Living Well with Multiple Sclerosis

How do you build a sustainable career with multiple sclerosis? In this episode of Living Well with MS, Heather Carrasco shares how her diagnosis reshaped her relationship with work, rest and self-advocacy.

Diagnosed with relapsing remitting MS in 2023 – though her symptoms likely began years earlier – Heather reflects on navigating the US healthcare system, learning to manage fatigue at work, and deciding whether to disclose her diagnosis professionally.

She also shares how discovering the Overcoming MS Program and finding community helped her move beyond denial and make sustainable lifestyle changes.

This episode will resonate with anyone adjusting to life after an MS diagnosis, managing invisible symptoms like fatigue, or trying to create a healthier balance between career and wellbeing.

Keep reading for the key episode takeaways and Heather’s bio.

02:12 Early symptoms, delayed diagnosis and navigating healthcare in the US
06:18 Explaining MS to others – invisible symptoms and describing fatigue
08:28 Discovering Overcoming MS and deciding to attend a retreat
09:51 The Overcoming MS retreat experience and finding community
12:02 Work–life balance, rest and putting yourself first
15:13 Diet, sustainable change and mindset shifts
16:28 Mental health, therapy and mindfulness
17:57 Support systems, disclosure at work and psychological safety
21:59 Advice for the newly diagnosed

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We are pleased to welcome Dr Valter Longo to this episode of Living Well with MS. Dr Longo is the scientist behind the Fasting Mimicking Diet. He is a bio-gerontologist and cell biologist serves as a professor at the USC Davis School of Gerontology and as the director of the USC Longevity Institute. He is the creator of the fasting-mimicking diet, a program that claims to mimic the effects of periodic fasting. To read Dr Longo’s full bio, click here. 

Originally broadcast in 2020, this episode has been edited to remove out-of-date content and reuploaded in 2026 to ensure it remains relevant and useful.

02:08 Today’s rising fascination with fasting diets 

03:50 Main differences between the fasting-mimicking diet and other fasting diets 

05:03 Diving into blue zones, where a higher percentage of the population lives to 100 

06:55 The correlation between the centenarians and people who are fasting  

11:04 Does fast mimicking help people with MS live better and longer? 

14:03 The different types of fast-mimicking diets including 5:2, 16:8 and occasional water fasting 

24:54 What should we eat between fasts? 

29:28 What is the ProLon diet, and for those on a budget, how can peopel get some of the benefits on their own?

What does it really mean to parent with multiple sclerosis, and how do you talk to your children about something so unpredictable?

In this episode of Living Well with MS, we’re joined by Julie Stamm – MS advocate, author and mother – for an honest and uplifting conversation about raising a child while living with MS.

Diagnosed in 2007, Julie turned her experience into advocacy, determined to be open with her son about her condition in ways that are truthful but age-appropriate. She shares how parenting reshaped her perspective on resilience, how listening to children can ease the guilt many parents carry, and why adapting as a family is a sign of strength, not failure.

We explore storytelling as a tool for empowerment, the importance of peer support and community, and why the outlook for people newly diagnosed today is more hopeful than ever. Julie also reflects on her children’s book Some Days and her work to promote inclusion and diverse abilities through advocacy and education.

This episode will resonate with anyone parenting with MS, considering starting a family, supporting a loved one with MS, or looking to turn lived experience into meaningful advocacy.

Keep reading for the key episode takeaways and Julie’s bio.

00:00 Introduction and Julie’s diagnosis journey
01:23 Why honesty with children matters
02:26 Sharing your story and the power of lived experience
03:37 Parenting guilt, resilience and writing Some Days
04:42 How MS affects the whole family
06:40 Adjusting to change and adapting over time
08:39 Becoming an MS advocate and finding your niche
10:02 Gratitude, grief and staying hopeful
11:23 The importance of peer support and community
13:52 Research advances and hope for the future
14:58 Advice for newly diagnosed parents

 

Learn more at Julie’s website www.iamstamm.com

Follow Julie on Instagram at @iamstamm

New to Overcoming MS? Learn why lifestyle matters in MS - begin your journey at our 'Get started' page

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Visit the Overcoming MS website

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If you’ve ever felt stuck between knowing what could help you live well with MS and actually making it stick, this conversation is for you.

