Our epilepsy and seizures community of patients, family, friends and doctors have been on the move this spring!
Our epilepsy and seizure community of patients, family, friends and doctors have been on the move this spring! March was especially busy with Paint the Pony Purple, the National Epilepsy Walk, Purple Day, and our epilepsy virtual book club had the honor of being joined by a very special guest, Marc Palmieri, who authored “She danced with lightning.” Also, Dr. Lorna Myers stayed very busy, offering several webinars on psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES) and being interviewed on a couple of podcasts too.
March 26: PURPLE DAY for epilepsy Many of you have heard about this global awareness raising day where we can all be as creative as possible with the color purple (official color of epilepsy) as long as we are striving to raise awareness and educate others about this serious and important disorder.
Our offices celebrated Purple Day: https://epilepsygroup.com/events_gallery_detail6-22-175/purple-day.htm
Check out the The Great Purple Cupcake Project hosted by the Anita Kaufman Foundation: https://purpledayeveryday.org/events/the-great-purple-cupcake-project-for-epilepsy/
March 23: Paint the Pony Purple 14th Paint the Pony Purple: A family friendly concert raising epilepsy awareness (organized by Epilepsy Services of New Jersey)
The Northeast Regional Epilepsy Group sponsored this event.
March 21: Epilepsy Book Club: The Epilepsy Book Club read "She danced with lightening" by Marc Palmieri As part of our Wellness Program, NEREG and MAESC host an on-line epilepsy and seizure-themed Book Club every 4 months! Everyone in the group reads the book on their own, then “meets” online to talk about it: impressions, opinions, critiques. Books are selected based on whether they have a fictional or non-fictional character with epilepsy or if it is written by a person living with epilepsy. In March, the book club read and met to discuss “She danced with lightning” by Marc Palmieri.
Synopsis of the book: Eleven-year-old Anna has lived all her life with severe epilepsy. Despite the ravage of thousands of violent seizures and heavy medications, she has thrived at school, athletics, and her greatest passion—dance. As she approaches her twelfth birthday, Anna’s condition takes a dire turn. Her health declines quickly and a new diagnosis is revealed, leaving the family only one excruciating choice. A parent’s memoir about the medical mysteries of epilepsy and the personal suffering of raising a child with a deadly health condition, She Danced with Lightning is told from the perspective of Anna’s dream-chasing father, who comes to learn from her a strength and courage he never imagined possible. The book club members had the fabulous experience of having Marc Palmieri, author, join our Zoom meeting. He very graciously answered all the members’ questions and provided insights into how to book came about as well as updates on how he, his daughter and family have been doing since the book was published.a
March 15: National Epilepsy Walk: This event is more than just a walk - it’s an opportunity to come together as a community with families, friends, and advocates in the heart of our nation’s capital. It is for anyone, whether directly impacted by epilepsy or simply wanting to show support!
March 10: YouTube conversation with Dr. Lorna Myers on psychogenic non-epileptic seizures (PNES): Dr. Lorna Myers was invited to spend an hour on "Seize"ure The Day! with Roxanne Davenport speaking about psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES).
March 05 Webinar: Introduction to Psychogenic non-epileptic seizures (PNES): Dr. Lorna Myers was invited by the Epilepsy Association of Western and Central PA to present on Psychogenic non-epileptic seizures (PNES). The webinar’s title was: Introduction to Psychogenic non-epileptic seizures (PNES)
