Sharing My Journey With Epilepsy

I woke up in a hospital bed. A man in a white coat was smiling at me, saying, "There is no mass in your brain!" I looked to my right, and my wife sat in a wooden chair with pink leather padding. "You had a seizure," she said. 

I didn't realize what had happened, but after a 911 call, I was taken to the hospital in an ambulance and subsequently intubated because my breathing passages were getting blocked with saliva and phlegm. All in all, I spent four days in the intensive care unit (ICU) and two days in recovery. That was my first seizure but not my last.

At the time of my diagnosis, I was living in Florida. My driver's license was taken away from me for six months, so long as I didn't have another seizure. Of course, I had another and then one more for good measure. This caused irreparable damage to my career as a teacher. I was relegated to looking for employment within walking distance of my home. Thankfully, I found a school that hired me despite my condition. The Manatee Learning Academy had a wonderful perspective on the issue. The administration felt students would benefit from having a teacher who refused to allow a disability to define and confine them. 

I am still relatively new to this diagnosis. It has been less than two years since my first seizure. I think I've experienced and exhausted every negative emotion a person can experience. I've tried every medicine the doctor prescribes. The process has been complicated. One day, I just said, "Enough." I accepted my condition and adopted faith in my care routine rather than constantly living in fear of the next event.

I want others to remember: do not allow epilepsy to control your life. Do not let it hold you back. You control your situation, and I have found that life's trajectory is always forward.