In this episode of Living Well with MS, Overcoming MS Program Facilitator Laura Crowder explores the ‘change your life for life’ pillar, the inner work that helps make lifestyle changes feel sustainable rather than overwhelming. Laura is joined by Overcoming MS Program Facilitator Hayley Baker, who shares her personal experience of building confidence, resilience and self-compassion while following the Overcoming MS Program.

Together, they reflect on why mindset matters, how hope and empowerment can support wellbeing, and what to do when life inevitably knocks you off track.

This episode is a webinar highlights special – originally recorded as a live Overcoming MS webinar and now edited for the podcast to bring you the key insights, questions and takeaways in one place.

Watch the full webinar on  YouTube. Keep reading for the topics, timestamps, and our guest’s bio.

00:58 Exploring the pillar: Change your life for life 

04:36 Choice, autonomy and taking control after diagnosis 

09:56 The role of hope in living well with MS 

12:37 Awareness, acceptance and managing difficult days 

16:02 The power of language in habit formation 

21:13 Empowerment and making lifestyle change sustainable 

22:45 Community support and shared experience 

25:36 Hayley’s personal journey with MS 

35:01 Advice for people new to the Program 

37:50 Q&A: common challenges, motivation and self-compassion 

Read the Overcoming MS books

Learn more about the “Change your life, for life” pillar

New to Overcoming MS? Learn why lifestyle matters in MS - begin your journey at our 'Get started' page

Connect with others following Overcoming MS on the Live Well Hub

Visit the Overcoming MS website

Follow us on social media:

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Don’t miss out:

Subscribe to this podcast and never miss an episode. Listen to our archive of Living Well with MS here.

Make sure you sign up to our newsletter to hear our latest tips and news about living a full and happy life with MS.

Support us:
If you enjoy this podcast and want to help us continue creating future podcasts, please leave a donation here.

Feel free to share your comments and suggestions for future guests and episode topics by emailing [email protected].

If you like Living Well with MS, please leave a 5-star review.

How can mental health support be better tailored to the real, lived experiences of people with MS? In this episode of Living Well with MS, we’re joined by Dr Eva Fragkiadaki, counselling psychologist and Senior Lecturer in Counselling Psychology at the University of the West of England. Her whose work focuses on developing personalised, evidence-based mental health interventions for people living with MS.

Eva shares insights from her research into group-based psychological support, including her co-designed MyMS-Ally intervention. Together, we explore why traditional mental health approaches don’t always work for people with MS, the power of peer connection, and how concepts like identity, self-compassion and visibility of disability shape emotional wellbeing.

This conversation will be especially valuable for anyone living with MS, supporting someone with MS, or interested in how mental health care can become more person-centred, inclusive and accessible.

Keep reading for the key episode takeaways and Eva’s bio.

00:00 Introducing psychosocial interventions for MS

03:38 Researching group therapy and therapeutic change

06:07 Gender, representation and inclusion in MS research

08:19 What kinds of mental health support help in MS?

10:30 Why group interventions matter

12:47 Peer support, safety and community connection

15:10 Integrative and personalised therapy approaches

17:29 Visible and invisible disability in MS

20:15 Self-compassion and identity

22:23 Future directions for mental health care in MS

 

Learn more about Eva and her work

Learn more about Eva’s research on mental health and MS

New to Overcoming MS? Learn why lifestyle matters in MS - begin your journey at our 'Get started' page

Connect with others following Overcoming MS on the Live Well Hub

Visit the Overcoming MS website

Follow us on social media:

Facebook

Instagram

YouTube

Pinterest

Don’t miss out:

Subscribe to this podcast and never miss an episode. Listen to our archive of Living Well with MS here.

Make sure you sign up to our newsletter to hear our latest tips and news about living a full and happy life with MS.

Support us:
If you enjoy this podcast and want to help us continue creating future podcasts, please leave a donation here.

Feel free to share your comments and suggestions for future guests and episode topics by emailing [email protected].

If you like Living Well with MS, please leave a 5-star review.