Christina Applegate, known for her laugh and bright acting skills, shared shocking news in 2021. She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The news quickly drew attention to a disease that affects nearly a million people. Listening to Christina, the group began to discuss how to recognize the symptoms.
Looking back, she thinks the symptoms started years ago. Like many people, she tried to find ways to explain things away. She thinks the shift came from everyday chores. Who hasn’t felt really tired or mildly out of sorts once in a while? She just dismissed it as tiredness, dehydration or the weather.
Simple thoughts seemed more likely than bigger things. Symptoms sometimes came and went without a trace. She noticed that nothing could happen for months at the time. She didn’t pay much attention to it. This makes early MS easy to ignore.
Multiple sclerosis usually begins in the 20s and 40s, Context said. It is three times more common in women than in men. There is no cure for the disease. Early treatment can greatly improve quality of life, and it’s important to know the signs that may be present.
Christina’s story illustrates why it is important to be aware. After experiencing subtle early symptoms, her symptoms intensified. She said in “To Die For” that she sometimes lost feeling in her legs. This happened unexpectedly during the filming of the first season.
By the third season, things got worse. She shared on SiriusXM that things started to get weird. The changes she saw were undeniable, as it became increasingly difficult for her to take the stairs. This powerful image tells the story of how the disease can slowly take its toll on the body. Symptoms can worsen over a period of time and usually go unnoticed.
In addition to walking problems, her condition presented new challenges. Hands would shake and sometimes speaking was difficult. Numbness in her toes was also part of her experience, and ongoing weakness became a factor affecting her body. These impaired her ability to perform daily tasks that would be a breeze for others. She shared an experience of a visit to the dentist. It was only a half-hour appointment, but it took a long time.
Just getting down the stairs proved to be very difficult. Getting into the car was also difficult. Then getting into the parking lot and then the elevator was also too difficult. The whole process took less than 90 minutes. This is a good illustration of the impact of MS on basic life activities.
The context also shows a very specific early sign for Applegate. She first felt numbness in her toes, an early sign she discusses in the podcast. She now remembers that it started in January 2021 when it appeared. She felt that her toes felt completely out of place.
Over several months, the numbness slowly progressed upward. Eventually, she experienced numbness in her ankles and knees. Her description was very compelling. She noted that while the numbness was there, it was also painful. This strange sensation is common for people with multiple sclerosis and you can find it very confusing.
Interestingly, another star, Selma Blair, also suffers from MS. Blair encouraged Christina to see a doctor, and Blair herself has seen some of the symptoms in Applegate. This shows that community is important, even for celebrities. Applegate admits that her first thought was to follow Blair’s advice. She said, “There’s no way we both have the same disease.”
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She thought it unlikely at first. It was too much of a coincidence that both co-stars had the symptoms. Blair recounted her experience of noticing the symptoms while her children were playing. When Applegate went to her house, she saw changes. These things Blair noticed prompted her to urge Applegate. You have to get an MRI, she insisted.
This personal push from someone who understood her was key, and it put Applegate on the path to a definitive diagnosis. Looking back further, Applegate remembers a few other things. In the years leading up to the diagnosis, they all seemed small or unrelated. In all, she mentions strange things that probably totaled six years.
These things include fluorescent lights bothering her. For some reason, she was afraid of heights on the platform. Neither of these things would seem like brain disease to most normal people. These thoughts later showed the diversity of early symptoms of MS. Without hindsight and diagnosis, it’s hard to connect them.
Experts explain why early symptoms are always overlooked. Julie Fiol is a nurse at the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. She tells Fortune that numbness and tingling are a nuisance. Maybe tingling in the hands, arms, legs or face. It’s thought it may be caused by new yoga poses. New office chairs can also cause tingling, she noted.
After the diagnosis, her filming stopped for a while. It was the final season of “To Die For”. After production was suspended, Christina received the treatment she needed. Applegate thinks some people hoped she would get better after receiving treatment. But she noted that there was no better state for her. Generally, treatment helps control symptoms and slow progress.
Treatment does not cure or return a person to the state they were in before MS. This period of downtime was critical for her body and it gave her the space she needed to think. She needed to go through the process of losing her life and losing that part of me needed to be felt. Therefore, she needed time to think deeply.
Living with MS can also take a huge emotional toll. Christina spoke candidly about how this feels, and many of us weren’t ready to face reality when we were first diagnosed.
Despite the enormous challenges she faces, Christina remains hopeful. She says there’s a voice inside that pushes her to believe. It urges us to believe that miracles happen. One must believe that there is another side to this place. This inner strength of spirit helps to overcome difficulties.
After news of the diagnosis broke, she went home and got better. She was overwhelmed with gratitude for humanity. This level of support is very moving to hear, and shows that empathy goes a long way toward solving health problems.
Applegate’s story shows us that the symptoms of MS are ever-changing. They can be small and are often easily misdiagnosed. For example, fatigue doesn’t match overall activity levels. Balance problems or sudden falls. Feelings of numbness or tingling anywhere. Even a strange fear of heights and sensitivity to lights. Her story covers a lot of feelings that people might miss.
Related posts:
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Christina Applegate’s initial MS symptoms show just how easy it is to mistake it for something else
Christina Applegate says actor urged her to get checked after recognising major MS symptom
