Sopranos Star Jamie-Lynn Sigler Shares Her Story of Living With Multiple Sclerosis

Many remember her as pretty party-girl Meadow Soprano from the hit HBO series, The Sopranos. Meadow was played by the beautiful, successful actress, Jamie-Lynn Sigler. However, Jamie was actually hiding a grave truth: she suffered from a devastating illness. At the age of 20, the young actress was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.

Photo credit: Jamie-Lynn Sigler at The Cosmopolitan Grand Opening and New Year's Eve Celebration by The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas's photostream

She faced this diagnosis all alone and was very scared. She hid the details from her friends as well as her co-stars for a long time.

She didn’t know a great deal about the condition and found it difficult to accept her diagnosis. For many years, Jamie was in a state of denial. She had her entire life in front of her with so many possibilities, and then everything changed in an instant. Her symptoms started off as a vague kind of numbness, which she described as being “heavy.” Initially, she thought it was stress taking a toll on her health. Even when her symptoms led her to the emergency room, Jamie still thought she was being overdramatic and her issues were nothing serious.

However, an MRI scan and spinal tap confirmed her symptoms to be multiple sclerosis, and Jamie was immediately started on treatments. She became angry that she had to take medicine injections and was not very cooperative. She found it difficult to accept the treatments since she was not suffering from any visible signs at first, but when the symptoms and disease finally began to progress, she had to face reality.

Jamie lived in denial for many years and was lucky to be free of symptoms for a long time. She did not let multiple sclerosis stop her from achieving her dreams; she continued her role in The Sopranosas well as performed in a few Broadway shows. At the age of 24, however, she went through a divorce, and this emotional stress caused her symptoms to flare.

Now, her condition is not the same as it once was. Things changed when she began to notice certain limitations in her abilities: one side of her body experienced weakness and it worsened to the point that she was not able to go for a jog. High heels became difficult to wear as well due to her condition. Gradually, though, Jamie built her own support team and started trusting her doctors.

She also had a son around this time, and her doctor remained by her side to discuss her symptoms and any possible side effects. This trusting relationship helped her to keep up her medications as well as understand her condition better. Eventually, Jamie gained courage, and it helped her share her story openly.

She created a campaign called “Reimagine Myself,” designed as an online resource and community for individuals living with multiple sclerosis. On this site, she shares her story through videos describing how she has handled her day-to-day life, her career, sex, parenting, and marriage. She also shares her own tips on how to take care of oneself, which includes healthy foods, meditation, taking medicine, and being loyal to one’s treatment.

She also writes blogs as a way to share her story. This campaign has shown people with multiple sclerosis that they can achieve more than they think through better management of their condition.