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Thursday, March 26th, 2009 - 22:23:58
Today was Purple Day, the brainstorm of Cassidy Megan of Nova Scotia, a nine-year-old who has epilepsy. On her website, she says, "I started Purple Day because I wanted to tell everyone about epilepsy, especially that all seizures are not the same and that people with epilepsy are ordinary people just like everyone else. I also wanted kids with epilepsy to know that they are not alone. Before I started Purple Day, I was afraid to tell people about my epilepsy because I thought they would make fun of me. After the Epilepsy Association of Nova Scotia did a presentation in my class, I started to talk with the other kids about my seizures. That is when I decided to become a spokesperson for kids with epilepsy."
Why purple? Lavender is the international colour for epilepsy.
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In Wawa, Melanie Pilon, spearheaded the promotion of Purple Day. She began by speaking to the Rotary Club of Wawa last Wednesday. With an informative presentation stating the numbers, she put a very personal touch on her presentation. Melanie, as Cassidy is epileptic. Her last seizure in August 2008, left her with abrasions on her cheeks, a swollen and blackened eye, and some damage to her teeth. It wasn't the kind of injury you could hid with makeup, so she endured the questions, and suppositions as to how she got marked so severely. As a result of the seizure, Melanie lost the privledge of driving. That was so hard for Melanie because she lives in the Mission, and had to rely on others to drive her to work, or any other event. Prior to this, her last seizure was in 2002.
Melanie was diagnosed very early in life, and thinks that it may have been triggered as part of a head injury as a young child. However, that is only supposition, there is no clearly defined cause of epilepsy. Researchers state that between 0.5 and 1% of the population suffers from epilepsy – an estimated 50 million people worldwide! Melanie considers herself very lucky though, she is able to live on her own, and has received her driver's licence back (seizure free for six months). Some sufferers of epilepsy cannot live on their own, many can never hold a driver's licence, others have service dogs who alert them to an impending seizure.
This is Wawa's first ever Purple Day, and Melanie hopes that it will grow larger next year. Melanie will be forwarding a photograph of the group to Cassidy, to show that she is inspiring others.
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