March is Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month and Selma Blair, who was diagnosed with MS in 2018, had a hopeful message for others struggling with the disease.
The actress, 49, is encouraging others who have been diagnosed with the autoimmune disease to stay strong.
Blair shared an intimate video to Instagram on Tuesday, chronicling the various stages of her personal battle with MS over the past few years. She captioned the post,
"March is #MSAwareness month. May we all find the strength to persevere."
From laying in hospital beds, to cuddling up with her dog, spending time with her 10-year-old son Arthur, posing for photo shoots with her cane and practicing yoga, Selma's clip welcomed fans to take an inside look at the ups and downs of her journey so far.
Blair was officially diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2018, despite expressing symptoms for many years prior. In 2019, the "Legally Blonde" actress spoke to Robin Roberts on ABC to talk about what it felt like to receive a diagnosis after years of not being "taken seriously by doctors."
"I had tears. They weren't tears of panic. They were tears of knowing I now had to give in to a body that had lost control. And there was some relief in that. Because ever since my son was born, I was in an MS flare-up and didn't know. And I was giving it everything to seem normal," said Blair.
In 2019, the actress decided to receive a stem cell transplant in hopes of easing her symptoms. According to Vanity Fair, Blair had to stop taking her MS medication and undergo chemotherapy before isolating at a hospital.
Fortunately, the grueling treatment seemed to pay off as Blair revealed, at a Television Critics Association panel last August, that she was "in remission."
Blair shared that it took about a year after the stem cell transplant for her body to heal from the lesions and inflammation.
While there are no new lesions forming, Blair explained that she still faces challenges.
"There's still maintenance, treatment and glitches, and wonderful things," she said. "Cognitively, I'm very changed and that's been the harder part."
In March of last year, Selma, who has been open about her journey on social media, made a documentary called "Introducing, Selma Blair."
Blair said that by sharing her story, she hoped to help others going through the same thing.
"You keep opening windows or closing doors and finding tools. I hope my little life gives someone who needs it some hope or a laugh or more awareness of ourselves. I hope the film shows that MS varies. That people's strengths and weaknesses vary. All the emotions of life make healing variable too. For all of us."
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