Bella Hadid Discusses Health Concerns After Victoria’s Secret Runway Return

Bella Hadid has opened up about her much-talked about ‘dizzy’ Victoria’s Secret walk which sparked widespread concern for her health.

Fans speculated the supermodel, 29, who has endured a public battle with Lyme disease, looked faint while walking the runway this week -as she seemingly struggled to stay steady while strutting in a pair of massive 50-pound wings.

‘You can tell in her face. She looks a little stiff here,’ one fan said. ‘And look how she’s trying to play with her shoulders trying to keep those d**n wings on. She’s still killing it though.’

Despite doing her best to appear unfazed, the fan also noted that Hadid appeared to ‘almost faint’ toward the end of her walk.

The incident occurred as the Vogue cover girl was dressed in an ethereal all-white and silver look, which featured a fitted corset top and pleated skirt. 

Social media users flooded the comments with messages of concern, referencing Hadid’s recent hospitalization.

However Hadid wrote in a now-deleted post per THR: ‘Ok we’re not going to pretend these wings weren’t 50 pounds but HOW BEAUTIFUL.’

‘Omg I thought it was just me — she looked like she was in pain,’ one fan wrote.

‘She was literally just hospitalized. I don’t know why they pushed her that much,’ another added.

‘Those wings are heavy asf and she’s a very light person. She’s also really sick. Still ate tho,’ a third remarked.

On Reddit, similar discussions unfolded as users debated the physical toll of the show.

‘She looked like she was either going to pass out or the wings were too heavy,’ one person wrote.

‘She looked SO uncomfortable… she had to hold onto the wings to give them better support,’ another noted.

‘She said on Instagram that the wings were 50 pounds!’ one user recalled, while others criticized producers for assigning such heavy props to a model recently recovering from illness.

Some even speculated that the materials used this year made the accessories significantly heavier than previous years.

‘If Bella wasn’t feeling well that day and couldn’t walk properly, they should have given the wings to another girl,’ one user commented.

Hadid’s runway appearance came just weeks after she returned from Germany, where she spent time receiving treatment for chronic neurological Lyme disease at the St George Hospital near Munich.

Last month, the model shared raw, emotional photos from her hospital stay — showing her hooked up to IVs and oxygen tubes — alongside a heartfelt apology to her 61 million Instagram followers for being ‘MIA.’

‘She doesn’t respond [to texts] for days or even weeks,’ a source recently told the Daily Mail. ‘But when things are better, she will text back. She doesn’t ghost — she just says, ‘I can’t talk today, sorry.’ Everyone who loves her gets it.’

According to the insider, Hadid often retreats from the spotlight during difficult recovery periods.

‘Bella is as functional as she can be, but there’s always room for improvement,’ they said. ‘When things get bad, she retreats. Her batteries seem to recharge when she’s alone.’

Hadid has been open about her decade-long fight with chronic Lyme disease, which causes neurological symptoms including headaches, brain fog, sensitivity to light and noise, inflammation and numbness. 

She has also been candid about her mental health, sharing that she suffers from depression and anxiety.

On World Mental Health Day, the Vogue cover star posted a screenshot of a heartfelt message that began, ‘Hi. Sorry I haven’t texted you back,’ capturing the silent struggle that often accompanies anxiety.

Last week, she reflected on Instagram about the ‘weight’ of her mental health battles in a vulnerable Instagram post.

‘The weight of anxiety and depression can sometimes feel all-consuming, paralyzing, and invisible to the outside world,’ she wrote.

‘Over the years, I’ve learned that this is not a weakness — it’s a part of me. My sensitivity, my awareness, my empathy… in many ways, it can be a superpower.’

The insider noted that Hadid has a strong network of family and friends supporting her — including her mother Yolanda, siblings Gigi and Anwar Hadid, and boyfriend Adan Banuelos, a 36-year-old Mexican-American rodeo star.

The couple began dating in late 2023, shortly after Hadid relocated to Texas, a move she described as both a romantic and personal reset.

‘After 10 years of modeling, I realized I was putting so much energy and love and effort into something that, in the long run, wasn’t necessarily giving it back to me,’ she told Allure in 2024.

‘If I don’t feel good, I take time for myself… for the first time now, I’m not putting on a fake face.’

‘Now when anybody sees me in pictures and they say I look happy, I genuinely am,’ she added. ‘My bad days now were my old good days.’