The Dead to Me star was first diagnosed with multiple sclerosis back in 2021
Christina Applegate has hit out at one question she gets asked about her MS as she reveals she doesn’t ‘leave the house anymore’.
The 53-year-old Dead to Me star was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) in the summer of 2021 and has since been really open about her health issues in order to help shine a light on the condition.
Applegate recently on the latest episode of Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend alongside her own podcast co-host Jamie-Lynn Sigler to share more details about what it’s like living with the autoimmune disease and she candidly discussed a major misconception some people have of it.
“I don’t really leave the house anymore,” she said. “I mean, if people saw what my life was like on the daily, they wouldn’t be able to do it because I can sometimes not do it. It’s really, really hard.”
She also addressed a stigma surrounding MS, continuing: “But I think that the first thing that I hear from people, is, ‘How did you get it?’
“Meaning I must have done something wrong in my life to have this disease. I did it to myself.
“I had breast cancer as well. So, ‘Oh, you must have done something.'”
Applegate carried on: “That stigma is – I’m used to it now – but for a while it was so hard to swallow because, why the F would you think that I would do something to have this?”
“Because this is the worst thing I’ve ever had in my life. It’s the worst thing I’ve ever gone through.”
Christina Applegate was first diagnosed with MS back in 2021 (Netflix)
And it wasn’t just the offensive misconception Applegate has had to contend with as she also received a load of completely unsolicited ‘medical’ advice on her condition.
“You’d be surprised at the cures that I get told about,” the Anchorman actress said.
“Like, ‘I have this holy water and I know it will cure your MS.’
“I’m like, ‘Really? That’s amazing because there’s millions of us across the globe who still have it.'”
Sigler, who co-hosts the MeSsy podcast about her and Applegate’s experiences with MS, outlined just how difficult it was to reach a place of acceptance with the condition and also highlighted the importance of more disability representation in Hollywood.
“We don’t see enough people that have disabilities that are not defined by their disability within a story a lot of the time,” she told O’Brien.
“So I think that we do have a position and a power now to really try and change the perception around that celebrities can get sick, but that you can also keep doing what you love and keep living your life.”
