"She cried, refusing to work." Bella Hadid posed for Vogue and opened up about living with Lyme disease.

Twenty-nine-year-old Bella Hadid is the cover star of the new issue of Italian Vogue. The supermodel graced the glossy cover and posed for a photo shoot wearing Gucci, Saint Laurent, and Valentino. In the interview, she discussed the professional challenges she faced due to Lyme disease.

Hadid admitted that her illness has greatly impacted her work style. In recent years, the model has frequently taken career breaks to focus on her health, but the realization of this need hasn't come easy. "I'm a workaholic to the core. The way I've worked all these years may not have been entirely healthy. I didn't stop, even during the coronavirus pandemic," she shared.

"I cried every time I had to turn down work due to illness. I felt like I could be forgotten at any moment, and I felt completely helpless," Bella continued, noting that the fear of "being irrelevant" drove her to take on any project.

Now the model tries to find a balance between work and rest, and is not afraid to refuse offers that contradict her values: "I am grateful for the opportunity to sometimes get out to Texas to my horses and dogs. Live a real life that brings me pleasure. And only then return to work, which makes me more complete."

As a reminder, Bella Hadid was diagnosed with Lyme disease in 2012 (her mother, Yolanda, and brother, Anwar, also suffered the same diagnosis). Due to her worsening condition, the supermodel was forced to take multiple breaks from work. For example, in 2023, she spent nearly 100 days on IVs and disappeared from the public eye for a year. However, some fans doubt the reality of the disease, speculating that Hadid's frequent hospitalizations are actually related to the effects of anorexia or even drug addiction.

It was recently revealed that Bella split from her cowboy boyfriend after two years of dating.

Photo: Gia Coppola//Vogue