Lena Dunham reveals on Instagram she has a chronic illness

David Matthews
Updated

Actress and writer Lena Dunham revealed to the world in an Instagram post that she is dealing with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a chronic disease that affects the joints and skin.

Dunham posted the news in response to a paparazzi photo that showed her walking with the assistance of a cane.

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I could choose to be embarrassed by these paparazzi pics- I mean, that’s probably the point of someone publishing them in the first place- but I’m really not. I could lie and say it was an early Halloween look (Don’t you get it? I’m going as a con woman leaving a Florida Keys jail after being acquitted of murdering her husband, and now she’s trying to get disability license plates.) But the truth is just: This is what life is like when I’m struggling most with chronic illness. An Ehler-Danlos syndrome flare means that I need support from more than just my friends... so thank you, sweet cane! For years, I resisted doing anything that would make my physical situation easier, insisting that a cane would “make things weird.” But it’s so much less weird to actually be able to participate than to stay in bed all day. And yes, you'd better believe I'm wearing my nightgown. I was walking four feet to the car to go to the doctor and I wanted to be full cozy. I mean, didn't Bieber wear hotel slippers for like five years? Yeah, so I can wear my glamour nighty for two hours. And then an hour later, I’m in a meeting look tackling the job I love. That’s the two-fold life of a woman with chronic illness; we still rock our dreams and goals and passions (and fashions) and we live many lives in one day. Tell me about your day!

A post shared by Lena Dunham (@lenadunham) on Nov 1, 2019 at 11:00am PDT

“This is what life is like when I’m struggling most with chronic illness,” the “Girls” star wrote. “An Ehler-Danlos syndrome flare means that I need support from more than just my friends... so thank you, sweet cane!”

“For years, I resisted doing anything that would make my physical situation easier, insisting that a cane would ‘make things weird,’” she added. “But it’s so much less weird to actually be able to participate than to stay in bed all day.”

Ehlers-Danlos syndrome affects tissues that support the skin, bones, blood vessels and other organs and tissues, according to the National Institute of Health’s Library of Medicine. Suffers are more prone to dislocating joints, bruising severely and easily, severe scaring, poor wound healing, the development of fleshy lesions and other symptoms.

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