Actress Christina Applegate, 53, Says The ‘Big Lesson’ In Living With Multiple Sclerosis Is ‘You Can’t Compare … MS Affects Everyone Differently’

Reacting to a letter from a MesSy podcast listener and fellow MS thriver, who described how difficult it is to not have loved ones understand what your going through or to comprehend the changes happening in one’s body that may not be happening to others battling the same disease, Applegate said, “You really just read our inner dialogue.”

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After fellow actress Jamie-Lynn Sigler and Applegate agreed to questioning, ‘What’s wrong with me?’ when they see others with MS having an easier time with something, Applegate said, “My first neurologist said to me, ‘Oh, you’re going to be fine … I have 80-year-old people coming in here with MS, with their heels on and their hats.'”

She then explained, “I can’t walk in normal shoes, just flat shoes. ‘So then, I’m like, ‘What did I do.’ You’re constantly comparing.”

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As for the ‘big lesson’ Applegate then shared with their podcast listeners, she insisted, “You cannot compare to anybody else’s MS.

“MS affects everyone differently. We all have our unique story. We all have our unique symptoms and we’re doing the best we f***ing can. You didn’t do anything wrong. This is just your cards right now.”

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To further emphasize how everyone’s bodies are different throughout an MS journey, Applegate recalled,”Two weeks ago, I couldn’t even fathom driving my car to take my kid to school. And I am now.

“Now, am I getting better? No. But, I’m going ‘oh I am capable of these thing’s sometimes. And it’s OK to say sometimes.”

Sigler then thanked the listener for her emotionally-stirring letter, adding, “I feel very seen. This can happen a thousand times and each time it’s going to hold the same value and mean the same thing.

“Because we’re stuck in this tunnel vision every day of what it’s like to live with this and you hear somebody speak the words that you live and feel … and it is oddly comforting.”

Fans also commented on how “oddly comforting” it was to hear the stories of others, writing in the comments of a clip of the podcast episode shared on Instagram, “Sharing each other stories makes you feel seen, heard, and like you’re not totally alone in your emotions and struggles … and in this feeling of being on the MS rollercoaster.”

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Another fan wrote, “I needed these words so much today. Feeling the heartbreak of losing my old life. Acceptance is extremely difficult. Never thought this would be my life.”

“It feels so good to hear from people who are going through the same stuff, thank you for this podcast. Sending love to all my fellow MSers,” a third listener commented.

Alongside an audio clip of this week’s episode shared on Instagram, Applegate and Sigler said, “This week, we read listener emails and discuss how connected our bodies are with our emotions, friendship heartbreaks, starting a family, and more!”

As for heartbreak, Applegate recounted her dad’s passing and how she’s been coping with it.

She said, “I have a certain kind of heartbreak with that, which is, number one, I’ll never see him or talk to him again. But also, the heartbreak of all the regrets I have, of the things I didn’t say, certain resentments that I held that seemed so frivolous and ridiculous to me now.

“How I wish I had maybe spent more time or something.”

Applegate added, “I loved the person he became when he became a grandfather to my daughter. That heartbreak is coming from this place of, there’s so much more I wish I could have said or done, and now I will never be able to.”

Applegate’s Multiple Sclerosis Journey

Christina Applegate has been living with multiple sclerosis since August 2021. The diagnosis came more than a decade after she dealt with breast cancer in 2008.

“With the disease of MS, it’s never a good day,” Applegate previously wrote on her Instagram. “Having MS f—ing sucks…You just have little s— days,” she said.

She explained how her symptoms are impacting her daily life, including everyday activities like taking showers, using stairs, and carrying things.

Applegate began experiencing symptoms of the condition long before she had answers. She actually said she felt off balance during a dance sequence that occurred way back in season one of her dark comedy “Dead to Me.” She later noticed her aptitude for tennis started to fail.

“I wish I had paid attention,” she previously told The New York Times. “But who was I to know?”

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It took several years of worsening tingling and numbness in her extremities before her diagnosis arrived while on set. This life-altering realization wouldn’t stop Applegate from finishing her portrayal of Jen Harding, but she did need a break. Production of the final season ceased for about five months as she began treatment.

“There was the sense of, ‘Well, let’s get her some medicine so she can get better,’” Applegate said. “And there is no better. But it was good for me. I needed to process my loss of my life, my loss of that part of me. So I needed that time.”

Applegate admits she’ll never fully “accept” her condition, but she did learn how to work with it. And she’s previously talked about how the show was a cathartic outlet and safe space.

“I had an obligation to Liz [Feldman] and to Linda [Cardellini], to our story,” she said of the show’s writer and her co-star respectively. “The powers that be were like, ‘Let’s just stop. We don’t need to finish it. Let’s put a few episodes together.’ I said, ‘No. We’re going to do it, but we’re going to do it on my terms.’”

