Star Wars icon Daisy Ridley has announced she was recently diagnosed with the autoimmune disorder Graves’ disease.
According to the Mayo Clinic, Graves’ disease is an immune disorder that causes the thyroid to produce too much hormones. This condition is also called hyperthyroidism. These hormones notably affect many organs within the body.
Common symptoms of Graves disease include feeling nervous and irritable; having a slight tremor in the hands and fingers; being sensitive to heat, which increases sweating or warm, moist skin; and weight loss despite eating more.
During a recent interview with Women’s Health, the actress opened up about first learning of her autoimmune disorder. She previously started experiencing hot flashes and fatigue.
“I thought, ‘Well, I’ve just played a really stressful role; presumably that’s why I feel poorly,’” Ridley recalled, referring to her role in Magpie.
Daisy Ridley decided to talk to her endocrinologist about her symptoms and she was told Graves disease might be the issue. Her symptoms included racing heart rate, weight loss, fatigue, and hand tremors,
“It was funny, I was like, ‘Oh, I just thought I was annoyed at the world,’” Daisy joked. “But turns out everything is functioning so quickly, you can’t chill out.”
Daisy Ridley Focused on Diet and Exercise After Graves’ Disease Diagnosis
While there is yet to be a cure for Graves’ disease, Daisy Ridley stated she is on daily medication. She’s also more focused on dieting and exercising.
“I am not super strict about it, but generally cutting down on gluten makes me feel better,” Ridley noted. “I didn’t realize how bad I felt before. Then I looked back and thought, ‘How did I do that?’”
Daisy also stated that she now does infrared saunas, cryotherapy, massages, and acupuncture with her health routine.
“I’ve always been health conscious, and now I’m trying to be more well-being conscious,” she continued. “I do a fair amount of the holistic stuff, but I also understand that it is a privilege to be able to do those things.”
She then added, “We all read the stats about women being undiagnosed or underdiagnosed and sort of coming to terms with saying, ‘I really, actually don’t feel good’ and not going, ‘I’m fine, I’m fine, I’m fine, I’m fine.’ It’s just normalized to not feel good,”
Along with Graves’ disease, Daisy Ridley was diagnosed with endometriosis. This disease causes uterine-like tissue to grow outside the uterus. This often causes severe pain. She also was told she had polycystic ovaries in her 20s.