Living With MS: Christina Applegate Focuses on Humor To Cope
- Actress Christina Applegate, 52, recently revealed she has “30 lesions” on her brain amid her brave multiple sclerosis battle, a serious disease of the brain and central nervous system that can lead to permanent disability, which she’s been battling since 2021 —and most importantly with humor.
- The “Married with Children” was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) in August 2021. The disease impacts the central nervous system and can cause numbness or tingling in your limbs. Everyday activities such as taking a shower and walking up stairs prove challenging for Applegate due to her diagnosis.
- Applegate also bravely battled breast cancer after a 2008 diagnosis. She underwent a double mastectomy (removal of both breasts) to help treat the disease
- Dr. Dana Chase, a Gynecologic Oncologist at UCLA Health, reminds us it’s important to try to focus on the good, stay positive, and do things that bring you joy [like making others laugh or yourself] to the degree you’re able to do so amid battling a disease like MS.
- “We know, actually from good studies, that emotional health, quality of life is associated with survival, meaning better quality of life is associated with better survival, better outcomes,” Dr. Chase tells SurvivorNet.
Speaking to co-hosts Dax Shepard and Monica Padman in a recent episode of the “Armchair Expert” podcast, Applegate, admitted MS “is the worst thing that’s happened” to her in her life but she often uses jokes to keep a positive outlook on things, especially as she’s been dealing with pain all over her body and lesions on her brain.
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Further admitting she “hates” the disease and is “mad” about her diagnosis, but laughter is definitely helping her through hard times.
“I make these jokes because if I don’t, I’ll suffocate. I’m not ready for the healing yet,” she continued, referring to when she joked about her disease to the audience at the 75th annual Primetime Emmy Awards at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.
Her emotional appearance, on January 15, 2026, started out with a standing ovation when she came out onto the stage to announce an award, to which she reacted by saying, “Thank you so much, oh my God. You’re totally shaming me with disability by standing up, it’s fine, OK.
“It’s fine … Body not by Ozempic. Okay. Let’s go.”
The Armchair Expert Podcast’s official Instagram page promoted Applegate’s interview with a photo of the actress and praising the humor she has amid her health struggles. The post was captioned, “Incredibly special episode with CHRISTINA APPLEGATE up now for you.
“She, per usual, is funny as hell and real as can be. We joined her in her home and enjoyed our time with her immensely.”
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During the podcast, Applegate also insisted she understands she “can’t overcome” the disease, but she’s now chosen to be completely open and honest with how she’s dealing with it.
Applegate looked back on how she wasn’t honest about her health as she battled breast cancer, explaining, “Everything I was saying was a freaking lie. It was me trying to convince myself of something, and I think that did no service to anyone.”
We’re delighted to see Applegate remaining so upfront about her health issues and that she’s able to be lighthearted amid adversity.
Christina Applegate’s MS Journey
Multiple sclerosis is a potentially disabling disease of the brain and spinal cord. The disease 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.
Once the protective barrier is damaged, the spinal cord struggles to send messages to arms, legs, and other parts of the body to function normally.
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.”
The Importance of Laughter & Positivity
Christina Applegate is an ideal example of someone who turns to laughter and positivity when times get tough.
It’s also interesting to note, that according to the National Library of Medicine, research has shown that the amount of pain medication needed for patients is reduced after they watch funny movies.
And perhaps laughter, like Applegate makes sure to have in her life, even if it’s through making jokes about her disease, could also help when someone is dealing with the pain that comes amid a health challenge, whether it’s any sort of health battle, like multiple sclerosis or cancer.
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The importance of positivity amid tough times has been seen through stand-up comedian Jesus Trejo in Long Beach, California.
Trejo became a caregiver for both of his parents after his mother was diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumor and his father was later faced with colon cancer. But instead of panicking and focusing on the devastating nature of the situation, the only child stepped up to care for his parents with love and laughter.
In a previous interview with SurvivorNet, Trejo opened up about how he put his career aside to care for his parents in their time of need while making time to smile along the way.
