Welcome to Season 5 of Living Well with MS, the Overcoming MS podcast where we explore all topics relating to living well with multiple sclerosis (MS). In this episode, we are pleased to welcome founder of ‘The MS Stage’, Megan Evans. Watch this episode on our YouTube here. Keep reading for the key episode takeaways and Megan's bio. Make sure you sign up to our newsletter to hear our latest tips and news about living a full and happy life with MS. And if you’re new to Overcoming MS, visit our introductory page to find out more about how we support people with MS. Megan's Bio: Megan’s background After a successful career as a Celebrity publicist followed by the founding of her own company, ‘The Well-Coiffed Closet’, Megan Evans led the charge as a personal wardrobe stylist and certified image consultant for over a decade in New York, Los Angeles, and Nashville - all while dealing with her own diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis at the young age of 24. Megan’s passion for health and wellness Megan has guided her own path of healing by combining alternative medicine with traditional medicine and lots of mindfulness and spiritual practices in between. How ‘The MS Stage’ was created It wasn’t until January of 2022 that Megan connected to her true calling and created tools for herself and other women with MS to truly heal on a deeper level. Having grown up as an actress and modern dancer, Megan always knew that having a creative outlet was one of the most healing tools of all. ‘The MS Stage’ was developed as a different kind of healing support group, one based on Megan’s love of theatre and dance and her own experiences and knowledge learned over her 19-year journey with MS. It brings women from around the world together through dance, improvisational movement, meditation, storytelling, and mindfulness practices to commune with their symptoms, their bodies, and each other in a totally new way. Megan is passionate about helping women with MS feel empowered in mind, body, and spirit. Key Takeaways: Turn your symptoms into superpowers “I literally lead women down this path to turn their symptoms into their superpowers. It becomes really empowering and instead of it becoming a depressing journey with MS it becomes an empowering journey. They learn that MS can actually be a gift in their lives and it can send them down a new path of being really present in their lives and being true to themselves.” Movement can help you get in touch with your emotions “I choose songs for the group, and they move improvisationally. They let their body speak and move through them. Frustration gets to turn into ease, anger gets to turn into love [and] resistance turns into acceptance. It's a beautiful practice and it's really learning to get in touch with their emotions and learning to switch from the negative to the positive.” Positive self-talk is powerful “Our bodies listen and our cells listen, so if we're talking to them positively, giving them encouragement, they want to do well for us ... I have seen it, I've done it for myself and it happens with my students. It's incredible what is possible, because I think there's so much negative self-talk and a lot of anger.” Megan leads a guided meditation practice at 19:29 Related Links: Listeners get a 15% discount on all groups, mention Living Well with MS. Book a discovery call with 'The MS Stage'. Access a free 3-day Meditation Journey on 'The MS Stage' Instagram page. Try a guided meditation from Overcoming MS. Watch the Hope Reborn music video, featuring a dance sequence finale. Don’t miss out: Subscribe to this podcast and never miss an episode. You can catch any episode of Living Well with MS here or on your favorite podcast listening app. If you like Living Well with MS, please leave a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you tune into the show. Feel free to share your comments and suggestions for future guests and episode topics by emailing podcast@overcomingms.org. Make sure you also sign