RealTalk MS

More than half of all the people living with MS will develop problems with cognition. And while experiencing cognitive dysfunction can be challenging and frustrating, these kinds of changes can also be frightening. Joining me to talk about things you can do to better manage cognitive changes and preserve healthy cognition is neuroscientist and neuropsychologist, Dr. Victoria Leavitt. We're also ta...

About 80% of the people with relapsing-remitting MS will eventually be diagnosed with secondary progressive MS. At that point, their remissions stop and their MS symptoms continue to worsen. And about 15% of the people diagnosed with MS are diagnosed from the beginning with primary progressive MS. So identifying ways to optimally treat progressive MS is a priority.    Joining me with updates on pr...

Living through a lockdown can be challenging, and it's resilience that helps us get through life's challenges and recover from setbacks. And while resilience may have become a new topic of conversation for the world at large, when you're living with the uncertainty of MS, you come to realize that resilience is one of the most important tools in your self-care toolbox.     Joining me to talk about...

We're less than one week away from the National MS Society's Public Policy Conference. This year, the Public Policy Conference is virtual, which means that you have an opportunity to attend and learn how you can advocate for change on important policy issues affecting the MS community.       Joining me to talk about the Public Policy Conference and the issues that MS Activists will be discussing w...

It's MS Awareness Week and we're talking with two remarkable women, Sarah Quezada and Tracey Cooper-Harris, who are living their lives out loud, refusing to let MS define them.  We're also inviting you to participate in the first-ever RealTalk MS Listener Survey ( and be entered into a drawing for a $100 Amazon Gift Card! ). We'll share research announced at the recent ACTRIMS Forum that explores...

When it comes to accessing care and even the disease course itself, MS is not an equal-opportunity disease. We're talking with Dr. Mitzi Joi Williams about the disparities that affect members of minority populations who are living with MS.     Dr. Williams is a Board-Certified Neurologist and Multiple Sclerosis Specialist who is passionate about educating and empowering people affected by MS to un...

Welcome to a bonus ACTRIMS Forum 2021 episode of RealTalk MS.  ACTRIMS is an acronym that stands for the Americas Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis and this year, the ACTRIMS Forum is a virtual meeting, bringing together over 1700 MS research scientists and clinicians to share the latest MS research news and insights.     We'll take you inside the proceedings at ACTRIMS an...

If you spend more than a minute on social media it can seem like there's more misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccines than there is legitimate, fact-based information.  And I've heard it said that if you repeat a lie enough, it becomes the truth. So we're doing some major COVID-19 vaccine myth-busting with Dr. Scott Newsome.     Dr. Newsome is an Associate Professor of Neurology and Director of...

A fulfilling sexual relationship with your partner can have a positive impact on your physical and mental health in a variety of ways. But studies suggest that about 80% of the people living with MS are affected by some kind of sexual dysfunction. We're devoting this entire episode of RealTalk MS to talking about sex and MS with my guest, Dr. Linda Mona.     Dr. Mona is a licensed clinical psychol...

The National MS Society has updated their COVID-19 vaccine guidance for people living with MS, providing detailed recommendations for timing your disease-modifying therapy with the two COVID-19 vaccines that are approved in the U.S. If you're on a disease-modifying therapy and you've been wondering about your DMT and the COVID-19 vaccines, this episode is for you.     My guest this week is Dr. Jai...

Research has shown that, for people living with MS, regular exercise and physical activity can improve their quality of life while helping to manage MS symptoms.   But research has also shown that people living with MS tend to be less active than people in the general population. In response, the National MS Society convened a group of experts to develop fact-based guidance for promoting exercise...

Paleo...Wahls...Swank...Mediterranean...intermittent fasting. Is there such a thing as "The MS Diet"? Joining me to offer an expert opinion about diet and MS is Dr. Ilana Katz Sand, the Associate Director of the Corinne Goldsmith Dickinson Center for MS and Co-Director of the Center's Wellness Program.     Dr. Katz Sand's recent and current research studies include a clinical trial of dietary inte...

