Christina Applegate's sudden health scare sparked an outpouring of love from across Hollywood as friends and former co-stars rushed to reach her, fearing they might not get another chance.
As the Emmy-winning actress, 54, battled a severe flare-up of her multiple sclerosis late last month, messages, flowers and visits poured in from every chapter of her career - from recent colleagues to those who knew her decades ago.
For some, it was about more than support - it was about making sure 'nothing was left unsaid.'
The Daily Mail has learned that among the celebs to privately reach out were her Anchorman costar Will Ferrell, Linda Cardellini who she starred with in the 2019 comedy Dead to Me and Jean Smart who played her mother in Samantha Who? back in 2007.
Ed O'Neill and Katey Sagal, who played Applegate's parents on the long-running 90s sitcom Married...with Children, also reached out to her, the Daily Mail can reveal.
'They don't think this is it for her, she's not dying right now. But they wanted to make sure that nothing was left unsaid,' a source who worked on the show and is still close with Applegate told the Daily Mail. 'They told each other that they love each other.'
Applegate has remained close with her TV family. Sagal was present in 2022 when she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and O'Neill has been a guest on Applegate's podcast, MeSsy.
'I don't want to say that Ed is a father figure to her, but they have kept in touch since their Married with Children days and they are very, very close,' a source - who is a fellow actor and is close to O'Neill - told the Daily Mail.
Applegate starred on Married With Children from 1987 to 1997, catapulting her to fame and igniting a long TV and movie career
Applegate described her five-year battle with multiple sclerosis (MS) as 'a living hell'
'They always have been. They text, they see each other, they call on the phone,' the source added.
'He heard the news that she was hospitalized and he immediately texted her and asked if he could help, told her he loved her, that he was here for her in any way that she needs.'
Watching his TV daughter deteriorate has been hard on O'Neill, the insider told the Daily Mail.
'He is anguished,' they continued. 'Just so worried about her, he loves her very much. Obviously it's not like she's on her deathbed, I don't think, but she's not doing well and anything can happen.
'He hates to see her suffering, that really gets to him. So he's offered whatever he can do to help. He's family to her.'
It is understood that Applegate has been hospitalized for the best part of a month - the latest chapter in her five-year battle with multiple sclerosis (MS).
The disease causes numbness, weakness, trouble walking and vision changes which get worse with age and become debilitating during flare-ups.
For the past two years she has been largely bed-bound. But the attack last month was the most severe yet, friends told the Daily Mail.
Sagal has been in constant communication with Applegate in order to get regular updates on her condition. 'She is worried,' a source close to Sagal said.
Applegate, who now walks with a cane, was surrounded by her Married with Children mom and brother while receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2022
TV dad Ed O'Neill 'raised me,' Applegate said on her podcast last year
'Christina is in and out of the hospital, but this time felt different because it's been so long - and also she didn't tell anyone she was going in.
'So to her friends, it feels sudden and serious. But she's not telling anyone really what it is, just that she’s going to get back on her feet.'
Applegate took to Instagram on Monday to reassure her followers she was getting 'stronger and better every day.'
She posted a photo of her memoir, You With The Sad Eyes, and a mug in front of a fruiting tree, sharing that she would be 'taking a moment to focus on [her] health.'
Her caption read: 'Thank you for the outpouring of love and well wishes. Health issues are a constant for me, but I'm a strong chick and I'm getting stronger and better every day. I'm taking a moment to focus on my health, but I'll be back with more to say soon enough.'
Applegate's representative told the Daily Mail that they 'have no comment on whether she is in the hospital or what her medical treatments are. She's had a long history of complicated medical conditions that she has been refreshingly open about, as evidenced in her memoir and on her podcast.'
But the source who knew Applegate from her time on Married...With Kids told the Daily Mail those close to her were quietly optimistic.
'She is getting stronger, like she said. Less dizziness, less nausea. This was a bad one but she's optimistic,' the source said.
Her MS diagnosis in 2021 was not the start of her health issues.
Applegate was diagnosed with an early-stage, BRCA1-positive cancer in 2008 at age 36. She underwent a double mastectomy and later reconstructive surgery.
The Dead To Me actress subsequently became an advocate for genetic testing and early screening through her foundation, Right Action for Women.
Applegate reflected on her health battles in her memoir.
'One of the worst side-effects of [MS] is the exhaustion,' she wrote. 'It feels as though I've been on a three‑day sleepless bender - and that's how I feel after a good night's sleep. Hence all the time I spend on and in bed, snuggled up against my heating pad.
'On the back of that diagnosis and the symptoms I face, I no longer care what I say or how I come across or how it makes anyone feel.
'I don't have patience for bulls* any more, for things that are meaningless or merely "extra."'
For her friends and colleagues, Applegate's condition has been a sobering reminder that life and good health can be fleeting.
'She has always been so vibrant and full of life, despite her health issues,' said the O'Neill insider.
'So to see her like this is devastating, and it really is tough for the people who love her. Of course they hope she lives to be 90, but they treat each time they see her as if it'll be the last.'