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Christina Applegate Talks "Fatalistic" Depression Amid Multiple Sclerosis Battle
Christina Applegate is getting candid astir her health journey.
The Dead to Me prima precocious elaborate conscionable however agonizing the effects of her aggregate sclerosis (MS) tin be.
“Everybody has antithetic ways of it showing up,” Christina, 52, said connected the Nov. 5 episode of her MeSsy podcast, co-hosted by The Sopranos alum Jamie-Lynn Sigler, who also lives with MS. “I laic successful furniture screaming. Like, the crisp pains, the ache, the squeezing.”
In summation to the severity of her pain, the Married with Children alum—who received her diagnosis successful 2021—also shared she present experiences symptoms successful places she hadn’t previously.
“I can’t adjacent prime up my telephone sometimes,” she went on, “because present it’s traveled into my hands. So I’ll effort to spell get my telephone oregon get my distant to crook connected the TV oregon whatever, and sometimes I can’t adjacent clasp them.”
MS is defined arsenic an auto-immune illness which affects connection betwixt the encephalon and the remainder of the body, according to the Mayo Clinic. And portion Christina continues to combat the mysterious disease, she did uncover 1 of her astir effective—and possibly unlikely—coping mechanisms.
“I find world tv precise useful,” she told James Corden on his SiriusXM show This Life of Mine successful August. “That’s benignant of it for me.”
“Anyone who knows maine good knows that it's connected 24/7 successful my room,” the Emmy victor continued. “I don't permission my country precise often. I cognize that sounds truly depressing but it's benignant of like, I conscionable request to slumber sometimes. Yeah, world TV.”
Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for Critics Choice Association
As for immoderate peculiar faves, Christina said she’s not picky.
“Give maine immoderate of it,” she insisted. “Give maine a Vanderpump [Rules], springiness maine a Below Deck, springiness maine a [Real] Housewife, adjacent springiness maine Kitchen Nightmares with Gordon Ramsay—I'll ticker similar 9 seasons of that successful similar 2 days.”
For much connected Christina’s brave conflict with MS, work on.
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Health Journey
Christina Applegate shared she was diagnosed with aggregate sclerosis successful 2021.
"Hi friends. A fewer months agone I was diagnosed with MS," she shared connected her societal media channels that August. "It's been a unusual journey. But I person been truthful supported by radical that I cognize who besides person this condition. It's been a pugnacious road. But arsenic we each know, the roadworthy keeps going. Unless immoderate a--hole blocks it."
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First Public Appearance
"Oh, by the way, I person a disease," she joked during her November 2022 Hollywood Walk of Fame induction ceremony, her archetypal nationalist quality since her MS diagnosis. "Did you not notice? I'm not adjacent wearing shoes."
Daniele Venturelli/WireImage
Early Symptoms
Christina believes her MS travel really began "six oregon 7 years" earlier her 2021 diagnosis.
"I noticed, particularly the archetypal play [of Dead to Me], we'd beryllium shooting and my limb would buckle," Christina explained during a March 2024 interview connected Good Morning America. "I truly conscionable enactment it disconnected arsenic being tired, oregon I'm dehydrated, oregon it's the weather. Then thing would hap for months, and I didn't wage attention."
By the clip she was shooting the Netflix series' 3rd and last season, the histrion said she was "being brought to acceptable successful a wheelchair."
"I couldn't determination that far," she recalled, "so I had to archer everybody due to the fact that I needed help."
X/Christina Applegate
Making Moves
The Dead to Me prima captioned this photograph of her cane postulation amid her conflict with MS: "Walking sticks are present portion of my new normal."
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Strong Statement
Joined by her girl Sadie Grace LeNoble, Christina had a simple connection for aggregate sclerosis while attending the 2023 SAG Awards: "F U MS."
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Just Jokes
After a receiving lasting ovation astatine the 2023 Emmys, the Married...With Children alum quipped, "You're wholly shaming me with disablement by lasting up."
Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for Critics Choice Association
Healing Through Humor
"I marque these jokes due to the fact that if I don't, I'll suffocate," Christina shared connected a March 2024 occurrence connected Armchair Expert, explaining wherefore she often pokes amusive astatine her condition. "I'll beryllium done."
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Critics Choice Association
MS On Her Mind
"I person 30 lesions connected my brain," she said connected the aforesaid podcast. "My biggest 1 is down my close eye, truthful my close oculus hurts a lot."
Legions are caused by the immune strategy attacking the myelin sheath astir nerves, according to the Multiple Sclerosis Trust.
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Getting Candid
Christina hasn’t held backmost erstwhile it comes to sharing her journey.
"It sucks," the Anchorman actress told precocious nighttime speech amusement big Jimmy Kimmel of her regular struggles with MS. "I'm not going to lie. I deliberation anyone who has MS isn't going to beryllium like, 'This is the champion happening that ever happened to me!'"
Monica Schipper/WireImage
In Her Bubble
When talking astir her day-to-day beingness with the disease, Christina told Good Morning America successful March 2024, "I unrecorded benignant of successful hell."
"But I mightiness get to a spot wherever I relation a small spot better," she added. "Right now, I'm isolating, and that's benignant of however I'm dealing with it—by not going anyplace due to the fact that I don't privation to bash it. It's hard."
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The Sweetest Support
Christina credited her Sweetest Thing costar Selma Blair—who was diagnosed with MS successful 2018—for urging her to get tested for the disease.
"She said, 'You request to get checked for MS,'" Christina recalled during her GMA interview. "If not for her, it could've been mode worse."
Phillip Faraone/Getty Images
Friendship Never Dies
Christina confirmed that Dead to Me volition apt beryllium her past onscreen credit, telling Vanity Fair successful May 2023, "I can’t adjacent ideate going to acceptable close now."
"I’m astir apt not going to enactment on-camera again, but I'm truthful gladsome that I went retired with idiosyncratic who is by acold the top histrion I’ve ever worked with successful my full life," she said of costar Linda Cardellini, "if not the top quality I’ve ever known.
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