Melissa Gilbert Reveals Devastating News, Rare Neurological Disorder Diagnosis

Melissa Gilbert, who won the hearts of fans far and wide as Laura “Half Pint” Ingalls on Little House On The Prairie, as a child star has revealed devastating news. Gilbert, who went on to star in several Hallmark movies as an adult, reveals that the hardest part of playing Laura Ingalls Wilder was dealing with her rare neurological disorder.

What Disorder Has Given Melissa Gilbert So Many Issues?

Gilbert, who is now 60, has opened up for the first time about her diagnosis and the difficulties in dealing with it as an actress. Gilbert’s condition is known as misophonia.

In a social media video on August 20, 2014, Gilbert discussed her condition as a part of her new partnership with the Duke Center for Misophonia and Emotion Regulation.

According to the advocacy organization SoQuiet, misphonia produces “decreased tolerance to specific sounds” which can “evoke strong negative emotional, physiological, and behavioral responses that are not seen in most other people.” They hope to raise awareness through this partnership to help others.

Gilbert could be the only, or at least the first public figure to admit to having this disorder. Gilbert shared in the video how she was affected by her condition stating, “I would get so upset, like fight or flight upset, over certain sounds — chewing sounds, snapping pens, fingernails on a table, clicking — and I thought that I was just fussy or bratty. It turned out that I had a disorder called misophonia, but it didn’t have a name at the time.”

Melissa Gilbert – Did Not Find Treatment Until She Was An Adult

Although Melissa starred on Little House On The Prairie for years, she was an adult before she got help for her condition. However, the help she received was through Duke and she wanted to join them in helping others. Gilbert explains, “it didn’t take the misophonia away, it just gave me the tools that I needed to deal with it and to control it rather than having it control me.”

Gilbert discussed her condition with People as she began opening up about the difficulties she had encountered. “I sobbed when I found out that it had a name and I wasn’t just a bad person. “I really just thought that I was rude. And I felt really bad. And guilty, which is an enormous component of misophonia, the guilt that you feel for these feelings of fight or flight. It’s a really isolating disorder.”

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Melissa Gilbert’s – Children Were Aware Of Annoyances

Gilbert admits that when she became a mom, her children knew that certain things could trigger her. Gilbert recalled, “I had a hand signal that I would give, making my hand into a puppet and I’d make it look like it was chewing and then I’d snap it shut — like shut your mouth! My poor kids spent their whole childhoods growing up with me doing this. They weren’t allowed to have gum.”

Gilbert told People she discovered the Duke Center for Misophonia online. Melissa said she wrote, “I need help. Please help me.” Dr. Zach Rosenthal, the director of the center replied and told Melissa there was help and explained that she wasn’t alone. After 16 weeks of intense cognitive behavioral therapy, things changed.

Gilbert says, “I realized I could ride out these waves but that they’re not going to go away. They never go away. But now I have all these tools to enable me to be more comfortable and less triggered. It made me feel in control.” Gilbert even gave her kids gum for Christmas 2023.

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