Believe Me: My Battle with the Invisible Disability of Lyme Disease

In early 2011, Yolanda Hadid began experiencing mysterious symptoms including brain fog, severe exhaustion, and migraines. Over the following months and years, she transitioned from an active mother of three and reality TV star to someone spending most of her time in bed. Despite consultations with top hospitals and doctors, the lack of definitive diagnostic testing left her navigating conflicting medical opinions without clear answers about the cause of her symptoms. Hadid was eventually diagnosed with late-stage Lyme disease. In this memoir, she describes how the illness affected every aspect of her life—her family, friendships, and career—and how her marriage became strained and ultimately ended in divorce. Her children, Gigi, Bella, and Anwar, motivated her to persevere through her most difficult periods. Two of her children also suffer from Lyme disease. Believe Me documents Hadid's journey traveling worldwide to find answers for herself and her children. The memoir reveals intimate details of her experience with an illness she describes as an undeniable epidemic that is more debilitating than widely recognized.