As Chair of the National MS Society's National Medical Advisory Committee, Dr. Nancy Sicotte led the expert task force that the MS Society convened to develop the COVID-19 vaccine guidance for people living with MS. Dr. Sicotte is returning to RealTalk MS to answer your questions about the vaccine and MS.      Dr. Sicotte is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Neurology at Cedars-Sinai Medi...

The National MS Society has issued its initial COVID-19 vaccine guidance for people living with MS and we're covering every detail of this anxiously awaited and important announcement.   We're also taking a look back with Dr. Barbara Giesser at some of the things that made life better for people living with MS in 2020.   We have a lot to talk about! Are you ready for RealTalk MS??! National MS Soc...

Research creates the future for people affected by MS. And clinical research can't happen without your participation. Joining me as my guest is Sara Loud, the CEO of iConquerMS, the people-powered-research network that puts you at the center of MS research.   We're also celebrating a whole list of MS advocacy wins that will translate into making life better for people living with MS in the United...

In this episode of RealTalk MS, we're re-visiting my conversation with Dr. Bruce Bebo, the Executive Vice-President of Research at the National MS Society, about some of the most interesting research announcements made during the MSVirtual2020 conference. This is one of my favorite conversations of the entire year, and you've made it this year's most downloaded and listened to RealTalk MS episode....

It's safe to say that this year, the biggest gift of the holiday season has been the arrival of not one, but two COVID-19 vaccines. Still, while the COVID-19 vaccines have created a tremendous amount of hope, they've also created an equal number of questions among people who are living with MS.  So the National MS Society has convened a group of experts to provide guidance for people living with M...

Feeling some of the stress and anxiety that often come with the holiday season? Who could blame you? If the holidays aren't enough, this year, we're also going through what's looking like the worst part of the COVID-19 pandemic. Stress and anxiety aren't guaranteed, but they aren't exactly unexpected, either. My guest this week, Megan Weigel, is here to share some techniques and strategies that we...

Every day, 12 more Canadians are diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Facing one of the highest MS rates in the world, spread across a geographically large country, the MS Society of Canada is the only national voluntary organization in Canada that supports cutting-edge MS research while providing services and support to more than 90,000 people living with MS.      Joining me as my guest is Dr. Pame...

MS-related pain is one of those invisible symptoms that can have a profound impact on your quality of life. So we're devoting this entire episode of RealTalk MS to taking a deep dive into assessing and managing MS-related pain with my guests, Dr. Dawn M. Ehde and Dr. Heidi Maloni. Both of my guests are experts at assessing, treating, and managing MS-related pain, but each approaches pain from a sl...

Joining me this week is Brett Drummond, a scientist in Australia who stepped away from his lab to develop an online resource designed to bridge the gap between the MS patient community and the MS research community. The result of his efforts is MSTranslate. We're talking about this excellent curated MS information resource, and Brett even shares some insights into the MS research that he finds par...

Today, remyelination holds real promise as a strategy for restoring lost function and slowing or even stopping MS progression.  This week, we're taking a deep dive into the current state of remyelination research.  Joining me are Dr. Jeffrey Cohen, the Hazel Prior Hostetler Professor of Neurology at the Cleveland Clinic and the director of the Cleveland Clinic's Mellen Center for Multiple Sclerosi...

November 11 is Veterans Day in the United States, giving us an opportunity to honor the men and women who have served in America's armed forces. More than 70,000 U.S. veterans are living with MS, and joining me on the podcast is Karla Clay, an Air Force veteran, and a National Veterans Wheelchair Games multiple medal winner. We're talking about the life-changing turn that Karla's MS journey ended...

Fatigue is considered to be the most common MS symptom and also one of the most disabling because fatigue can interfere with every aspect of someone's life -- at home, at work, in their relationships -- in every way, fatigue can have a profound impact on your quality of life. We're talking about how to best manage MS-related fatigue with two experts on the subject, Dr. Bardia Nourbakhsh, and Dr. K...

Almost everything that we've learned about multiple sclerosis is the result of people with MS choosing to participate in clinical research. When it comes to MS and most every other chronic illness, clinical research is the common denominator of all medical progress.      This week, we're breaking down the details of MS clinical research with my guests, Dr. Sandi Cassard, a research associate in th...