Pseudobulbar Affect and Multiple Sclerosis

Imagine breaking out into uncontrollable laughter or crying bouts for no apparent reason and in inappropriate settings. For about 10 percent of individuals who live with multiple sclerosis, this possibility is all too familiar.

These unpredictable episodes of emotion are called the pseudobulbar affect (PBA; also known as emotional incontinence). The cause of these puzzling and sometimes embarrassing situations is damage to areas of the brain involved with emotions; the corticobulbar tract and the prefrontal cortex have been named as probable culprits.

According to the National Stroke Association, more than 1 million people in the United States who have a nervous system condition such as stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, traumatic brain injury, Parkinson’s disease, or multiple sclerosis, can be affected by this condition. However, knowing that you are not the only one does not help much if you are the one experiencing these emotional outbursts.

So what can you do if you live with episodes of pseudobulbar affect?

How to deal with pseudobulbar affect