Actress Christina Applegate has publicly revealed a significant revision to her previous diagnosis on her podcast, “MeSsy.” After years of believing she had multiple sclerosis, she now says that doctors have determined she does not, in fact, have MS.

Applegate went public with her diagnosis in August 2021, after she said she had been noticing symptoms for some time. In the new podcast episode, she talked about how much this new development is on her mind. At the same time, she made it clear that her health issues persist.

Christina Applegate spoke about tears instead of relief

In the first of two new episodes, the 54-year-old described how her doctor had shared the new diagnosis with her. “[My doctor] came into my room and said, ‘Congratulations, you don’t have MS’” , said Christina Applegate.

However, her reaction to this wasn't exactly positive. She said she hadn't cried out of joy, but out of anger. Applegate also said that she needed time to come to terms with this development. That's why she temporarily stepped away from her podcast in March.

MRI scans and a spinal tap led to the diagnosis in 2021

In the podcast, she also looked back on the start of her medical examinations. She said she underwent many tests in 2021, though initially she was not tested specifically for multiple sclerosis. This was followed by MRIs of her brain and spine, as well as a spinal tap.

Based on that, she had been diagnosed with a form of MS at the time. Applegate said that doctors had shown her lesions in her brain back then—there were nearly 40 of them. For her, that was the explanation at the time for the symptoms she had been living with for quite some time.

Years of infusions and a re-evaluation of the findings

After her diagnosis, Applegate sought support from the MS community and began a course of treatment involving infusions that lasted for years. Later, her doctor wanted to discontinue the treatment and monitor her B cells. When no changes were observed, a reassessment of the previous diagnosis began.

Applegate explained that new technology in brain MRIs ultimately led to the conclusion that the earlier diagnosis was incorrect. She also spoke with co-host Jamie-Lynn Sigler on the podcast about how, despite the misdiagnosis, she was not healthy.

Christina Applegate continues to describe severe symptoms

The actress revealed that her symptoms had not gone away but had, in some cases, gotten worse. "I haven't gotten better, Jamie! If anything, I've gotten worse. So I'm back at square one where I don't know what's going on with me," According to Applegate, she is now back at square one and wants to work with doctors to determine what has been causing her symptoms since 2021.

Christina Applegate also said that it hurts her to get out of bed and stand up, and that she still sleeps a lot. Going forward, she wants to find more specialists and take an active role in shaping her treatment.