Just days after tying the knot, Jamie-Lynn Sigler has come forward to reveal her truth. The 34-year-old former "The Sopranos" star, who just married pro baseball player Cutter Dykstra, has finally found the courage to open up about her 15-year battle with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to People.
"I wasn't ready until now," she told the magazine. "You'd think after all these years, somebody would be settled with something like this, but it's still hard to accept...I feel that it's important for me to share that I have MS now because I think that I'm at a point in my life with my son, with my marriage-it's a new me, and I want to live my truth. I don't want to hold a secret where it feels like I have something to be ashamed of or I have something to hide."
(Read about Sigler and Dykstra's wedding HERE.)
MS is a disease that affects the central nervous system and disrupts information within the brain. Often times, it leads to people being wheelchair-bound, but the MS Society notes that two-thirds of people diagnosed are able to walk, according to Us Weekly. The disease, which currently has no cure, can also affect vision, mobility, balance and speech.
At first, Sigler, who is the proud mom of 2-year-old Beau, was symptom-free, but over time, it started to take its toll. "I can't walk for a long period of time without resting. I cannot run," she continued to explain. "No superhero roles for me. Stairs? I can do them but they're not the easiest. When I walk, I have to think about every single step, which is annoying and frustrating."
When she was first diagnosed at the age of 20, she was in "denial." "It was a shock," she admitted. "It was surprising. I had been diagnosed with Lyme disease a year before, so to get the diagnosis was confusing and also strange because I didn't feel sick. I didn't feel like anything was really wrong. At the time my ideas of MS were limited...I thought it meant wheelchair. I thought it meant your life was over."
Since her time on "The Sopranos" has ended, she has had to cover up the illness, which meant asking for five to 10-minute breaks on set so they wouldn't become suspicious. She's also "run the gamut" with MS drugs and has gotten injections and infusions and now even takes the twice-daily pill Tecfidera, which has helped to keep the symptoms stable for the past six years.
"Things are manageable now," she said. "It takes a fighting attitude to deal with all this. This disease can absolutely take over your life if you let it."
However, she credits Dykstra and Beau for giving her the courage and support she needs to help her get through this and live openly and honestly.
"It's a part of me, but it's not who I am," she explained, adding that she felt it was important to share this truth for her son. "I didn't want him to get to an age where he felt he had to keep this secret for me as well. I wanted to be an example to him of strength and courage."
Sigler posted a touching message on Instagram explaining her diagnosis a little bit more and thanking People Magazine for sharing her story.
"Hi. My name is Jamie, and I have Multiple Sclerosis," she wrote. "This has been a part of me, that for many reasons, I was terrified to share for the last 15 years since I was diagnosed...but I've finally found the strength to come forward and be ok with who I really am and trust that life will still have things to offer even though I have this disease...I hope to be an example to anyone struggling out there to push through and past your circumstances."
Read her full message below!
