JAMIE-LYNN SIGLER Finding Strength in Adversity

Twenty-five years after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, Jamie-Lynn Sigler looks at the glass half-full. “Life is great right now!” the Sopranos alum, 44, tells Us. “A lot of that is because of MS and the lessons I’ve learned through this journey.” Sigler remembers being “so overwhelmed” when she first heard those dreaded two letters at age 20, but ultimately, the autoimmune disease has made her a more accepting and confident person. “Even though my body isn’t perfect,” the mom of two acknowledges, “I’ve softened so much in life.”

- JAMIE-LYNN SIGLER

The actress hopes to "give the MS community confidence."

How has MS shaped you as a mom?

I want to do everything. I want to be there, and sometimes I can’t. But my [son Jack, 8] had a project at the end of the year about all the things that make him him, and one of the pages was "Inspiration," and he put, "My mom. She works so hard. She fights every day." I had no idea he saw me that way.

You recently played a character navigating MS on Grey's Anatomy. Why was now the right time?