Applegate wasn’t able to work as hard or as long or in the heat without her body giving out, but she found pride in her self-sufficiency. With the help of some adjustments to the schedule, she powered through. Nicole Vassell, a writer for The Independent, says other programs should learn from the way Applegate’s “physical changes [were] seamlessly incorporated into the show.”

“This is the first time anyone’s going to see me the way I am,” Applegate said. “I put on 40 pounds; I can’t walk without a cane. I want people to know that I am very aware of all of that.”

However, on a more recent “MeSsy” podcast episode, Applegate revealed she has since lost those 40 pounds naturally, without any anti-obesity drugs. She said, someone jokingly, that she lost that weight by dealing with stomach issues associated with the medicine she takes amid her MS battle.

Understanding Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis causes the immune system to attack cells that form the protective sheath that covers nerve fibers in the spinal cord. The disruption leads to communication problems between the brain and the rest of the body.

RELATED: Overwhelmed By Emotion, Christina Applegate, 52, “Blacked Out” For a Moment in Front of The Emmys Crowd

Once the protective barrier is damaged, the spinal cord struggles to communicate to the body’s arms, legs, and other parts to function normally.

The National Multiple Sclerosis Society lays out the different types of multiple sclerosis:

• Clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) is when an individual experiences a single neurological episode lasting 24 hours or less. CIS is what MS is diagnosed as until there is a second episode.
• Relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS): The most common MS among the million people battling the disease in the US, RRMS is marked by sudden flare-ups, new symptoms, or worsening of symptoms and cognitive function. The condition will then go into remission for some time before reemerging with no known warning signs.
• Primary progressive MS (PPMS): These individuals have no flare-ups or remission, just a steady decline with progressively worse symptoms and an increasing loss of cognitive and body functions.
• Secondary progressive MS (SPMS): This almost transitional form of MS progresses from RRMS to PPMS.

In addition to balance issues, numbness, and tingling in the limbs, as Applegate experienced, other common MS symptoms include vision and bladder control problems. Mood changes and mental and physical fatigue are other symptoms people living with MS may experience, according to the National Institute of Health.

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The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke explains this disease as: “An unpredictable disease of the central nervous system, [MS] can range from relatively benign to somewhat disabling to devastating, as communication between the brain and other parts of the body is disrupted.” Investigators of the disease believe it to be an autoimmune disease.

Many people fighting MS experience muscle weakness and difficulty with coordination and balance.

Currently, there is no cure for MS, although some people treat the disease using chemotherapy, medications, or steroid drugs.

Understanding Grief

Grief is defined as the devastation that occurs when we lose someone, but it could also be felt after a major life change like an MS diagnosis. Grieving comes in five stages, commonly referred to as the “five stages of grief.”

The stages of grief are denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. These labels help us frame and identify what we may be feeling. These stages can occur in any order.

As you find yourself experiencing some of these stages, remember that the emotions you are feeling are meaningful but also temporary. If you approach them with compassion, kindness, and eventual acceptance, you will come away from this period with a renewed sense of resilience and purpose.

Applegate has admitted she’s unsure when or if the grieving process will end, but she’ coping with it the best she can.

“Grief comes in waves,” says Dr. Scott Irwin, a psychiatrist and Director of Supportive Care Services at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

Dealing With Grief Related to Health Problems

“They’re grieving the change in their life; the future they had imagined is now different.”

Some days can be more challenging than others, but Dr. Irwin says talk therapy can be helpful. It’s important to reach out to your doctor, a therapist, or support groups in your community for the help you need.

Learning About Positive Psychology

One way to cope with one’s mental health is through positive psychology, an approach to mental well-being that focuses more on a person’s strengths and how they can help themselves rather than just trying to curb individual symptoms and/or diagnose a disorder.

“It is a fundamental sort of different way of thinking about patients, thinking about their experience,” Dr. Samantha Boardman, a New York-based psychiatrist and author, told SurvivorNet. “It’s not just focusing on what’s the matter. It’s also asking them, what matters to you?”

Dr. Boardman noted that positive psychology is a reimagined approach to dealing with mental struggles. “Making people feel less bad is not the same as making them feel good,” she said, referring to how this new approach encourages people to try to find happiness rather than just try to stop sadness.

This approach can be a major benefit to people who are dealing with an illness like cancer because it focuses on finding those great parts of life.

What is Positive Psychology?

“Positive emotions have unique benefits above and beyond managing negative emotions,” Dr. Boardman explained.

“Sometimes you can treat a patient and get rid of some of their symptoms, and it’s not necessarily then that you find a flourishing patient you might even get an empty patient. So, really tapping into those resources where do they find positive emotions? What provides a sense of engagement for them? How can you promote positive relationships?”

Questions to Ask Your Doctor

If you are struggling with body image and mental health, here are some questions you may consider asking your doctor:

• Are there interventions beyond medication for my depressed or anxious feelings?
• How can I go about finding and nourishing positive emotions?
• What can I do if I’m struggling to maintain a sense of positivity?
• What lifestyle factors can I adjust to feel better mentally?

Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff

Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.

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