Former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Yolanda Hadid dealt with a debilitating diagnosis of Lyme disease during her time on the show. I’m sure her medical struggles weren’t helped by co-star Lisa Rinna alleging that instead of Lyme disease, Yolanda was suffering from Munchhausen syndrome. Oof.
Not surprisingly, Yolanda sympathized with Friend of the Housewives Kathy Hilton’s plight on RHOBH. Namely, Rinna tried to take Kathy down with her claims that Kathy had “a psychotic break” while the two ladies were alone.
“Well, the first season I went on, I was diagnosed with neurological Lyme disease and a lot of narratives that were created by the women,” Yolanda stated. “But those things were very hurtful. I was fighting for my life.” In 2017, Yolanda released her memoir, Believe Me: My Battle with the Invisible Disability of Lyme Disease.
In 2020, Yolanda became a grandmother. Her supermodel daughter, Gigi Hadid, gave birth to her daughter with baby daddy Zayn Malik. Gigi shared a black and white photo on Instagram holding her daughter’s tiny hand. “Our girl joined us earth-side this weekend and she’s already changed our world. So in love,” the new mom wrote. It hasn’t been smooth sailing for Yolanda and Zayn.
According to Page Six, Yolanda told Entertainment Tonight that she shares a special connection with her granddaughter, Khai. Khai shares many traits that remind her of her late mother, Ans van den Herik.
“I feel like my mom came back in this little miniature, incredible little human being,” Yolanda explained. “She does things and I’m like, ‘Oh my god, that’s my mom.’” In October 2019, Yolanda’s mother passed away at age 78, so she never had the chance to meet Khai.
Yolanda stated that her granddaughter “loves everything.” She continued, “Nature, horses, the little ants, she’s careful with everything. She’s just the joy of my life and actually the whole family.”
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Yolanda relished becoming an “Oma,” which was “the most incredible time of life.” “Oma” is the Dutch word for grandmother. The RHOBH alum stated, “And, like, yes, in America, I think grandma has a little bit of an old people connotation to it. But, you know, in Holland the oma thing, it’s fresh, it’s great.”
She added, “I’m 58, I think, ‘Thank God we had this baby now, she’s our greatest blessing.’ And I’m just so joyful every day if I get to see her. It’s incredible.”
Yolanda returned to Instagram in July of 2022 after a nine-month break to share that she had suffered a Lyme disease relapse. She took a social media break following to process the loss of her beloved mother.
“After the loss of my mother I really struggled with depression followed by a lyme relapse…. the emotional stress and grief strongly effected my immune system,” Yolanda posted on Instagram. “My phone addiction didn’t help either, it started to take so much time away from being present in my life ,” she added.
Yolanda continued, “Learning to focus on myself, my health journey, and being present in this moment of my life. Time has slowed down and feels a lot calmer, more time to just sit and actually read a book, time to reconnect with people, be creative and most importantly time with my family.”
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[Photo Credit: Charles Sykes/Bravo]