Exclusive! Montel Williams: My Health Doesn't Steal My Focus

Montel Williams and wife Tara Fowler. Credit North American Poker Tour/PokerStars.net.

Talk show legend Montel Williams opens up on living with multiple sclerosis.

For the last week we've been sharing our interview exclusives from the North American Poker Tour at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas. (Did you check out our chat with Slash's wife on love and marriage?!) Montel Williams is a celeb poker regular, and like almost every PokerStars.net international event, he was one of the stylers and profilers at NAPT last week. Meanwhile, Montel's interview last spring to talk about his near-suicide due to the pain of living with MS made for one of Oprah's most-watched episodes ever. We took the NAPT red carpet opportunity to checked in quickly with Montel and Tara Fowler, his wife of two and a half years, to find out what's working for his health a year after his emotional Oprah appearance.

LimeLife: Montel Williams, for two decades you've been an inspiring figure in our culture, but for many of my female readers, we became familiar with your struggle with multiple sclerosis last year on Oprah. Are you willing to open up about your condition right now?

Montel Williams: You know what, I'm doing well. Nights like this [playing poker] I try to stay focused doing what I'm doing. It's an every day thing. Every single day I'm dealing with it, but I deal with it.

LimeLife: What's working for you?

Montel Williams: The last three books that I've written-the one that's out right now is Living Well Emotionally-[are really about] the journey that I'm on. I changed my lifestyle, I changed my eating, I changed my exercise routine. So I'm kind of known for that now. [My books] can help no matter what level of wellness you're at.

Montel Williams reached out at the North American Poker Tournament to help feed hungry people in the Las Vegas area by helping raise over $43,000 for the region's Three Square charity. Joanna Krupa was another PokerStars.net celeb who told us she loves playing for charity too -- check out our interview (where she also reveals her biggest fitness secret and wedding plans!). Or just go browse our new Photos section...fun stuff.