I took a year out of my jewellery design studies to come to terms with my diagnosis. It was the best thing I ever did, giving me the time to realise that just because I had been give this ‘chronically ill’ label, my life wasn’t going to instantly change. I also realised that living with MS was manageable.

So many people know someone with MS but it’s still misunderstood, so when I returned to university I decided to base my final year’s work on MS to raise awareness of the condition. Each piece I created represented what I had experienced living with this condition. The response was fantastic and allowed me to talk freely about my MS without any awkwardness. It was a real turning point for me and I was no longer ashamed about having MS.

I am now a self-employed designer with my own MS inspired surface pattern design label, Charcot. Using the MRI scans of my brain that were taken on the lead up to my diagnosis of MS in 2007, I take the nasty lesion shapes – the damage caused by MS – to design prints and patterns for screen prints, digital print and luxurious silk collections. It’s an innovative and creative way to make MS visible.

“Selma Blair’s candid approach to her MS diagnosis isn’t just inspiring: it’s vital”