This Week in Epilepsy: Blog Relay Week 2

Epilepsy Stigma

We are now in week two of the #EpilepsyBlogRelay, which is designed to shine a spotlight on epilepsy stigma. Throughout the month of June, epilepsy bloggers and organizations from #Philly to #Cameroon are writing about #stigma on their own sites. Here’s a recap in case you missed any of this week’s posts.

Day 8

Live Happier: The Stigma of Epilepsy…Your Husband Doesn’t Work?

I knew he had seizures…he had told me about them. But I still wasn’t prepared for it when he had a grand mal in front of me. It was 4am and I woke up to him convulsing next to me… Read More

Day 9

The Unwelcome Visitor

Welcome to my blog on epilepsy, which I have named The Unwelcome Visitor (tuv). After suffering from (tuv) epilepsy since it came into my life many decades ago when I suffered from my first grand mal attack…Read More

Day 10

Epilepsy Stigma…and a Helmet

I started having seizures when I was 8 years old. I feel extremely fortunate to have not dealt with the stigma that is associated with epilepsy. I have had my drivers license suspended a good amount of times, but at least I am able to drive… Read More

Day 11

Health360

Picture a young family getting ready for work and school in the morning. The hectic pace coupled with the need to get out the door. Six and a half years ago, my youngest daughter had her first seizure on that morning… Read More

Day 12

Cameroon Epilepsy Foundation

The colloquial terms for epilepsy in North West Cameroon is “fainting sick” “fainting fit” and “falling down sick”.It is thought to be contagious, that you can catch epilepsy by touching someone during a seizure. Because of this, many people with epilepsy are not taken to places of safety during seizures. Read More

Day 13

Ride the Rockies for Epilepsy

It is in the plans to have a procedure later in the year to deal with the AVM in my left temporal lobe. Lastly, I want to thank my family, for getting behind me with their time and support, incredible!…Read More

Day 14

SCEpilepsy

South Carolina Advocates For Epilepsy has devoted its energy to passionately advocating for the members of the epilepsy community. Raising the level of awareness in South Carolina, removing the stigma often associated with seizures and epilepsy, … Read More

Follow the #EpilepsyBlogRelay

Don’t miss a single post. Follow along with the schedule at https://livingwellwithepilepsy.com/epilepsy-blog-relay-2015

Jessica K. Smith Founder and CEO; Executive Director

Jessica Keenan Smith is a patient advocate and epilepsy community leader with more than 15 years of experience. As Founder and CEO of Living Well With Epilepsy and Executive Director of ASENT she bridges the gap between the scientific and patient communities, with a particular focus on the needs of the epilepsies. Jessica Keenan Smith is Founder and CEO of Living Well With Epilepsy, an award winning online resource for people affected by epilepsy to share stories and access in-depth information on the disease. Since 2009, Living Well With Epilepsy (https://livingwellwithepilepsy.com) has been featured in Forbes, Wired, NBC, NPR and the cover story of Epilepsy Advocate Magazine and has partnered with companies such as UCB, Lundbeck, Sunovion, Eisai, and more. Ms. Smith is also the Executive Director of the American Society for Experimental Neurotherapeutics (ASENT) (https://asent.org), an organization that brings together leaders from industry, academia, government and advocacy who are engaged in bringing drugs and devices to market across all neurologic disease states. In this role she is responsible for leading a successful scientific journal and annual scientific conference with speakers from all over the world.

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