Well, it's true what you've heard: I do have a slight case of MS. I like to say it that way because it keeps things in perspective. I also have a life and believe me, that's a lot more important! This MS thing is just along for the ride.

My dream is to change the view so many people have about MS: that it equals a ruined life. I'm here to tell you that it doesn't and that life goes on and it's pretty damn good. Although I did notice my work opportunities thinning out a bit. Was it my acting ability or the MS rumors? In Hollywood it's amazing how quickly people jump on the negative bandwagon — "Split ends? She's OUT."

MS affects each of us so differently. That's why I think it's important for everyone with MS to share their stories. We can help each other — you know, a little comparison shopping.

The first thing I felt was a little beep, beep on my foot. It was 1983 and I was living in New York City, jogging every day in Central Park. I started tripping but didn't think anything of it. Then I felt a tingling in my arm that gradually increased. When it became a sharp, stabbing pain I decided to see a doctor.

He said, "You have a bulging disc and we need to operate on Thursday," which seemed a little crazy since he hadn't taken so much as an X-ray. So I asked for a second opinion and was told by the second doctor that I had a degenerative nerve disease and he needed to stretch my spine. He put me in the hospital for 10 days, gave me 18 tons of Valium, and sent me home with ropes, pulleys, and sandbags — some kind of medieval torture thing I was supposed to strap over the doorway and hook up to my neck for 15 minutes twice a day. Maybe MRI will seem archaic someday, but it beats the hell out of ropes and pulleys.

All I wanted to do was go back to work. So when I started to feel better I said, "Oh good, it's gone." I assumed it was like a cold sore: when it's gone, it's gone. For a long time I was physically fine. Ten years later I started tripping again.

In 1999, I saw a doctor at UCLA who put me in a hot tub — only in California, right? When I got out I was tired and weak. He said, "This looks like MS." I asked, "So what can we do about it?" He said, "Right now, nothing." I said, "OK, so it's kinda like expecting an earthquake." What was the point of worrying about it if there was nothing I could do? So I started my first MS therapy — denial, one of the earliest treatments for MS, and in my opinion, one of the best.

Later when people asked why I was limping, I'd say "skiing accident," "pinched nerve" — anything but "MS." Because I was really scared of what it might do to my life, my career. Here's another big reason: I didn't want to be a victim. If you are an athlete or a dancer, as I was, you are taught not to complain. If you fall down you get right back up again! It's a little something I got from my mom.

My mother was a dancer and my biggest role model. My dad passed away when I was 11. Here she was with no husband, no income, and three kids to take care of. We moved to a small house and she worked in a knit shop and took in sewing, eventually getting a studio job in wardrobe. When my brother needed a room to study in she bought a used trailer. On the back was a sign that read "Kwitcher Bitchin." I said "Mom, we should take that off" and she said, "No, we're leaving that on so you always remember to kwitcher bitchin." She put three kids through school: a doctor, a boat builder, and me. Whenever I feel like having my own personal pity party, I think of the sign on the back of that trailer.

I finally got serious and tried a real medicine for a change. It didn't work as well as I had hoped, and the side effects were a problem for me, but you do what you have to do. I also realized that MS wasn't stopping me from getting work. I mean, what's the difference between being handicapped and being a woman over 50 in Hollywood? I'm over 50 and I have relapsing MS. For the MS, I now take a medicine called Rebif® (interferon beta-1a). For the over 50, I'm working on a youth serum like everyone else.

One thing that keeps me going is my nine-year-old daughter, Molly. She is hell on wheels. I tried to make her take ballet but she wants the chess club and baseball. Kids today. People ask me how Molly deals with my MS. She really doesn't have any preconceived notions about it. As far as she's concerned, you can have a cold, or you can have MS. And I think that's good.

I'm also lucky enough to have an ex-husband, "ex-" being the key word there. Unfortunately, MS doesn't stop you from having bad relationships. I can still pick the handsome dysfunctional Irish guy out of a roomful of saints. But he does take her camping, skiing — the things I can't do. Whereas I'm finally learning state capitals and working on 4th grade math. I've learned a few other things that have helped me along the way, and I hope they help you:

Be positive. The right attitude really helps me cope, and a sense of humor is critical. My neurologist recently told me that if we can just hang in for two or three more years, there is going to be a lot of great help for us. Of course my ex-husband made the same promise, but I believe my neurologist.

Find out about MS medicines. It sounds weird to say but this is a good time to get MS because of the choices available to treat it. As I mentioned, I am taking Rebif, which seems to be working for me. I experience minimal side effects, mostly consisting of a little redness where I inject.

Stay active. Keeping fit is a challenge for everybody as they get older. For people with MS, I think it's got to be slow and strong. So for me, Pilates is great.

Make adjustments. In the old days I would do 50 things in a day and be fine. Of course when I say 50, I actually mean eight. Today I accept that I can do maybe three things in a day, but I do them better because I've adjusted to my abilities.MORE