Her mum described her daughter as “beautiful”, “full of life” with “a thoughtful and caring soul”.
17:14, 21 Apr 2026Updated 17:25, 21 Apr 2026
Megan Gardiner, who died unexpectedly at her home in Barry(Image: John Myers)
A pregnant 25-year-old woman from south Wales died as a result of a rare condition in epilepsy, a landmark inquest has heard. Megan Gardiner, from Barry, was 17 weeks’ pregnant when she died as a result of sudden unexpected death in epilespy (SUDEP) in June 2022, an inquest being held at Pontypridd coroners’ court has heard this week.
The inquest – expected to conclude on Friday – is the first in Wales to consider the significance of SUDEP risk discussions in epilepsy care. SUDEP is a rare condition affecting one in a thousand people with epilepsy annually and often happens during or after a seizure.
Coroner Kerrie Burge has heard evidence from Miss Gardiner’s mum Alison Woolcock, 55, who told the court the family were not properly aware of the risks associated with epilepsy and had not known there was a chance her daughter could die so suddenly.
Ms Woolcock described her daughter as “beautiful”, “full of life” with “a thoughtful and caring soul”. She told the hearing: “Megan was ambitious. An ultimate goal was [for her] to own her own business one day doing make-up. She became very skilled from watching plenty of makeup videos as well as RuPaul‘s drag race.
“She had a wonderfully sarcastic sense of humour. If she made a joke or liked a joke she would laugh about it forever. You could become the brunt of her jokes very easily.
“She got on really well with me and we shared lots of the same interests – interests that she got me into. She really supported me as well, with charity days, and would just be there whenever I needed her.
“She had a strong relationship with her father. They’re very similar character so they’d argue at times because they were so similar.”
Ms Woolcock described how her daughter was “spoiled” by her grandparents and loved to spend time watching TV with her grandad, and said she was especially close to her sister Tesni.
“They shared a bedroom together growing up and Tesni was also the first person that Megan told within the family that she was pregnant,” Ms Woolcock told the hearing.
Alison Woolcock, Miss Gardiner’s mother, spoke at her inquest which began on Monday(Image: John Myers)
Ms Burge set out three areas of interest that the inquest would explore; the nature and extent of Miss Gardiner’s pregnancy, the medication she was taking at the time of her death, and the advice and care she was given by medical professionals in regard to her pregnancy.
Miss Gardiner had epilepsy since she was 13. In good periods she would only have one seizure a month but at its worst she could have as many as four in one day, the hearing was told. Her seizures usually happened in the day time but not always.
The inquest heard Miss Gardiner attended her epilepsy appointments with her mother from when she was diagnosed until they became remote in 2020. Due to the pandemic her appointments were conducted over the phone and would often happen when her mother was at work.
Ms Woolcock told the court that Miss Gardiner had been advised from a young age that if she wished to have children a planned pregnancy would be best as medications could be adapted. Some epilepsy medications, such as sodium valproate, could be dangerous for babies, she recalled.
Ms Woolcock described how her daughter was compliant with her medication and when she asked her daughter if she had taken it, most days the response would be “yes” or that she would go straight to get it if she had not.
Also giving evidence at the inquest, Professor Philip Smith said he had concerns that these medications were not working for Miss Gardiner’s seizures.
Miss Gardiner pictured with her sister Tesni and parents Robert and Alison(Image: Gardiner family)
It was heard how as they were looking at new medications for her Miss Gardiner fell pregnant and so she chose not to take sodium valproate despite doctors recommending it when other medications had not worked. This was because it had been described to her as very dangerous for babies, the inquest heard.
It was also suggested that Miss Gardiner may not have understood that sodium valproate was only meant to be a temporary treatment, but she decided not to take it even though it might have helped improve her seizures.
Ms Woolcock told the court the family and Miss Gardiner understood her seizures posed a risk of injury but she said the risk of death was never outlined to them. She said SUDEP was never discussed and no precautionary measures, such as co-sleeping, were taken. If this had been explained Ms Woolcock said she would have done everything advised to her.
It was heard Miss Gardiner’s GP surgery wouldn’t usually start a discussion about SUDEP but they would have done so if a specialist had advised it, but there is no record that this discussion ever took place.
Prof Smith said it could have been the case the risk of SUDEP hadn’t been made clear to Miss Gardiner as an individual risk and that may have impacted her decisions around medications. He said he would have more frank conversations with patients in future.
The inquest continues.
Why we cover inquests – and why it’s so important that we do
As painful as these proceedings are for those who have lost a loved one the lessons that can be learned from inquests can go a long way to saving others’ lives.
The press has a legal right to attend inquests and has a responsibility to report on them as part of their duty to uphold the principle of open justice.
It’s a journalist’s duty to make sure the public understands the reasons why someone has died and to make sure their deaths are not kept secret. An inquest report can also clear up any rumours or suspicion surrounding a person’s death.
But, most importantly of all, an inquest report can draw attention to circumstances which may stop further deaths from happening.
Should journalists shy away from attending inquests then an entire arm of the judicial system is not held to account.
Inquests can often prompt a wider discussion on serious issues, the most recent of these being mental health and suicide.
Editors actively ask and encourage reporters to speak to the family and friends of a person who is the subject of an inquest. Their contributions help us create a clearer picture of the person who died and also provides the opportunity to pay tribute to their loved one.
Often families do not wish to speak to the press and of course that decision has to be respected. However, as has been seen by many powerful media campaigns, the input of a person’s family and friends can make all the difference in helping to save others.
Without the attendance of the press at inquests questions will remain unanswered and lives will be lost.