’90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days’: Everything to Know About Alina’s Rare Medical Condition Diastrophic Dysplasia
90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days returned with a new season on Dec. 12, 2021, with seven new couples for fans to watch. The cast of season 5 also includes the first little person – Alina – to appear within the 90 Day Fiancé franchise. Twenty-seven-year-old Alina lives in St. Petersburg, Russia, but her boyfriend, Caleb, is American. Before the 90 Days will show the ups and downs of their relationship as they navigate the waters of international dating.
What do we know about Alina on ‘90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days’ Season 5 so far?
Besides being the first little person to appear on ‘90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days,’ Alina also has a different story about how she and Caleb met. Most couples on Before the 90 Days meet through international dating sites as they actively search for love. Alina and Caleb met when they were just teenagers. Caleb wanted to meet some potential friends before leaving for an extended trip to Russia. That’s when he and Alina connected in an international chatroom.
However, the meeting never materialized, but the two connected several years later. Now, they’ve discovered they want something deeper than a friendship, so both of them will travel to Turkey to finally meet in person.
Alina’s medical condition is called diastrophic dysplasia
In the Before the 90 Days Season 5 premiere episode, Alina talks about her medical condition known as Diastrophic Dysplasia.
Alina explains, “It’s a form of dwarfism. It’s rare and it affects everyone differently. For a child to be born with this type of dwarfism both parents have to be carriers of the gene. It can affect your joints and, of course, your stature. My hands and my feet look pretty different too, but I don’t think the disability is a problem. In many areas of my life, I try to do everything, really.”
According to John Hopkins Medicine, “Diastrophic dysplasia can affect the development of body parts including the hands, face, ears, feet, hips, legs and spine. People with diastrophic dysplasia are generally shorter than average in height.”
Just like the condition affects everyone in different ways, doctors use different treatment methods depending on the symptoms the person exhibits.
However, Alina doesn’t let the disorder hold her back. “I’m pretty comfortable in my body. I’ve already accepted the fact that I don’t look like everyone else and I’m just trying to rock what I have. But there are things that are hard to do. With my hands, it’s a bit hard to do some things because my fingers don’t really bend. I can’t walk a lot. So, I use a wheelchair for longer distances,” she explains in Before the 90 Days.
Alina’s parents worry about her traveling alone in ‘Before the 90 Days’ Season 5
In the Before the 90 Days Season 5 Episode 1, Alina explains that her parents often baby her and her sister. However, due to her disorder, she gets the brunt of the worry from her parents. Neither are thrilled Alina is traveling to Turkey to meet a man she’s never met in person before. However, she explains her friend Elijah plans to accompany her to help her with anything she might need.
It looks like Alina and Caleb finally meet in person in Before the 90 Days Season 5 Episode 2. The show airs on Sunday nights at 8 P.M. ET and streams on discovery+.
