A Sheffield man with epilepsy is calling for more seizure response awareness after no-one helped him during a seizure in Sheffield City Centre.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Joe Robbins, 29, has been epileptic since he was five, and has experienced seizures throughout his whole life.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The biomedical scientist was walking home along Glossop Road in the city centre on 21 April when he had a seizure.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cIt was a busy day in the lunch rush, and I woke up and I was on the ground completely unaware of what had happened. It took me a second to come around.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a postictal effect which causes a lot of memory loss and a lot of confusion, and after I got home it occurred to me that no one had come to my aid.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Robbins added usually someone will check that he is breathing or conscious.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere were plenty of people around when I blacked out, so I can only assume they thought I was drunk or high or something.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt disregarded and prejudged but also vulnerable. I could have died in that moment.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Mr Robbins, along with many other epileptic people, is at risk of Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP).<\/p>\n
Approximately one in 1,000 people with epilepsy die from SUDEP each year.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cMy seizures are more frequent when I\u2019m more anxious or vulnerable, quite often when I\u2019m out and about, but usually there\u2019s someone with me.\u201d<\/p>\n
On 8 April , Mr Robbins had a similar experience on West Street in the city centre when no-one came to help.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cI\u2019m a very resilient person because I\u2019ve been living with it for 20 years now.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBut it is a hindrance, always having to be dependent on someone. I\u2019m always having to rely on someone to almost keep watch over me.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt feels like you\u2019re a child that needs to be cared for and that impacts my sense of independence.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Robbins is calling for more education around epilepsy awareness, urging people to help in these life threatening events.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He says if you notice someone having a seizure, you should go over, check their responsiveness and breathing, see if you can find a necklace or bracelet with emergency details and call 999.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cEven if it helps save one life by speaking out about this, that\u2019s enough for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
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