Readers of Channelling Dolly know that I love to keep things light and happy here. Sometimes though we have to deal with difficult subjects. With November being National Epilepsy Awareness Month I wanted to spread some info about a subject that is near and dear to my heart.
First some facts:
Did you know that epilepsy claims more lives every year in the United States than breast cancer?
1 in 26 people will be diagnosed with epilepsy in their lifetime.
Over 3 million people in America and over 65 million worldwide have epilepsy. 1/3 of those people have uncontrollable seizures because none of the available treatments work for them.For nineteen years I have worked for a manufacturing company that produces the VNS Therapy for people who suffer from treatment-resistant epilepsy. We create a device that is implanted inside the patient’s body and sends pulses to the vagus nerve to help control seizures. Before working in this field I had no idea that this disease could be so debilitating. It is an honor to create something that can change the lives of so many patients. We often meet people who are able to finally do things that so many of us take for granted. This gives us all such an appreciation for what we do.
Here are some of my coworkers and I spreading the word:
What can you do to spread the word on supporting the fight against epilepsy?
- Wear purple during the month of November.
- Visit the Epilepsy Foundation website to get information whether you have epilepsy, know someone who does or just want to support the cause.
- If you have children, teach them about seizures in a way that they can understand. This will be very helpful should they have classmates with epilepsy.
Should you want to help through donations the Epilepsy Foundation website has many options from monetary gifts as well as fundraising activities throughout the year. Please check that out!
I had no idea it was so debilitating either. Thanks for educating me.
You are so welcome Intense! It is such a sad thing to hear the stories about how bad it ca get.
This is a topic I don’t know very much about. Thank you for enlightening me on this topic!
Reesa you are very welcome! I knew very little about it before working at my job, so I am happy to share the info and hopefully help someone!
Thank you for the reminder about epilepsy. Its so important to keep sharing this information so that we are continually aware, and are better able to support those who can really benefit from extra love! And yes to wearing purple as a great reminder!
Karen thank you! It is really important as epilepsy does not get the same level of attention focused on awareness as many other diseases.
This is such an important topic and one that is so overlooked! Thank you for increasing awareness!
Jessica it is so very often overlooked. I really don’t understand why! You are very welcome. I am happy to help even if it is in a small way!
I had no idea so many people had epilepsy. Thanks for educating me. I’ll wear my purple.
Thank you Carolyn!
I’m so glad to see advances are being made to treat epilepsy. It can be very debilitating and keep people from enjoying their lives.
Blythe it can be! Some of the patient stories we have heard at work will break your heart. 🙁
I’ve seen people with purple ribbons in November and wasn’t sure what they were for. Thanks for informing us on this important topic.
Kara so glad to have helped!
What a great cause, thanks for sharing. It’s so hard to hear about how this can really effect people!
Debra you are very welcome! It is so hard to hear some of the stories.
Wow i had no clue. Thanks for sharing adn educating me.
Rebecca you are so welcome! I am happy to pass along this important info!
I had no idea on any of this! I usually do a breast cancer run every year but they don’t do one in my area so I’ll have to see if they do this. It would be great to be able to give back a little.
Angela check out your local branch of the Epilepsy Foundation and they should have some events close by. Our area has a yearly walk at the zoo which is always a fun event!
I think this device is much needed. It’s great that it was created to help curb seizures. I need to talk to my 6 year old about them, in case someone at his school were to have one.
Kecia that is a great plan. Children dealing with this need friends at school to understand! Thank you!
I honestly did not know that much about epilepsy at all. You have inspired me to do some research and learn how I can help! Thanks so much!
Thank you Taylor! So glad you got inspiration from the post. I didn’t know much at all about it when I started working at my job.
I’ve known people who have had this and I never knew much about it. Thanks for the reminder to educate people about it.
Thank you Theresa! You are very welcome!
It is so good to be aware of epilepsy. There are so many things I didn’t know about this disease and it is quite saddening. Thatnks for bringing this cause to light!
Thank you Amber! Working at my job has been eye-opening to me in learning about epilepsy. It is so very sad what people have to suffer through.
I didn’t know about this in the month of November! One of my friend’s brothers has suffered from this starting as a young child and it’s so great to bring awareness. <3
Thank you Nikki! I hope all is well with your friend’s brother. A friend of mine has a son with epilepsy and seeing her Facebook posts about his seizures at school breaks my heart.
I honestly don’t know much about epilepsy. This is so interesting to read about the device your company makes.
Thank you Anna! I am glad to give you some info about it! It truly is something that does not get the attention that it deserves!
I had no idea it was so debilitating or so common! Wow! Great job to have created this. I’m sure it’s saving lives!!
Thank you Stephanie! It really is amazing to meet people who we have given a new lease on life to. Makes it easy to get up in the morning and go to work! 🙂
I have 3 dear people in my circle of friends/family who was born with epilepsy. It is a daily struggle for them. Thank you for helping to raise awareness.
Krista it is so difficult. I pray your friends have a therapy that helps keep their seizures under control.
Epilepsy is a very frightening condition. I have a cousin who has epilepsy and she has dealt with it all her life. I also had a yorkie who suffered from grand mal seizures. So scary!
Christina thank you for sharing. I hope your cousin is able to find something to lessen her seizures. I had a border collie Tina who had seizures. I never knew that dogs could have epilespy as well, but you are right it is very scary. We learned how to help calm her, but I never learned how to calm myself during those moments. It is so scary and sad when you can’t help someone you love…even if that someone is furry!
I’ve had first hand experience with this, it can really get in the way of your life. My friend in High School would have random attacks and I can only imagine how it’s like.
I’m sure that it was so scary Amanda to know how to deal with such a huge issue at that age. I hope your friend is able to control thier seizures now. I have a friend who’s son is going through the same thing right now at that age, having problems controlling his. It breaks my heart to hear her updates.
This brought back some sad memories for me. I lost a really good friend about nine years ago he died due to an epilepsy attack. Well the attack itself didn’t kill him he was sleeping face down when it happened and there was no one home to help him so he suffocated. Creating awareness is important because people need to be aware this can be a pretty scary thing when in can cause real harm to those who get these attacks.
Leslie so sorry for the loss of your friend. That is such a fear with epilepsy patients because so many do die in their sleep. There have been so many recent advances in monitoring that helps to make a difference. Devices that can alert the families to a seizure in hopes that someone can get to them to help. Hopefully as the years progress noone else will have to lose a good friend from this horrible disease. Again so sorry!