Christina Applegate fought back tears as she told how being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis has left her feeling “really pissed off” and “angry”, admitting that living with a debilitating disease can be “really lonely”.
During an exclusive interview with Robin Roberts on Good Morning America, the 52-year-old actress became emotional as she talked about “living in hell” with the disease that affects the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves.
Christina explained how her symptoms started in “early 2021” when she was filming the final season of hit Netflix show Dead To Me, telling Robin: “It was like I literally got tingles in my toes and by the time we started filming. In the summer of that same year I was put in a wheelchair, I couldn’t walk that far.’
As her eyes filled with tears, Christina’s voice broke as she continued, “So I had to tell everyone because I needed help, I needed someone to help me get up, and I needed someone to help me get there and They were great, but I’ve probably had it for many, many years.’
Christina Applegate fought back tears as she opened up about how she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis during an exclusive interview on Good Morning America
The 52-year-old was joined by fellow actress Jamie-Lynn Sigler, who was diagnosed with MS at the age of 20
Christina, pictured here in January 2023, often walks with a cane as the debilitating disease affects the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves
When Robin, 63, asked the mother-of-one how long she thinks she had had MS before she was diagnosed, the Married… with Children star replied: ‘Probably six or seven years, I think. I noticed, especially in the first season, when we were shooting and I was shaking, like my leg was buckling.
“I kind of just put it off as being tired or ‘I’m dehydrated’ or ‘it’s the weather’ and then for months nothing happened and I didn’t pay attention, but when it hit so hard I had to pay attention.”
Standing alongside fellow actress Jamie Lynn Sigler, who was diagnosed with MS 22 years ago, Christina admitted that she is still in the grieving process as she adjusts to the way her life is now.
“It sucks, it’s not my favorite disease,” she said before joking about her 2008 breast cancer diagnosis: “I’ve had a few. It’s not my favorite! They call it the invisible disease. It can be very lonely because it’s hard to explain to people… I’m in excruciating pain, but I’m just used to it now.’
Referring to 42-year-old Jamie-Lynn, Christina then said: ‘She keeps me going because I’m the one who’s like this… I’m spinning this thing all day long and I’m angry, I’m really, really angry.
“You know, I was a dancer, a runner and all these things that I love, and a mother. And she’s like, ‘Okay, I’ve got you and you’re going to be okay,’ and if it’s not for her, I really don’t know.”
Jamie-Lynn was quick to praise Christina for helping her deal with her own emotions, saying: “I’ve been celebrated for being the strong and the positive one for so long that it felt like I wasn’t when I would admit that some days were difficult.
“But she really pushed me to be able to say that, because I thought I was letting people down if I talked about how hard it was sometimes,” she added, before sharing her thoughts on a cure .
The blonde star said living with MS can be ‘very lonely’ and admitted it made her ‘angry’
Jamie-Lynn gave Christina a big hug as she became upset explaining she ‘needed help’ getting around
Christina revealed she has probably had MS for six or seven years as her leg allegedly ‘gave way’ while filming season one of Dead To Me with Linda Cardellini (left)
Christina admitted she “freaked out so much” when she made a surprise appearance at the Emmy Awards in January
“There’s a little bit of hope that maybe one day we won’t have to live with this, it’s hard to let that go,” she admitted, while Christina joked, “Yes, I wait, that’s why I sleep.” I want someone to wake me up when it’s over. Wake me up when we can say, “I’m fine, thank you!”
But despite her daily struggles, the Bad Moms star has launched a new podcast called MeSsy with Jamie-Lynn and said she feels like she can finally be herself and wants listeners to feel seen and heard too.
“I’ve been playing the character Christina, who I wanted everyone to think I was, for 40 years because it’s easier, but this is kind of my coming out party.
“This is the person I’ve been all along, because for so long I kind of put on an act for everyone, because I thought it was easier to be light, ‘be funny, be light, don’t make people uncomfortable to feel. “, and I don’t care anymore, so that’s what this is.”
Fans were thrilled when Christina made a surprise appearance at the Emmy Awards in January, where she walked on stage with a cane, but she admitted to Robin that she “freaked out so much” during the star-studded ceremony.
“I actually blacked out,” she said. ‘People were like, “Oh, you were so funny,” and I was like, “I don’t even know what I said.” I don’t know what I did, I panicked so much I didn’t even know what happened anymore.’
When asked if she felt the love after her performance at the 75th Emmy Awards, she replied, “I mean, yeah, yeah. I’m kind of living in hell… I’m not outside much, so this is a little bit hard just for my system, but yeah, of course the support is great and I’m very grateful.”
Christina received a standing ovation that night and decided to keep the sweet moment light as she told the celebrity crowd: “You’re completely ashamed of your disability by standing up, it’s fine!”
Christina imagined the season one premiere of Dead To Me in May 2019, a few years before her MS diagnosis
Christina revealed that it was her friend and former co-star Selma Blair who urged her to get tested for MS
Addressing that moment again with Robin, she said, “I really felt loved and it was a beautiful thing,” before joking again and adding, “I’m just going to say this, that the audience stood up for everyone!”
Christina also praised her friend and The Sweetest Thing co-star Selma Blair for encouraging her to get tested for MS.
The Emmy Award winner recalled, “She says, ‘You need to be checked for MS,’ and I said, ‘No, really? There’s a good chance the two of us are from the same movie? Come on, that’s not happening!’ “(But) she knew. If it hadn’t been for her, it could have been a lot worse.”
Selma, 51, was diagnosed with MS in August 2018 and claimed in a 2023 interview that her symptoms started manifesting when she was a child.
