Taking Control of My Health:

I have had epilepsy from the age of 7. Throughout elementary, high school and even college I was embarrassed to reveal my condition to classmates or teachers. In junior high, I had to go to the office everyday at lunch to take my medication. After teasing from classmates, I made a horrible decision. I decided that taking my medication could wait until after school. About two weeks later, I was proved wrong when I had a seizure in class. Needless to say, my classmates and teachers were introduced to my condition in a rather frightening way.

Once I got to college, I felt like I was free! Just like everyone else that goes away to school, you suddenly have no parents to answer to, no curfews and plenty of parties to attend. This included ample nights with irregular sleep patterns and inevitably for me led to a seizure. Ironically, it was when I had no parents to answer to that I became responsible for my actions and my health. Parties were still great, but now I knew when to call it a night and my friends and roommates knew about my condition and what to do if a seizure occurred.

Ten years after I graduated from college, I currently find myself returning to school to earn a law degree. I am interested in advocacy and anti-discrimination law. It is vital that schools, employers, and society are familiar with epilepsy and how to deal with episodes. It is especially important for people with epilepsy to take control of their health and be able to educate those around them without embarrassment or fear of discrimination.