It was February 28, 2015. I thought It was just another day of Future Farmers of America Organization (FFA) competitions. I started my morning like any other morning before a competition; put on my suspenders, put my tie on and zipped my corduroy jacket and practiced what I was competing in. I practiced my speech and I was good to go.
Everything went smoothly until it didn't. On my way back from competitions, I fell asleep; all of a sudden I was being told that I had a seizure and was being taken to the hospital. I was sobbing out of fear that I didn't know what exactly happened to me. Everyone on the bus was scared because of what they just witnessed. I didn't have my parents to comfort me, just my close friends and my FFA advisor 'Mama B" who I considered another mom.
On the way to the hospital, I had my blood taken and was bombarded with question after question to try to figure out why I had a seizure. Next thing I know, I'm waiting for my mom to come while laying in a hospital bed. After a while, Mama B showed up to check on me to make sure I was safe. Watching her breakdown and start crying because she was worried and scared made me start to cry all over again. I could not imagine what her and everyone on the bus went through witnessing me seizing. I did not remember any of it, just what everyone told me.
Going to a neurologist, I did not know what to expect. I thought it was just a seizure, anyone could have them. After Electromyography (EMG) testing, blood work, and a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), I was diagnosed with Tonic-Clonic Epilepsy. I could not grasp the fact that I lived a healthy seventeen years and all of a sudden I have this medical issue that will forever affect my life and things I could do.
Epilepsy has affected my life in more ways than one. If I wasn't diagnosed with epilepsy, everything would be different. I may not be able to go out to clubs or concerts without worrying that I might have a seizure, but those two things are overrated anyway. I may not be completely seizure free now, but I will be.
I used to try to imagine what life would be like without epilepsy, but at the end of the day, I like where my epilepsy has led me to and the fact that it made me who I am today; the girl writing about the day her life changed.
