5 Celebrities Who Are Open About Living With Chronic Illness

Even though it may not seem like it, chronic illness is very common. Defined as a condition that lasts several months or more and requires ongoing medical treatment because it can't be cured, chronic illness affects 60% of people in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control. While some chronic illnesses, like certain cancers and autoimmune diseases, can't be prevented, others that are the result of an unhealthy lifestyle, à la smoking and drinking, can.

Although generations before might have been devoid of celebrities opening up about health struggles like chronic illnesses, that's no longer the case. Whether it's an attempt to normalize a conversation or highlight an issue that doesn't get enough attention, more and more celebrities are talking about their battles with both physical and mental health. Which is a good thing. A 2022 study published in Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences found that when celebrities use their platform to speak up about health-related issues, it allows for greater acceptance and less stigmatization — something that's extremely important, especially when discussing mental health disorders.

While not every celebrity will choose to share their health problems, those who do deserve a round of applause. It takes courage and vulnerability to be so open in a culture with so many keyboard warriors ready to take anyone down for the slightest imperfection. 

Although the world knows Venus Williams for her outstanding tennis career, she's also one of the many people living with a chronic illness. "No matter how hard I worked, I was exhausted, short of breath, and never felt in shape. It was really frustrating," Williams told Prevention in 2017. "My symptoms got progressively worse, to the point where I couldn't play professional tennis anymore." It would take seven years before doctors were able to finally figure out what Williams had: Sjögren syndrome.

According to the Mayo Clinic, Sjoren syndrome is an autoimmune disease that causes dry eyes and dry mouth, as well as joint pain, swollen saliva glands, and dry skin or rashes. The Sjögren's Foundation reports that an estimated four million people in the U.S. alone are living with the disease.

"Before I was on medication, the quality of my life wasn't as good because I was extremely uncomfortable," Williams told Prevention. "Just being alive was very uncomfortable. I was exhausted to the point that I was just always uncomfortable or in pain." Unfortunately, there's no cure for Sjögren's disease, only treatment.

Since her 2013 diagnosis, Bella Hadid has been open about what it's like having Lyme disease. In recognition of her 100^th day of treatment for it, Hadid posted an update on Instagram in 2023. After thanking her mom, Yolanda Hadid, Bella wrote, "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. To be that sad and sick with the most blessings/privilege/opportunity/love around me was quite possibly the most confusing thing ever ... 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."

According to the Centers for Disease Control, Lyme disease is a bacteria that's spread through infected ticks and its symptoms can be anything from a fever and/or rash, to more extreme things like facial paralysis and an irregular heartbeat. Roughly 30,000 new cases are reported to the CDC every year.

When it comes to celebrities who are open about living with any type of illness — physical or mental — Selena Gomez has been at the forefront of the conversation. From talking about how therapy has improved her life to her choice to avoid a high-risk pregnancy due to physical struggles and ailments, Gomez goes above and beyond to normalize her health issues. One of those issues is lupus, which she was diagnosed with in 2013.

"I would get fevers, headaches. I would get fatigue. But I always just kept going," Gomez told Today in 2017. "I kind of ignored it, to be honest. ... I don't think I made the right decisions because I didn't accept it. And that's extremely selfish, and at the same time, really just unnecessary. I'm not really proud of that." Since then, Gomez has prioritized her health and been an advocate for others with Lupus.

According to the Lupus Foundation of America, although anyone, no matter their age or gender can develop lupus, the majority (90%) are women. It affects as many as five million people globally and 1.5 million Americans. As an autoimmune disease, symptoms can be extreme for some, while not exist for others.

Like the 190 million people born with a uterus worldwide, Halsey has endometriosis. And like the majority of those people, trying to get a diagnosis was a struggle for Halsey, and only came after she suffered a miscarriage in 2016.

"I can't pretend anymore," Halsey said in 2018 at the Endometriosis Foundation of America Blossom Ball where she received a Blossom Award, per People. "Sometimes I'm bloated, I'm on an I.V., I'm sick, I'm on medicine, and I'm backstage, terrified that I'm going to bleed through my clothes in the middle of my show. That's the reality of it." Halsey went on to explain how they want to normalize the conversation surrounding not just endometriosis, but reproductive illness in general. "And the more you talk about it, the more likely you're going to help one of your friends who might not know that they have it because they may be afraid of speaking about it, too," Halsey said, according to People.

Halsey is one of several celebrities who have been advocating for adequate endometriosis care. Both Padma Lakshmi and Lena Dunham have also been outspoken about their endometriosis-related issues, with the latter ultimately getting a hysterectomy at age 31 to put an end to the pain.

Unlike the majority of people with Type 1 diabetes (T1D) who are diagnosed in their youth, Halle Berry didn't realize she had T1D until she fell into a diabetic coma in her early 20s — a coma from which she's been lucky to recover. "It was a moment I'll never forget," Berry told Insider 2021. "I had to respin the way I lived my life and have carried that with me ever since. Because I'm diabetic, nutrition has been a big part of my life ... For the past almost 30 years I have been following the ketogenic lifestyle."

Although she's never shied away from the fact that has diabetes, it was during lockdown that Berry realized just what having T1D means during a global pandemic, and the additional risk factors that come with it. "I do feel at risk," Berry told Variety in 2020. "I'm very strict about quarantining and who is in my bubble. We have a whole section of the house: When you go out in the world and buy something, it has to sit in this purgatory."

According to a 2022 study published in The Lancet: Diabetes & Endocrinology journal,  8.4 million people globally were living with T1D in 2021 and the highest percentage of those people, at 64%, were between 20 and 59 years of age. Although men are more likely to have Type 1 diabetes, women are more likely to suffer complications from it, per News Medical Life Sciences.