Every celebrity that has opened up about MS diagnosis as Christina Applegate shares signs and symptoms
Dead to Me star Christina Applegate has been raising awareness of the symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS), but she isn't the only celebrity that has been open about the condition.
The star was diagnosed with the autoimmune disease in 2021, though believes she suffered with symptoms for 'six or seven' years prior.
MS is a lifelong condition which occurs when the body's immune system mistakenly attacks the brain and nerves. It can cause symptoms such as fatigue, vision problems and problems with walking or balance.
After adapting to life with the chronic condition, Applegate is now using her platform to spread awareness of the signs to look out for.
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Speaking on her podcast MeSsy with her co-host Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Christina made a heart-wrenching admission about the pain she experiences every day as a result of suffering with the condition.
She said: "I lie in bed screaming.
"The ache, the squeezing - it’s like a vice grip that just won’t let go."
Admitting she can find day-to-day life very difficult, she said: "I put my feet on the ground, and it’s like they’re on fire. They hurt so much just to touch.
"I’ll wake up, and I physically can’t turn from side to side.
"I can’t even pick up my phone sometimes.
"The MS has traveled into my hands, and now I’ll go to grab my phone or the remote and sometimes I can’t even hold them."
Half-jokingly, she added: "I can’t open bottles anymore, so goodbye to pickle jars! It’s just so incredibly painful, awkward, and isolating."
But the actress isn't the only celebrity to have been open about struggling with the condition.
Here are some other famous faces who have opened up about their MS diagnosis.
Selma Blair
It was actually Blair that encouraged Applegate to get her symptoms checked out by a doctor, leading to her diagnosis.
Blair was diagnosed with MS in 2018, and explained on her Instagram how she realised she was so ill.
The actress said at the time: "I have had symptoms for years but was never taken seriously until I fell down in front of him [neurologist Jason Berkley] trying to sort out what I thought was a pinched nerve."
Jamie-Lynn Sigler
Jamie co-hosts Applegate's podcast, and also suffers with MS.
Despite being diagnosed at the age of 20, she decided to keep her condition to herself until she was 34.
Talking to People magazine, she explained: "It hit me that I have this incredible responsibility now to represent a community that suffers in silence a lot of the time."
Jack Osbourne
In the first few weeks after his daughter was born, an MRI scan revealed he had lesions on his brain and spine.
He described getting the diagnosis like 'getting punched out of nowhere', but admits he has been able to live life 'high-functioning'.
Joan Didion
Joan was a journalist and author living with MS, who also won a National Medal of Honour from President Obama.
He noted that he was 'surprised she hasn’t already gotten this award' after speaking openly about the condition her whole life.
Montel Williams
The Montel Williams Show aired from 1991 to 2008, but at the age of 43, Montel was diagnosed with MS after years of vision loss and pain.
Talking with Yahoo, he said: "After my second attempt at taking my own life, I recognised that I was going to not just live with this, I was going to figure out how, in some way, shape, or form, to turn this into something I can thrive at."
Noah “40” Shebib
The Grammy-award winning producer and engineer for Drake was diagnosed with MS at the age of just 22.
Now 41, Shebib takes medication to suppress him symptoms, which include numbness and shaking.
Topics: Health, Women's Health, Christina Applegate
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