I have not spoken openly before about suffering from Reflex Anoxic Seizures, but now I feel it is the right time to share my story and support the charity by running this year’s Virtual London Marathon.

At 8 months old I suffered my first seizure; this was initiated due to falling backwards whilst sitting and hitting my head. I continued
to have a minimum of two episodes a month until I was approximately aged 5 when they appeared to stop.

Early on my parents struggled to get a proper diagnosis from either the doctor or hospital, having been told it was probably febrile convulsions amongst other things. But by chance, one day my mother was watching a daytime television program called ‘This Morning’ where Trudy Loban was a guest speaker, telling her story and promoting the charity. My mother immediately sent off for the information leaflet and duly presented it to our doctor. As a consequent I had an EEG and was diagnosed with ‘RAS.’

Despite being armed with information on the condition, it never took away the fear my parents experienced whenever I had a seizure. Once I had a particularly bad seizure and my father felt it necessary to perform CPR whilst phoning 999 for an ambulance.

My parents discovered that splashing cold water on my face, brought me back out of the seizure quicker. After each episode a period followed of being fretful and sleepy which lasted for several hours. My parents were determined not to ‘wrap me up in cotton wool’ and so I had a normal, healthy happy childhood. I enjoyed attending a swimming club, dance class and later a running club.

As a teenager I remember having some ‘funny feelings,’ everything around me would suddenly become very fast and loud for about 30
seconds. This has stopped, but now as an adult I have fainted a couple of times, especial when giving blood or having injections. However, usually I have pre-warning symptoms if I am about to pass out.

Sport has always been my passion and I have had the privilege of representing Great Britain in two World Triathlon Championships, as
an Age Group competitor. I hope I can inspire anyone reading this that RAS does not need to define you or hold you back and will give hope to parents that their children with this condition can go on to achieve great things.

Stay as healthy as you can, be aware of your triggers, keep good hydration, balanced nutrition and enjoy life to the full…

Grace