Selma Blair Opens Up About Health Journey Chad Salvador – Getty ImagesFrom her captivating performance in Cruel Intentions to her iconic role in Legally Blonde, Selma Blair cemented herself into the zeitgeist of the early aughts. But behind the scenes, the star’s health took as many twists and turns as the plots of the films in which she acted.“I had been feeling poorly, really, almost as far as I can remember. Even in nursery school…I would run into things. My vision would come and go. I wasn’t really believed,” the star tells Prevention. When she started going to school and eventually working, “the fatigue was always pretty unbearable.” Ultimately, she was diagnosed with depression.It wasn’t until giving birth to her son in 2011 that her symptoms became too much to ignore or explain away. “Something is wrong,” she remembers thinking. “I couldn’t move any of my joints.” Doctors assured her that her symptoms fell within the scope of postpartum experience, but she knew it was more. “I was having trouble with my legs. All of these things that I had been dealing with on a smaller level were really amplified when I gave birth.” So she continued to pay attention to her health, knowing something else was at play. “It just kept getting worse.”Once her handwriting changed, she knew she had to see a neurologist. “I stopped being able to write. That was the one thing I realized I had a neurological issue. My writing got smaller and smaller.” What Blair describes is known as micrographia, a condition in which your handwriting gets progressively smaller, which is often associated with Parkinson’s Disease. At her neurologist appointment, she fell asleep, spurring her doctor to recommend an MRI as soon as possible. The results landed her a Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis. “I found out that night that I had it for 25 years,” she says.Christopher Polk – Getty ImagesDespite no cure for the disease, Blair finally had an answer to a lifetime of medical questions. “I was actually relieved when I was diagnosed because it was a whole different perspective,” she says. “It was really revealing. MS is so different for everyone. It is hard to get a diagnosis, especially for women, I have found.” Since putting a name to her decades-long onslaught of symptoms, Blair has dedicated her platform to raising awareness, and hopefully getting others to advocate for themselves and their health.“I had had so many tests and spent so much time in hospitals. So it was bittersweet. I could move forward, but then it turned out, at the time, none of the disease modifiers that worked for me were on the market yet,” she explains. Now, she’s partnering with Express4MS.com to help bridge the knowledge gap. “I couldn’t find information. There wasn’t a lot about MS out there,” she says of the time of her diagnosis. “There was definitely a stigma about illness.”She craved a place to speak with others about the specifics of the disease, a chronic illness community of sorts. Connecting with others about MS symptoms helped her cope with the diagnosis. “Whether it’s on Instagram or the street, I find any interaction that’s positive [helpful].”Now, she’s in remission, but that doesn’t mean she’s cured. “I feel sometimes like I’m starting again.” After taking a “step away from Hollywood,” she says she’s found her groove—which includes her service dog (pictured above). “It’s taken years, but now I have a great team with health and a great thing with work.” You Might Also LikeCan Apple Cider Vinegar Lead to Weight Loss?Bobbi Brown Shares Her Top Face-Transforming Makeup Tips for Women Over 50
