Category Archive

Living with Epilepsy

People encouraged to share experiences with first responders after a seizure

March 3, 2016

By Deron Hamel Epilepsy Ontario is embarking on an outreach strategy with first responders to build relationships between epilepsy support agencies and police, firefighters and paramedic teams to create training opportunities and encourage appropriate responses to people who may have had a seizure. The first step in this process is gathering people’s stories – both…

9-year-old Miah Wheadon getting ready to raise epilepsy awareness ahead of Purple Day

February 25, 2016

By Deron Hamel Purple Day is just around the corner, and one nine-year-old girl and her mother in a small northern Ontario community are gearing up for their annual drive to raise epilepsy awareness. For the past few years, Grade 4 student Miah Wheadon and her mother, Gina, have approached local businesses in Manitouwadge, Ont.…

Seizure medication shortages create anxiety and stress for families

February 18, 2016

By Deron Hamel Tina Smith has seen the negative impact seizure medication shortages have on people living with epilepsy and their families – she and her son, Nicholas, have lived through it more than once. Fifteen-year-old Nicholas had his first tonic-clonic seizure at seven. In 2009, Nicholas was diagnosed with epilepsy. During the next several…

Absence seizures: what they look like and how to react

February 11, 2016

By Deron Hamel The scene is a play rehearsal. Two high-school students, a boy and a girl, are practising their parts. Suddenly, the girl pauses. She stares blankly, appearing lost in her thoughts. Several seconds pass. She then she resumes speaking, as though nothing has happened. One of the students asks another if a teacher…