Episode 397: Managing Grief and MS with Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor

For many people, it can be difficult to talk about the feelings of loss that can accompany MS. For some, it's the loss of the way they imagined their life would turn out. For others, it's the more specific loss of function. Perhaps the loss of their mobility. Or a decline in their cognitive skills. It's painful to imagine any of these scenarios, let alone experience them in real life.    The human response to loss is grief. And grieving itself can affect your physical, emotional, and cognitive health. Joining me today to discuss how grieving can affect you, along with ways to best manage grief, is Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor. Dr. O'Connor is a professor of psychology at the University of Arizona, where she directs the Grief, Loss, and Social Stress Lab, investigating the effects of grief on the brain and the body. Dr. O'Connor also lives with MS, and the title of her new book is The Grieving Body: How the Stress of Loss Can Be an Opportunity for Healing. We'll also share the results of a study on MS fatigue in Finland. We'll tell you about a study that focused on sexual dysfunction among women living with MS in Iran. You'll learn what a research team discovered when they connected sick days from work with the prodromal phase of MS. And we're sharing a new resource from the MS International Federation that will help you assess which wellness practices and complementary therapies may be beneficial for you. We have a lot to talk about! Are you ready for RealTalk MS??! This Week: Managing the grief that comes from living with MS  :22 Results from a Finnish study adds further evidence to what we know about MS fatigue  1:36 Results of a study that focused on sexual dysfunction among women living with MS in Iran  3:13 Can job-related sick days help researchers better understand the prodromal phase of MS?  5:48 The MS International Federation has produced a very worthwhile guide to wellness practices and complementary therapies for people with MS  10:49 Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor discusses managing the grief that accompanies being diagnosed with MS  12:42 Share this episode  34:02 Have you downloaded the free RealTalk MS app?  34:22 SHARE THIS EPISODE OF REALTALK MS Just copy this link & paste it into your text or email: https://realtalkms.com/397 ADD YOUR VOICE TO THE CONVERSATION I've always thought about the RealTalk MS podcast as a conversation. And this is your opportunity to join the conversation by sharing your feedback, questions, and suggestions for topics that we can discuss in future podcast episodes. Please shoot me an email or call the RealTalk MS Listener Hotline and share your thoughts! Email: [email protected] Phone: (310) 526-2283 And don't forget to join us in the RealTalk MS Facebook group! LINKS If your podcast app doesn't allow you to click on these links, you'll find them in the show notes in the RealTalk MS app or at www.RealTalkMS.com Become an MS Activist Web: https://nationalmssociety.org/advocacy Email: [email protected] STUDY: Evaluation of Patient-Perceived Fatigue in Multiple Sclerosis Using the Finnish MS Registry https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/20552173251325098 STUDY: The Prevalence of Sexual Dysfunction and Its Contributors Among the Women with Multiple Sclerosis https://bmcwomenshealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12905-025-03653-y STUDY: The Prodromal Phase of Multiple Sclerosis: Evidence from Sickness Absence Patterns Before Disease Onset -- A Matched Cohort Study https://jnnp.bmj.com/content/early/2025/03/25/jnnp-2024-335279.full STUDY (PLAIN ENGLISH VERSION): The Prodromal Phase of Multiple Sclerosis: Evidence from Sickness Absence Patterns Before Disease Onset -- A Matched Cohort Study https://tremlettsmsresearchexplained.wordpress.com/2025/03/26/the-prodromal-phase-of-multiple-sclerosis-evidence-from-sickness-absence-patterns-before-disease-onset-a-matched-cohort-study-explained DOWNLOAD: Wellness Practices and Complementary Therapies in MS https://msif.org/resources/wellness-practices-and-complementary-therapies/ Join the RealTalk MS Facebook Group https://facebook.com/groups/realtalkms Download the RealTalk MS App for iOS Devices https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/realtalk-ms/id1436917200 Download the RealTalk MS App for Android Deviceshttps://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=tv.wizzard.android.realtalk Give RealTalk MS a rating and review http://www.realtalkms.com/review Follow RealTalk MS on Twitter, @RealTalkMS_jon, and subscribe to our newsletter at our website, RealTalkMS.com. RealTalk MS Episode 397 Guests: Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor Privacy Policy