Bella Hadid has raised some eyebrows after she shared a GoFundMe page for her friend and 'holistic healer,' Tracy Piper.
For some context, the supermodel took to Instagram earlier this week to update fans on why she's been M.I.A after many expressed concerns following her absence from key fashion events. The 26-year-old shared she's spent 'almost 15 years' invisibly 'suffering' after she was diagnosed with chronic Lyme disease in 2012. In 2016, she also noted she had been undergoing 'extensive holistic treatment' ever since.
Bella's vulnerable posts act as an eye-opener to the disease and have since drawn awareness to the struggle of other sufferers. Plus, for those who may be looking for answers or alternative methods to treat their symptoms. However, Bella's recent Instagram story, whereby she shared Tracy's GoFundMe page and revealed she had donated has come under fire.
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'This is my sister, Angel, mentor,' she captioned the post. 'She has helped me so much on my journey and I hope anyone who reads this finds her so she can do the same for you.'
'This is her story,' she added above the fundraiser link.
The GoFundMe page - which was temporarily suspended due to violating their Terms of Service that strictly prohibits offering rewards or giveaways - asked for 'assistance to complete the purchase of our upstate New York location to continue helping people with health challenges find alternative & holistic ways to improve their health.'
According to Tracy, who describes herself as a 'Detox Specialist, Colon Therapist, Acupuncturist, [and] Massage Therapist,' The Piper Retreat Center is a location where clients can 'relax and detox and experience remarkable changes in their health.'
Tracy also included a personal note which read: 'I'm happy to say that my own father is now cancer free after only 1 conventional treatment for the disease AND attending 5 of my retreats and adhering to the lifestyle changes I have coached him through.' For many, it was this statement in particular that raised concerns and major red flags.
But, among the images Bella shared in her recent carousel documenting her fight against the illness, she included a number of medical letters that clearly showed some of her treatment over the years. One of which detailed a visit to Himmunitas, where she was treated by the controversial Kenny De Meirleir who stated in 2014: 'She has been ill for more than 1 1/2 years now. She is extremely exhausted and depressed and does not attend school anymore. She feels ill all the time and has memory problems.'
FYI, in 2018, De Meirleir was tried and found guilty of illegally importing and administering the drug Nexavir in Belgium.
Other medical history documents in the post also revealed a 2014 visit to Manhattan Advanced Medicine, which at the time, advertised itself as a 'wholistic path to wellness.'
In terms of Bella's recent transparency with her experimentation of treatment over the years - both holistic and otherwise - to some, her exchanges with doctors like De Meirleir have raised questions about the choices of professionals sought.
A recent Reddit thread discussing the issue - and the GoFundMe page - backs this up, with one person sharing it was giving them: '"My wellness treatments cure cancer" vibes.'
'Inserting herself and her wellness retreats as a cure for her father's cancer was a huge red flag,' a second added, as a third penned: 'I went to one of these holistic festivals and found myself more sceptical than ever of all the pseudoscience on offer.'
Sophie Williams is a Freelance Journalist and Copywriter, covering everything from Fashion to Entertainment to music, Lifestyle and Features. She has interviewed a range of musical artists and authors including Alyssa Edwards, Courtney Barnett, Confidence Man, The Vaccines, Loyle Carner, Gabrielle, and John Niven, and has written for publications like Metro, Reader's Digest, ITV's Woo! and Vice’s NBGA. She is also working on a book for HarperCollins about Taylor Swift, due to be published in 2024.
