- Christina Applegate has revealed she was misdiagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) in 2021, with new medical technology identifying the error five years later — leaving her “back at square one.”
- Selma Blair, who has lived with a confirmed MS diagnosis since 2018, shared that she personally urged Applegate to get an MRI before the misdiagnosis, recognizing her symptoms as potentially neurological.
- Applegate confirmed she still experiences every symptom associated with MS and that her doctors are now investigating what has actually been causing her deteriorating condition since 2021.
Christina Applegate Reveals Shocking MS Misdiagnosis Five Years After Going Public
Christina Applegate, best known for her roles in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy and Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead, publicly announced in 2021 that she had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, the incurable neurological condition that affects the brain and spinal cord and can cause vision problems, impaired movement, and loss of balance. Now, the 54-year-old actress has disclosed a devastating twist: she was never correctly diagnosed in the first place. Speaking on her MeSsy podcast alongside co-host Jamie-Lynn Sigler — who was herself diagnosed with MS in 2001 — Applegate revealed that recently available medical technology prompted a reevaluation of her case, resulting in doctors determining that her original 2021 diagnosis was wrong.
The revelation has left Applegate deeply unsettled rather than relieved. “This may come as great news, but, to me, it comes as I’m back at square one,” she said, recounting the moment her doctor delivered the unexpected update. Her doctor, she explained, “came into my room and she said, ‘Congratulations! You don’t have MS’.” Far from celebrating, Applegate was “not happy at all.” She elaborated: “You don’t get misdiagnosed, and then all of a sudden I’m better. I haven’t gotten better. I’ve gotten worse, in some ways. I’m back at square one. I don’t know what’s going on with me. That’s going to be an online investigation my doctors are going to get into to find out what’s been happening since 2021.”
Selma Blair Recalls Urging Applegate to Seek Neurological Evaluation
Adding further personal depth to the story, Selma Blair — who starred alongside Applegate in the 2002 romantic comedy The Sweetest Thing and received her own confirmed MS diagnosis in 2018 — appeared on The Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg Show on Tuesday and revealed that she had actually encouraged Applegate to pursue an MRI before the 2021 diagnosis was made. Blair described recognizing Applegate’s symptoms as potentially neurological long before any formal evaluation took place. “She was just in so much discomfort and her feet had so much neuropathy and she was saying it was diverticulitis, something I also was diagnosed with younger as just an attempt to figure out what all these weird things were,” Blair recalled.
Presley Gerber’s Hollywood Hills Home Hits the Market for $3.6 Million After His Death
Blair connected Applegate’s foot pain to her own experience with MS symptoms. “And when she said she had the foot pain, I remember how bad my feet hurt after child birth for like four years. Like I just couldn’t even walk on them. It was so bad. And I said, ‘I don’t mean to put my stuff on you, but you should get an MRI. Like, this sounds neurological. You could have MS’.” Blair’s account highlights how the two actresses had formed a genuine bond through what they believed was a shared diagnosis — a connection now complicated by the revelation that Applegate’s condition remains officially unidentified.
Applegate Insists Her Suffering Is Real Despite the Diagnostic Reversal
Applegate was emphatic that the misdiagnosis does not mean she has been well or that her suffering was imagined. “Why did this happen? I have every symptom of someone with MS. Every single one. We both know that there are many things that mirror MS. Many different things,” she said on the MeSsy podcast. Her co-host Jamie-Lynn Sigler, who played Meadow Soprano on The Sopranos and has lived with a confirmed MS diagnosis for over two decades, offered perspective on the psychological dimension of diagnosis, noting that “the labeling of things and how attached we become to them for so many reasons” affects a patient’s sense of direction in managing illness, “because it feels like there’s a roadmap, at least, that you have for this.”
Listener and viewer response to Applegate’s disclosure was overwhelmingly supportive. In the podcast comments, one person wrote: “You let no one down. What you did for advocacy was extremely important. We love you and support you.” Another commenter added: “I’m certain that Christina’s misdiagnosis will help others. I’m sad that she’s at square one, but she isn’t at fault at all!” A third offered a particularly moving reflection: “My mother had lived with a misdiagnosis of MS for years. Symptoms she experienced eventually lessened to where they were manageable and she was able to engage in life as she had before her diagnosis… but she never found out what was causing those symptoms. Christina, you’ve given a voice and, really, a home for people suffering from MS. Resulting in people maybe feeling heard and less alone. That’s worth so much to so many.”
Why This Matters
Multiple sclerosis is notoriously difficult to diagnose with certainty. According to the NHS, the condition affects the brain and spinal cord and produces a wide spectrum of symptoms — many of which overlap significantly with other neurological and autoimmune conditions. In the United States alone, nearly one million people are currently living with a confirmed MS diagnosis, making the reliability of diagnostic tools a critical public health concern. Applegate’s case underscores that even high-profile patients with access to quality medical care can receive incorrect diagnoses, and that advances in medical imaging and technology are actively reshaping what doctors know about previously assessed cases. Her willingness to speak openly about the experience — including the emotional distress of losing a diagnostic framework she had spent years adapting to — is expected to prompt broader conversations about MS misdiagnosis, patient advocacy, and the psychological impact of chronic illness labels.
Frequently Asked Questions
What condition does Christina Applegate actually have if not MS?
As of her most recent public statements, Christina Applegate’s doctors have not yet identified what is causing her symptoms. She confirmed that her medical team is actively investigating the underlying cause of the deterioration she has experienced since 2021, and that she remains “at square one” in terms of a confirmed diagnosis.
Does Selma Blair still have MS?
Yes. Selma Blair received a confirmed multiple sclerosis diagnosis in 2018 and has not indicated any change to that diagnosis. Her MS diagnosis is separate from Applegate’s situation and remains medically confirmed.
How was Christina Applegate’s MS misdiagnosis discovered?
According to Applegate, “new technology that had come out” enabled doctors to reevaluate her case, at which point they determined she had been misdiagnosed five years earlier in 2021. She has not specified the exact type of technology or test involved in the reassessment.