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“The only advice I have for anyone watching this is laugh, and laugh often, laugh at yourself. Don’t take yourself seriously. Things are already bad. Because once you do that, it’s a game-changer,”Trejo told SurvivorNet.
He also says the laughter itself might be brief, but “the effects of it just reverberate through your body, and can change an already bad situation into a better one.”
Focusing on hope, and maintaining a positive attitude amid a health battle can always be helpful.
Anecdotal evidence from SurvivorNet experts points to how a positive mindset can impact a cancer prognosis.
Dr. Zuri Murrell, of Cedars-Sinai told SurvivorNet in an earlier interview, “My patients who thrive, even with stage 4 cancer, from the time that they, about a month after they’re diagnosed, I kind of am pretty good at seeing who is going to be OK. Now doesn’t that mean I’m good at saying that the cancer won’t grow.”
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“But I’m pretty good at telling what kind of patient are going to still have this attitude and probably going to live the longest, even with bad, bad disease. And those are patients who have gratitude in life.”
Meanwhile, Dr. Dana Chase, a Gynecologic Oncologist at UCLA Health, also says it’s important to try to focus on the good, stay positive, and do things that bring you joy to the degree you’re able to do so amid battling a disease like cancer.
“We know, actually from good studies, that emotional health, quality of life is associated with survival, meaning better quality of life is associated with better survival, better outcomes,” Dr. Chase said in an earlier interview.
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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.
Once the protective barrier is damaged, the spinal cord struggles to send messages to the arms, legs, and other parts of the body to function normally.
The National Multiple Sclerosis Society outlines the different types of multiple sclerosis:
- Clinically isolated syndrome (CIS): This 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 is an almost transitional form of MS that 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.
Treating Multiple Sclerosis
There is no cure for MS, but MS warriors battling the disease do have methods to manage their symptoms.
Common tools MS patients use to improve their quality of life include wheelchairs, canes, leg braces and some medical treatments called disease-modifying therapies (DMTs).
A study in American Family Physician found DMTs “has been shown to slow disease progression and disability; options include injectable agents, infusions, and oral medications targeting different sites in the inflammatory pathway.”
While chemotherapy is widely known as a cancer treatment that uses drugs to kill cancer cells, it is also effective at slowing down or stopping disease activity in MS. Applegate’s actress Selma Blair previously underwent chemotherapy as part of her treatment for MS.
Questions for Your Doctor
If you are diagnosed with MS or may be concerned you have the chronic disease due to symptoms you’re experiencing, consider asking your doctor the following questions.
- Although there’s no cure for MS, which treatment option to manage my symptoms do you recommend for me?
- Are there any potential side effects of MS treatment?
- What if the treatment to manage symptoms doesn’t work?
- Will exercise or therapy help my symptoms?
- Are there any MS support groups you recommend to help me cope?
Coping Mechanisms for Pain Management
Applegate is certainly is not alone when it comes to living with chronic pain, something she’s been dealing with as she lives with MS. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 20% of Americans are living day-to-day with chronic pain.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is conducting basic pain research to develop strategies and potential medications to better manage pain. The research focuses on key areas including facial pain and how – in some cases – protein increases sensitivity to painful and nonpainful stimuli.
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Research involving mice indicates that rodents with high levels of Cdk5 (a type of protein called cyclin-dependent kinase 5) showed larger calcium surges, indicating that their pain responses were intensified.
“This heightened pain sensitivity is similar to a condition called allodynia. Allodynia causes pain in response to something that isn’t typically painful. The research team was able to reduce pain signaling in those oversensitive mice by blocking their Cdk5,” NIH Distinguished Investigator Dr. Kenneth M. Yamada explained.
Other areas of research include learning how sound reduces pain and ongoing clinical trials studying pain perception and lower back pain.
Of course, pain management comes with risks especially when powerful painkillers such as opioids are involved. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends seeking treatment opinions that don’t involve opioids to treat pain when viable. Medicines like over-the-counter painkillers including acetaminophen, ibuprofen, and naproxen have fewer side effects. Other alternatives to opioids include physical therapy and exercise.
Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff
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