Renowned actress Christina Applegate has opened up about how she copes with the hard days. The “Dead to Me” star has been candid about her health struggles after she announced in 2021 that she had multiple sclerosis (MS).
The 52-year-old recently appeared on James Corden’s SiriusXM show “This Life of Mine,” where she shared some interesting insight on how she has been coping with her medical condition.
What is Multiple Sclerosis?
According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, “Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a long-lasting (chronic) disease of the central nervous system. It is thought to be an autoimmune disorder, a condition in which the body attacks itself by mistake.”
The disease results in mild or serious disability, such as challenges with vision, leg and arm movement, sensation, and balance. Although the disease can spring up at any age, it has commonly developed in people who are in their 20s, 30s, and 40s.
Christina Applegates’s Diagnosis
According to Christina Applegate, she had been experiencing its symptoms for a number of years before doctors spotted the disease. She admitted to “feeling ill for so long” before her diagnosis. “For years and years and years, I’d have some weird things like balance issues, speech issues, my hands would shake sometimes,” she revealed.
“And I remember playing tennis; I played tennis a couple times a week, and my knee would go out. It was like, ‘Oh, I’m dehydrated. It’s too hot out. Whatever,’” she added. Her experience with the symptoms got to a head in January 2021, just before the planned filming of “Dead to Me” final season.
She began to notice numbness in her toes, which she dismissed as muscle spasms from hiking. It got worse during filming when she couldn’t walk up the steps to her trailer. That was when she consulted her doctors.
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How Christina Applegate Copes With MS
When Corden asked her if music had played a major role in helping her through the challenging moments, she responded in the negative. She revealed that something else had kept her going—reality TV.
“I find reality television very useful. That’s kind of it for me,” she stated. “Anyone who knows me well knows that it’s on 24/7 in my room, because I don’t leave my room very often. I know that sounds really depressing but it’s kind of like, I need to sleep sometimes.”
Corden then asked her to name the kind of reality shows she prefers. She answered by saying all reality shows catch her fancy. “Give me any of it,” she joked. “Give me a Vanderpump [Rules], give me a Below Deck, give me a [Real] Housewife, even give me Kitchen Nightmares with Gordon Ramsay—I’ll watch like nine seasons of that in like two days.”
Why Applegate Loves Reality TV
Christina Applegate also revealed why she is so fascinated with reality TV. She finds great interest in witnessing people display their weaknesses and flaws, and the originality of it all gives her some sort of thrill.
“I love watching the imperfections of real people, really,” she continued. “Like wow, those people exist, I love that. That’s why I love reality TV because they freak me out that they walk this earth acting like that.”
When was Christina Applegate diagnosed With MS?
On Tuesday, August 10, 2021, Christina Applegate shocked her fans all over the world when she announced that she had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The Emmy-winning actress announced this via her X (formerly Twitter) account.
“Hi, friends. A few months ago, I was diagnosed with MS,” the post began. “It’s been a strange journey. But I have been so supported by people that I know who also have this condition,” she said.
“It’s been a tough road. But as we all know, the road keeps going. Unless some a**hole blocks it,” she added jokingly. As expected, the post blew up with thousands of sympathetic comments, reposts, and likes.
Apparently, her diagnosis came on Monday, the day before she made the announcement. On the show with Corden, she described what transpired on the day she received the diagnosis.
“After some tests, they did an MRI in my brain, and it was a Monday, and we were at work, and my doctor said, ‘I really need to get on a Zoom with you to go over your MRI results,’” she told Corden.
“I remember saying to [crew], ‘I have to leave. I have to go home and be there at seven.’ And they’re like, ‘Well, we have like one more scene to do,’ and I just said, ‘I can’t. I gotta go home.’”
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What is the Life expectancy of Someone With Multiple Sclerosis?
A disease as devastating as multiple sclerosis will reduce the life expectancy of affected persons. According to experts, the life expectancy of people with multiple sclerosis is 5 to 10 years lower than the average person who doesn’t suffer from the disease. However, advances in treatment have and are likely to continue closing the gap.
Although the disease isn’t a fatal one, a study has shown that compared to the general life expectancy of 81.8 years, people with multiple sclerosis have a life expectancy of 74.7 years. The reason? People with multiple sclerosis have a higher risk of suffering from certain diseases and conditions that may cause death.
These diseases and conditions include anxiety, depression, alcohol abuse, hypertension, gastrointestinal disease, and thyroid disease. In fact, Christina Applegate confessed to battling depression. Hopefully, besides reality TV, she will find additional ways to cope with the disease.
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