. 

And Lena isn’t alone – she joins millions of women worldwide who suffer with the disease. 

Other famous faces who have endometriosis include Star Wars actress Daisy Ridley, who was diagnosed via surgery aged 15. 

She wrote via Facebook: “At 15 I was diagnosed with endometriosis. One laparoscopy, many consultations and eight years down the line, pain was back (more mild this time!) and my skin was THE WORST. I’ve tried everything: products, antibiotics, more products, more antibiotics and all that did was left my body in a bit of a mess. Finally found out I have polycystic ovaries and that’s why it’s bad. 

“My point is, to any of you who are suffering with anything, go to a doctor; pay for a specialist; get your hormones tested, get allergy testing; keep on top of how your body is feeling… From your head to the tips of your toes we only have one body, let us all make sure ours our working in tip top condition, and take help if it’s needed.” 

Singer Halsey also discovered that she had the disease and felt validated: “Finding out that I had [endometriosis] was the most bittersweet moment because it meant I wasn’t crazy! I wasn’t a ‘baby!’ I had every right to be feeling like the world was caving in. But it was terrifying to find out,” she wrote via X, adding: “Please know you’re not alone.”

The supermodel suffers from Hashitomo’s disease, an autoimmune condition that gradually damages the thyroid gland, resulting in fatigue, hair loss, fluctuations in weight and joint pain. 

She struggled with losing weight when she didn’t want to, especially in the run up to the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show.

“My metabolism actually changed like crazy this year. I have Hashimoto’s disease. It’s a thyroid disease, and it’s now been two years since taking the medication for it, so for the VS show I didn’t want to lose any more weight, I just want to have muscles in the right place,” Gigi told Elle. 

She also revealed how difficult she found it when people commented on her body, especially while having the condition.

Cara suffers with psoriasis, a chronic skin condition that causes inflamed, scaly patches to appear on the skin. 

“I’ve always talked about my psoriasis, so it wasn’t new. But I’ve never been more naked in public and showing my psoriasis there was just overwhelming. I didn’t realise at first what that would mean,” the model told Glamour. 

“At first I was like, ‘Wait a minute, I should cover this up, right?’ and then I remembered, though, that it’s not good for my skin and a lot of people live with psoriasis. It’s not a beautiful thing to have – but you also have to be proud of it. I’m proud of it in the sense that it’s something that belongs to me. I used to hate my psoriasis, but that only made it worse.” 

Kim Kardashian also suffers from the condition, writing on her website: “I’m always hoping for a cure, of course, but in the meantime, I’m learning to just accept it as part of who I am.”

The Modern Family actress suffers with kidney dysplasia, a condition where the kidneys don’t fully develop in the womb. By 21 years old, Sarah’s kidneys had failed. She had a kidney transplant where her father donated a kidney for her, but four years later her body began to reject the kidney. In 2017, she had a successful transplant using her brother’s kidney. 

As well as the chronic pain and illness caused, Sarah also had over 15 surgeries, including for endometriosis and a hernia. She recalled filming the hit show “asleep”, with her head on the desk between takes because her tiredness from her various conditions was so debilitating.

Daisy Jones and The Six actress Riley Keogh suffers from Lyme disease, symptoms including fatigue, aching joints or muscles, pain or swelling in your large joints and difficulty concentrating. 

“I have Lyme disease,” the actor told Vanity Fair. “I used this little break that I have to come and try and see if I can alleviate it a bit. It’s a holistic treatment centre and offers all kinds of things that you can’t really do in America yet, like cleaning your blood.” 

It was this condition which led her down the route of surrogacy to have her daughter with husband Ben Smith-Petersen. She said: “I can carry children, but it felt like the best choice for what I had going on physically with the autoimmune stuff.”

A fellow Lyme disease sufferer – and Gigi’s sister – is supermodel Bella Hadid. In an emotional post, the 28-year-old opened up about her health struggles. 

She said: “Living in this state, worsening with time and work while trying to make myself, my family and the people who support me, proud, had taken a toll on me in ways I can’t really explain.  

“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. It made me who I am today. 

 “The universe works in the most painful and beautiful ways but I need to say that if you are struggling – it will get better. I promise. take a step away, stay strong, have faith in your path, walk in your truth and the clouds will start to clear up. I have so much gratitude for and perspective on life , this 100+ days of Lyme, chronic disease, co-infection treatment, almost 15 years of invisible suffering, was all worth it if I’m able to, God willing, have a lifetime of spreading love from a full cup, and being able to truly be myself, For the first time ever.” 

In a blog post, Bella’s mum Yolanda explained how Bella’s condition had impacted her life: “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. This was the biggest heartbreak of her life and an extremely sensitive subject for her.”

The Bad Moms actress was diagnosed with MS in 2021, a chronic condition that affects the brain and spinal cord. 

“With the disease of MS, it’s never a good day. You just have little sh*tty days,” she told Vanity Fair. 

“People are like, ‘Well, why don’t you take more showers?’. Well, because getting in the shower is frightening. You can fall, you can slip, your legs can buckle. Especially because I have a glass shower. It’s frightening to me to get in there. There are just certain things that people take for granted in their lives that I took for granted. 

“Going down the stairs, carrying things – you can’t do that anymore. It f*cking sucks. I can still drive my car short distances. I can bring up food to my kid. Up, never down.” 

Tabloids and media went into a frenzy when Selena unexpectedly cancelled the end of a tour in 2013, checking herself into rehab in 2014. While rumours swirled, she kept her silence until 2015 when she revealed that she had been diagnosed with lupus, an autoimmune disease where the body attacks itself. Symptoms include muscle and joint paint, fever, rashes, chest pain, hair loss, kidney problems and fatigue. 

“I was diagnosed with lupus, and I’ve been through chemotherapy. That’s what my break was really about. I could’ve had a stroke,” she told Billboard. 

“I wanted so badly to say, ‘You guys have no idea. I’m in chemotherapy. You’re assholes. But I was angry. I even felt the need to say that. It’s awful walking into a restaurant and having the whole room look at you, knowing what they’re saying. I locked myself away until I was confident and comfortable again.” 

In 2017, she had a kidney transplant, which helped put her lupus into remission for a few years, notwithstanding a flare-up in 2020. 

The rapper has suffered with epilepsy since childhood but revealed that his mother thought he just fainted a lot as a young boy so didn’t connect the dots.  

His history with the condition wasn’t made public until 2013, when he was hospitalised for almost a week after experiencing multiple seizures. He told Fel: “The bad news is I’m an epileptic. I’m prone to seizures. This isn’t my first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh seizure. I’ve had a bunch of seizures, ya’ll just never hear about them.” 

Comedian and actor Pete was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease aged 17. Chrons caused inflammation of the gut and initially he suffered badly. Thankfully medication means the condition doesn’t affect him so much in adult life. 

Though not the medication in question, the 30-year-old also turned to marijuana to help him manage his symptoms. 

“Weed would be the only thing that would help me eat. I wouldn’t be able to perform on SNL if I didn’t smoke weed,” he told High Times.

While the 41-year-old Avengers star is in the peak of physical health, he discovered last year while filming Limitless that he has a genetic predisposition making it “eight to 10 times more likely” that he will develop Alzheimer’s.

Despite this harsh reality, Chris remains optimistic and is using the opportunity to reassess his life and career.

He told Body + Soul: “The imagined scenario is always worse than the reality. When you’re building or creating all sorts of disastrous outcomes for things, it’s very hard to make clear decisions with any sort of precision. It’s in the quieter moments of reflection and stillness that I can make decisions based upon real purpose and drive.”