Christina Applegate Seen in New Photos After Hospital Stay Amid MS Battle

Christina Applegate has been seen for the first time since a months-long hospital stay, sharing a new Instagram video on Monday that revealed a refreshed look. The actress, 54, debuted a new blonde hairstyle, colored and styled straight by hairstylist David Stanwell.

In the short video, Applegate wore a black unzipped hoodie over a tank top and jeans, accessorized with two gold necklaces. She was seen smiling and referenced a mark on her cheek in the caption, writing, 'Fresh hair color, new weird spot on my cheek haha. Thank you @davestanwell for brightening up my cloudy day. Love you and love to you all out there.'

The public appearance comes over a month after she was discharged from the hospital amid her ongoing battle with multiple sclerosis (MS). Applegate had reportedly returned home in August after being hospitalized in Los Angeles since late March, according to TMZ. Sources told the publication that the actress, diagnosed with MS in 2021, was doing well since transitioning back home.

The specific reasons for her extended hospitalization have not been disclosed, and it remains unclear if it was directly related to her MS or other health issues.

Applegate first reassured her followers in April after her March hospitalization, stating on Instagram that she was getting 'stronger and better every day.' At the time, she shared a picture of her memoir, 'You With The Sad Eyes,' and indicated she was taking time to focus on her health. She expressed gratitude for the outpouring of support, noting, 'Health issues are a constant for me, but I'm a strong chick and I'm getting stronger and better every day.'

Her representative previously told the Daily Mail, 'She's had a long history of complicated medical conditions that she has been refreshingly open about, as evidenced in her memoir and on her podcast.'

Earlier this year, Applegate shared that her MS battle has largely confined her to bed. In an interview with People, she explained that the pain often kept her from leaving her bedroom, though she would make exceptions to take her teenage daughter Sadie to school. 'I want to take her; it's my favorite thing to do,' she said. 'I tell myself, "Just get her there safely and get home so you can get back into bed." And that's what I do.' Applegate has been candid about her experience, stating, 'My life isn't wrapped up with a bow. People's lives, sorry for lack of a better term, f***ing suck sometimes. So I'm being as honest and raw as I possibly can.'

Multiple sclerosis is a condition where the immune system attacks the protective sheath covering nerve fibers, known as myelin, according to the Mayo Clinic. Symptoms can include numbness, weakness, difficulty walking, and vision changes.

Applegate discussed the effects of MS in an excerpt of her memoir published in The Guardian in March. She described exhaustion as one of the most challenging side-effects, stating, 'It feels as though I've been on a three‑day sleepless bender – and that's how I feel after a good night's sleep. Hence all the time I spend on and in bed, snuggled up against my heating pad.' She added that her diagnosis has led her to abandon concerns about how she comes across, asserting, 'I don't have patience for bulls*** any more, for things that are meaningless or merely "extra."

Applegate publicly announced her MS diagnosis in August 2021. In 2022, she shared a photo of her canes, indicating that needing assistance with walking had become her 'new normal.'

During an episode of her podcast 'MeSsy' last year, Applegate revealed that she had been hospitalized upwards of 30 times since her diagnosis three years prior. 'They've done every test known to man on me, put so much radiation into my body from CT scans to everything else,' she told co-host Jamie-Lynn Sigler, who also has MS. Applegate decided to write her memoir, released on March 3, when she was 'forced to slow down.'