Connect with an Epilepsy Foundation Affiliate

Connecting online is a great way to learn, make friends, and get support. Yet doing this in person adds another dimension that is so helpful! This past weekend I was honored to be a part of Epilepsy Foundation Michigan’s Wellness and Epilepsy Conference. I learned so much from the speakers, especially Epilepsy Foundation President and CEO Phil Gattone as he shared how epilepsy has touched his life and how the Foundation is moving forward in so many ways  - with research, awareness, education and help throughout our country.

My role at the conference was to talk about the Epilepsy Pipeline and what’s happening in epilepsy research. What new therapies have come to life in the past year, what may be coming in the near future, and what may be a bit further away but still visible? I think it’s critical that the entire epilepsy community knows what is being done and how we can help make this progress become a reality. The Epilepsy Foundation wants this research on new therapies to yield results “in a time frame that matters” – a timeframe that can help people now who are living with epilepsy.

Visiting people involved with the Michigan affiliate was enormously helpful for me. I always learn so much by listening to each person’s experiences with seizures, their concerns and how they struggle or overcome the challenges of epilepsy. I saw how people learned from each other and gave a helping hand so easily. I met people who have lived with epilepsy for many years and some who were just diagnosed days ago. Some people were seizure free. Others were living with one of the severe epilepsies with an unknown future. People came from many different walks of life with a common goal and a willingness to connect and help each other.

If you are wondering how the Epilepsy Foundation may help you,

• Please find an Epilepsy Foundation affiliate in your area. Go to one of their conferences. Connect with the staff and others living with epilepsy.
• Learn about the Epilepsy Foundation, its vision, research, programs and services.

You’ll join a community that can truly make a difference – a community where each person can make a difference!

Thank you to all our Epilepsy Foundation affiliates and to people living with epilepsy everywhere.

Best wishes,

Patty Osborne Shafer RN, MN
Associate Editor/Community Manager