Christina Applegate reveals the biggest challenge MS has left her with

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By Nasima Khatun

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Christina Applegate has revealed her biggest challenge with battling multiple sclerosis.

Applegate, best known for her role as Jen Harding in Netflix's hit show Dead To Me, opened up about her diagnosis back in 2021, shocking the world when she told them she was battling the degenerative condition, MS.

MS is a condition that affects the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves and those with the disease can experience a wide range of symptoms including extreme fatigue, depression, mobility issues, and sexual dysfunction.

While some may be able to get into remission, where no new symptoms present themselves, others have to live with daily struggles that present themselves - struggles that Applegate has opened up about in a new interview alongside fellow MS warrior, Jamie-Lynn Sigler.

Christina Applegate speaks onstage during the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards and receives a standing ovation after her MS diagnosis. Credit: Monica Schipper/WireImage/Getty

Speaking of how she's been feeling about the prospect of doing a photoshoot for the occasion, the 52-year-old revealed that she's been "throwing up" just at the thought of it.

"The last five days I’ve been sobbing, going, 'I’m going to have to cancel.' I was throwing up last night, thinking about all of it," she explained to PEOPLE. "Being touched, makeup and hair, even talking about it, I get spasms. Weird positions, shoes, people, noise, climate I can’t control. It all goes through my mind, and I want to go back to bed and watch Naked and Afraid."

Elsewhere in the interview, she also got raw and candid about the biggest challenges MS has left her dealing with.

"Well, you pee...in your pants," she said. "Because you probably can’t get to the bathroom in time. So yeah, diapers."

Watch Christina Applegate's new interview below:

But even with the physical changes, the star's humor has been left untouched as she added that there are some benefits to having the debilitating condition: free parking!

"But there are some benefits to MS. First of all, parking is awesome," Applegate said, before Sigler added: "There could be a cure for MS, and I will not give up my handicap placard. We earned it!"

"And wheelchair seating - awesome. Pre-board - awesome. Wheelchair through the entire airport..." the Netflix star added to the list.

Christina Applegate opened up about losing the ability to control her bladder because of MS. Credit: John Salangsang/Variety/Penske Media/Getty

It comes just a few days after the pair appeared on an episode of Good Morning America in an interview with Robin Roberts, where Applegate delved into the early symptoms of the disease.

"My symptoms had started in the early part of 2021, and it was, like, literally just tingling on my toes," Applegate told the host."And by the time we started shooting [Dead To Me] in the summer of that same year, I was being brought to set in a wheelchair. Like, I couldn’t walk that far."

Christina Applegate, Liz Feldman, Linda Cardellini, and James Marsden all appeared in season one of Dead To Me. Credit: Presley Ann/Getty

She then explained how that turned into her legs fully giving way under her, which led her to believe she had the disease years before it was diagnosed by a professional.

"I really just kind of put it off as being tired, or I’m dehydrated, or it’s the weather. And then nothing would happen for, like, months, and I didn’t pay attention," she continued.

She also stated that even though she's in "excruciating pain", she's "used to it now."

"Right now, I’m isolating. That’s kind of how I’m dealing with it, is by, like, not going anywhere, because I don’t want to do it. It’s hard," she added.

Despite the setbacks, Applegate seems to be staying as positive as she can throughout. We wish her all the best!

Featured Image Credit: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty/Critics Choice Association