I am again running the NYC Marathon this year and fundraising to support the work of the Epilepsy Foundation of Metropolitan New York (EFMNY). All proceeds raised will go to support epilepsy awareness, education and empowerment programs which help improve the quality of life of epilepsy patients and their families. Why am I doing this? I am one of those epilepsy patients, but a very lucky one.

I was diagnosed with complex partial epilepsy 16 years ago. Regardless of all the ups and downs along the way, I still consider myself to be very fortunate that my condition is very well controlled with medication. To me, no one is perfectly healthy (really); my brain just likes to tease me with unusual signals once in a while, which leads to a seizure. But with such great support from amazing people in my life, nowadays when it happens I have learned to stop asking what I did wrong to deserve this (okay, I usually bitch about it a little bit), get up and move on. My parents say I am no different from other people; I believe them and I intend to live my life that way.

However, A LOT of epilepsy patients do not have this luxury. Many types of epilepsy cannot be controlled even with multiple medications or brain surgery. Some of us have hopes and dreams shattered in front of our eyes because of uncontrolled seizures and sometimes there is nothing we can do about it. Support and empowerment are keys to thriving with epilepsy and that is why the work of EFMNY is so crucial! Not another valuable moment should be lost to seizures.

Please support my effort to raise awareness around the issues of epilepsy while training for the NYC Marathon by making donation on this page. If your employer has a matching program, please let me know so I can provide you with any information you need. On behalf of EFMNY, all patients this great organization serves and their families, I thank you very much for your generosity. As I cross the finish line on November 4th, 2012 (hopefully faster than last year), you and I have helped improve lives of those impacted by epilepsy.

Yours in Health,

Bert

P.S. To learn more about the work of EFMNY, please click HERE