So what’s been done so far? and why keep going........

I originally set out to run 4 marathons and an Ultra Marathon in April 2023, with this now being completed (with many ups/ downs, medals and pain :) 

I thought, well, Epilepsy never just stops, so neither can I, and to keep raising awareness, I cant stop either! So here I a, training again to done my Team Purple Epilepsy Society Vest in both my first Duathlon (Devon Duathlon 5th Nov)  and also the Big Pilgrimage Trail Ultra Marathon from Southampton to my home town of Purbrook (Aug 20th)

For those that know me well know that in 2020 I couldn’t run 3km without stopping, but I used running and a change in diet to try to take control of my Epilepsy, to regain my mental health and to hopefully avoid brain surgery! 

After being diagnosed with Epilepsy in 2010 after a unexpected seizure in my sleep, I fell into a state of depression, yet continued to try to prove to the world that epilepsy won’t effect me in any way and I could keep going like nothing has changed. 

Well it was a lie and one that almost killed me. I was wrong and it was destroying me inside which would continue for nearly 7 years, alienating me from my family and some of my closest friends. 

So what happened? When you have epilepsy, it is more than losing your drivers license, more than having a seizure or the questions/ assumptions you face. It’s the unexpected nature of it all, it’s the burden you feel on those around you and the lower status in the world you feel you have.  But, mainly it’s the added pressure you put upon yourself to cover all this up and show the world you are ok. The look you get when you wear a bracelet, the questions you get when you show a disabled rail pass or the way you avoid it during an interview to the fear you have during an occ health review.

And that’s where the Epilepsy Society have come in for me, that’s where they have helped me with my ongoing testing, the 24/7 attention offered by their Nurses hotline and also the advice from my consultant. 

BUT funding is low, consultants appointments are only every year to 18 months and the nurses and researchers are stretched and that’s why we need your help PLEASE, I can run the races and suffer the pain, but it’s your donations that REALLY MATTER  💜💜💜