While it’s very easy indeed to imagine that everything in the world of a global superstar is peachy keen, everyone – no matter how wealthy, talented or famous they are – has hills to climb and issues to face, and here in the Star Wars galaxy one of our treasures Daisy Ridley opens up about her diagnosis in the autumn of 2023 of Graves’ Disease and the challenges that brings.
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Daisy is no stranger to doing hard things. Diagnosed with endometriosis (in which uterine-like tissue grows outside the uterus and often causes severe pain) in her teens, and polycystic ovaries in her 20s, she’s been candid about her health, on social media and in interviews. But now she’s dealing with another curveball: Graves’ disease, an autoimmune disorder that involves overactivity of the thyroid.
Back at our table, Daisy takes a drink of water, then looks at me. “It’s the first time I’ve shared that [Graves’],” she says, moving her hands along the glass. She was diagnosed in September 2023, after her general practitioner encouraged her to see an endocrinologist following bouts of hot flashes and fatigue. (She doesn’t know if all three of her diagnoses are related, but the symptoms for all can be similar.)
The star had started feeling terrible following the filming of Magpie, a psychological thriller in which she plays Anette, a wife and mother dealing with her rocky relationship. “I thought, Well, I’ve just played a really stressful role; presumably that’s why I feel poorly,” she says. When she described to her endocrinologist her symptoms, which included a racing heart rate, weight loss, fatigue, and hand tremors, the doctor mentioned that the feeling of Graves’ is often referred to as “tired but wired”—and Daisy realized she felt super irritable. “It was funny, I was like, ‘Oh, I just thought I was annoyed at the world,’ but turns out everything is functioning so quickly, you can’t chill out.”
With the diagnosis, Daisy experienced some sadness, but also—if she’s being honest—irritation as well. As someone who takes good care of herself physically, it felt to her like a random blow. On the silver linings side, the disease led Daisy to a more routine pattern of daily medication and a more mindful diet. She’s been vegan for years but decided to go gluten-free following her diagnosis. “I am not super strict about it, but generally cutting down on gluten makes me feel better,” she says, noting it is said to help with inflammation for those predisposed to it (like Daisy).
