Selma Blair and MS

[agate]

Selma Blair is only a name to me--I haven't seen her in anything--but I learned via a Facebook friend that she's being quite open about her MS:

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[Sunshine]

She was supporting actress in Legally Blonde, for one thing. SHe is an excellent actress.

[agate]

The speech problems people with MS can have aren't often shown. I think it's excellent that we're seeing her in conversation while having speech problems.

We can see what kinds of problems, and we can also see how they come and go from moment to moment for her.

[Virginia]

I did not know her either, but I am very glad to hear her speaking out.

[agate]

She says that her doctor told her that within a year she could have 90% of her abilities back. I'm glad her doctor made that optimistic statement.

I've heard of doctors describing only a bleak future for people diagnosed with MS. The neuro who diagnosed me merely said with a little sigh, "Well, I've never heard of a case of MS getting better." But in general he was quite supportive.

[Lazarus]

Selma Blair is only a name to me--I haven't seen her in anything--but I learned via a Facebook friend that she's being quite open about her MS:

Only registered and activated users can see links., Click Here To Register...

Thanks. Good video. I have a number of speech Difficulties so I was interested. My speech problems come and go but I am convinced it was pure luck that when I was leaving my job to go on disability the speech problems mad that whole process easier!

Maybe the officials were so sympathetic because you could really hear and see the disability.

[agate]

My speech problems come and go too, and they're troublesome and embarrassing. It's sad to see an actress, young and personable, someone whose occupation depends on being able to speak, struggling just to get the words out.

[Earth Mother 2 Angels]

((((((Hugs to All)))))) ~

Here is a list of Selma's work:

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She is still working according to this list.

Selma looked stunning on the red carpet for/after the Oscars.

One thing that I noticed in the video with your link, agate, was that Selma was wearing high heels. I wondered how she managed to walk in them and whether it was safe for her. I wore high heels in my youth, when I worked outside our home, and I regret it so much now. My back is paying for it.

Selma's description of sharing her MS diagnosis with her son was especially poignant. That must be a gigantic thing for a child to comprehend, but where there is love, there is always hope.

Teri Garr also has MS, and has been treated with steroids for some time from what I've read.

Recently, Linda Ronstadt has been interviewed on talk shows, discussing her Parkinson's diagnosis. I remember when she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame a few years ago, but she wasn't well enough to attend to receive her award. It's so good to see her again.

I applaud Selma for speaking up and bringing attention to MS. We all need champions for our causes.

Love & Light,



Rose

[Sunshine]

This is what Spasmodic Dysphonia is:
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My neuro thinks my gravely sounding voice is due to neurological causes. I really miss my voice.

[agate]

Rose, those high heels must be dreadfully difficult for her even with the cane. Gave up on them 40+ years ago after many years of hating wearing them but feeling I had to because work situations pretty much required them.

My guess is that Selma Blair probably had to wear the heels because of the event she was appearing in--the Vanity Fair after-Oscars party. Too bad that the sponsors of the party couldn't have made an exception for her and let her wear sensible, comfortable shoes!

[Earth Mother 2 Angels]

((((((Hugs to All)))))) ~

I was referring to the high heels Selma was wearing during the interview. I don't know what kind of shoes she had on with her Oscars gown. But the video of the interview shows her walking with Robin, and Selma is wearing black heels.

I also wore heels for work ~ the "dress for success" look we were snookered into! I don't know how women can stand wearing stilettos now. They will regret it when they are seniors. Guarantee it! Give me sneakers!

Love & Light,



Rose

[agate]

Walking in those ridiculous shoes looks pretty difficult for her, doesn't it? She's probably under pressure from her managers to maintain her stylish appearance. I hope she can woman up and tell some of them to get lost so she can wear clothes that enable her to do a few things other than look like a fashion model. But I guess it's all about a person's "image" in that line of work, or that's what I've heard. You don't see much of actors after they've started to age visibly or have physical problems though every now and then nowadays there are glimpses.

Michael J. Fox appearing in quite a large part in "The Good Wife" may have helped. In spite of showing obvious signs of Parkinson's, he played a lawyer.

[Virginia]

I wore high heels all my life until I couldn't due to MS. I never wore the ridiculously high ones like they wear now. Mine were more like 3" heels most of the time. I loved wearing them. I felt so dressed up and all during those years I enjoyed the feeling of being dressed up. However, I still do not see how she could be in the ones she had on and be walking with a cane or on someone's arm. However, I wish her lots of luck. She is young and I do hope her Neuro is right in that she will get 90 percent of her abilities back. Maybe with a good DMD and given her young age she might. At least for some years.

[Earth Mother 2 Angels]

((((((Hugs to All)))))) ~

agate ~

I thought the terrain was inappropriate for high heels, regardless of ability. My first thought, as it always applies to my old self now, was: "Why take the risk of falling?" There are many fashionable styles of flats (see: Michelle Obama) and comfortable shoes.

Your comment about managers and agents trying to influence her image reminds me of the movie "A Star Is Born." In every version, the female lead is influenced by her manager to do something other than what she wants to do.

Selma is active in the industry right now. Here's her IMDB page:

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I'm glad that she is getting work.

Virginia ~

I felt the same way as you did wearing high heels.

Upon reflection, I think that's what we were "trained" to believe about ourselves through fashion magazines, movies, television, etc. I think of TV shows like "Father Knows Best," "The Donna Reed Show," "I Love Lucy," etc. All of the housewives wore dresses and heels around their homes as they cleaned and cooked.

Meanwhile, men had 3 suits, 5 ties, 7 shirts, and 2 pairs of shoes. Comfortable shoes.

I used to lift my boys into/out of their chairs, when I picked them up after school, wearing high heels. I even lifted a wheelchair into the trunk of my Toyota in high heels. They just became an extension of me, like stilts. I think I still have a couple of pairs of heels in our bedroom closet! I'm not waiting for them to come back into style, because I only wear walking shoes now.

Ah, youth ...

Love & Light,



Rose

[agate]

I guess I was lucky enough to live in an area where all of the moms dressed very casually. You never knew when you might have to scramble up on a slide or jungle gym to retrieve a child, and you dressed for mobility and comfort. Sneakers were what I wore as a mom but when I had to work at a paying job, I wore heels. Because getting to/from the job usually involved quite a bit of walking, I carried the heels in a shoe bag and wore comfortable shoes for getting there and back. Sometimes I kept the shoe bag with the shoes in it at work so I wouldn't have to carry them back and forth.

You'd never see a man doing something like that--wearing an uncomfortable shoe at work just because it was stylish and "expected."

It was expected then--of women. It was expected for office jobs and in teaching. The reason probably given in teaching was so that we (short) women would be able to see our entire class from the front of the room, and they could see us better if we were elevated a bit.

Fair enough but I'm not so sure if there was any good reason for expecting heels to be worn for office jobs.

We're brainwashed into thinking we're just not good enough as we are, and this seems to have been true in many cultures over time. Has anyone besides me ever seen and been horrified by the photos of how women's feet were sadly deformed because of the Oriental custom of binding girl babies' feet so that they'd turn out dainty and small?