Bigg Boss 13 fame Shefali Jariwala overcoming epilepsy seizures to BB15’s Shamita Shetty battling colitis; TV celebs open up about their medical disorders

Celebrities are no different from any of us. Like us, they also face ups and downs in their lives, even in terms of suffering any medical condition. However, it takes great courage for them to be vocal about the medical disorders they suffer or have overcome in life. While many choose to not disclose anything about it to the world, some of them have been courageous enough to open up about their medical issues. Let’s take a look: (All photos: Instagram)

Bigg Boss 13 fame Shefali Jariwala, who is well known for her popular ‘Kaanta Laga’ music video in 2002, recently opened up about suffering epilepsy seizures. In a recent interview with BT, the actress shared about having the condition since she was 15. She opened up about overcoming it and revealed that it was the reason behind her disappearance post the music video. Shefali, who rose to fame once again with her Bigg Boss stint, shared, “After I did Kaanta Laga, people asked me why I didn't do more work. I can now say that it was because of the epilepsy seizures that I couldn’t take up much work. I didn't know when I would get my next seizure… This went on for 15 years. Today, I am nine years seizure-free. I am proud of myself because I managed my depression, panic attacks and anxiety naturally and with the help of a strong support system.”
Earlier in an exclusive interview with ETimes TV, Shefali had shared that the medications for her condition made her gain weight. She further talked about her workout regime and shared details about her fitness journey.

Like many health-conscious celebrities, Bigg Boss 15 fame Shamita Shetty follows a gluten-free diet. However, health is not the main reason behind her diet. During her Bigg Boss OTT stint, it was revealed that the actress has an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), Colitis, due to which she cannot eat normal food. She has been battling with it for years and receives special ‘gluten-free’ food in the BB house too.

Bigg Boss 13 fame Paras Chhabra, who enjoys a massive fan-following today, had faced rejections at one time and was made fun of for his stammering issues. The actor opened up about suffering from a speech disorder during his Bigg Boss stint. Later, he also talked about it and shared the problems he faced in his career because of the condition in an exclusive interview with ETimes TV. “From 2012 to 2016, I only faced criticism, rejections and a dominating attitude of people. I would get replaced at the end moment. I kept asking myself why this is happening to me. I had a stammering problem, it still happens with me sometimes when I am too tired or I try speaking too fast. And till the time you are not an established name nobody wants to take a chance and cast you,” he shared.

During his journey in Bigg Boss OTT, actor Raqesh Bapat revealed that he was ‘slow in studies’ at school. During his conversation with the fellow contestants, the actor opened up about his dyslexic condition and got quite emotional too. Later, in an interview with ETimes TV, he shared that he was ‘bullied’ as a child because of his learning disabilities. Raqesh added that constantly being told that he is not understanding the game during the show didn’t turn out too well for him too. He added that all of it made it important for him to ‘break the silence’ about it.

Earlier this year, The Kapil Sharma Show fame Sumona Chakravarti opened up about suffering from a medical condition called endometriosis since 2011. The actress shared a post on social media and talked in detail about the issue. She wrote, “Something I've never shared before. I have been battling endometriosis since 2011. Been in stage IV for many years now. A good eating habit, exercise & most importantly no stress is key to my well being. The lockdown has been emotionally hard for me." A day later, Sumona took to her Instagram story to respond to those who reached out to her. She wrote, "The idea was to spread awareness about a health ailment #Endometriosis which is as common as PCOD/diabetes probably. Am glad a lot of young girls, women, doctors, husbands reaching out on behalf of their wives... have responded & realised how important it is to give it the medical attention it needs. As far as I'm concerned, I am doing okay. Been managing it medically for as long as i can remember. So thank you for all your duas & prayers. Peace & Love (sic).”

Khatron Ke Khiladi 11 and Bigg Boss 14 fame Abhinav Shukla talked about being borderline dyslexic in an interview with BT. The actor bared his heart out and shared the problems he has to deal with owing to the medical condition. Abhinav opened up about it and said, “I have saved my dad's name as Dad 24 July as I can't remember his birthday. Even today I get confused with English words like does-dose, weather-whether, etc. For the longest time, I thought this was normal. People would tell me that why do I keep forgetting the simplest details. So while doing my research work about dyslexia, I came to know that the borderline signs of the disorders were very much there in me. I didn't go for a medical diagnosis, rather I was able to do a self-diagnosis for myself.”

Bigg Boss 15 contestant Rajiv Adatia couldn’t hold back his tears when fellow-contestant Afsana Khan body-shamed him. Even though Rajiv warned her to not joke around him, he couldn’t keep himself from crying and shared that his weight issues are due to a medical condition. Following this, his Rakhi sister Shamita Shetty informed that he has thyroid.

Popular actor Sharad Kelkar opened up about his stuttering issue and how it even got him replaced in TV shows during a chat with Maniesh Paul for his podcast. In a heart-to-heart conversation, the actor shared, “I used to stammer since I was a kid. We call our mothers ‘Aai’ in Marathi. I had a problem calling her ‘Aai’. I used to stammer. I used to feel pretty humiliated in front of my friends as well. They would say, ‘You’ll take two days to say it. Keep quiet’. I never could go on stage. I used to sing. But stuttering was a problem in my life. I was however managing it somehow and going ahead. But when it came to acting, I thought if I stammer while doing a one-page scene, then life’s over. By that time, the voice I have, I didn’t realise and neither did people realise it. So I was replaced. And I took it happily. But then I thought of fixing it.”