Christina Applegate, known for her roles in Dead to Me and Married… with Children, is candidly sharing her struggles with multiple sclerosis (MS). During a revealing episode of her podcast MeSsy, co-hosted with fellow MS survivor Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Applegate discussed the profound impact of her diagnosis on her mental health and daily life.
On the June 4 episode, Applegate, 52, admitted that she no longer finds joy in activities she once enjoyed. “This is being really honest: I don’t enjoy living. I don’t enjoy it,” she confessed. “I don’t enjoy things anymore. You know, if someone can come over and lay in bed with me and talk, like you have… that’s enjoyable, I enjoy that. But if someone’s like, ‘Let’s get up and go for a walk’ or ‘Let’s go get a coffee,’ I don’t enjoy that process.”
These remarks, which followed her public appearance at the Emmys, sparked concern among her fans. Addressing the reactions in a recent episode, Applegate clarified her statements, emphasizing the importance of expressing difficult emotions. “I feel like when we hold things in, we give them power,” she said. “I also think that there’s so much shame a lot of people feel when they’re going through mental health issues… and when people hold those in, because they’re so afraid to say how they truly feel, we give it immense power.”
Applegate and Sigler created MeSsy to provide an honest portrayal of living with MS. Since her diagnosis in August 2021, Applegate has faced numerous challenges, but she remains committed to transparency. “By making such a big deal about it you’re making other people think, ‘Oh, s—, I can’t talk about this.’ And that is not OK with me,” she stated. “It’s important to be able to say these things. And, no, I’m not sitting here on suicide watch, OK? I am not. Nor have I ever been.”
Sigler, diagnosed with MS in 2001, echoed Applegate’s sentiments, acknowledging her own dark moments but praising Applegate for normalizing the reality that “it’s okay to not be okay.”
Applegate’s honesty is a powerful reminder that living with chronic illness involves ups and downs. “I dare anyone to be diagnosed with MS or any kind of chronic illness that has taken who you were prior to that moment and go, ‘This is great.’ You know?” she added. “No, you have moments of feeling, ‘This is tiring and I don’t want to do this.’ But you do it, and by having friends like you and my beautiful friends that I have saying this s— out loud it releases the pressure in the balloon.”
In sharing her journey, Applegate not only brings awareness to MS but also offers solidarity to others facing similar struggles.
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