Dealing with daily epilepsy!!!

Hey everyone,

My name is Alexander Knowles, and I am epileptic!

I have had seizures since I was 9 years old (I’m now 30) when I almost drowned while competing with a sibling and unfortunately had a seizure. Thankfully I was saved by a lifeguard. I remember afterwards comforting my Mum who was crying as she took me to hospital, saying I was alright and don't worry, not realizing what nearly happened. Since then I have had seizures on a daily basis. Growing up and to this day I’ve hoped that a new pill or medication will work, or at least lower the amount of seizures I'm having. Because of the amount I have, I’ve been on numerous meds (currently 4 types) and am still having daily seizures with a few close encounters.

Being epileptic does not hold me back. I went to Massey in Palmerston North to do a 3 year degree. Unfortunately I do not have a very good memory and struggled with exams, causing me to spend an extra 4 years at uni, but I made it there in the end. Dedication and determination of not letting epilepsy hold me back led me to completing a bachelor of sport and exercise with a major in exercise prescription and training. Afterwards, I was able to luckily get a job as a PT at an Upper Hutt gym, where I worked as hard as I could. However, I had to do a final NZQA course which I also had a bit of trouble with, and also was a bit behind schedule, which caused me to be let go (I believe it was an excuse to fire me due to my condition). Since then (July 2018), I have been looking mainly for PT work alongside other work, but unfortunately have been turned down due to my condition and experience.

At the moment, a friend and I are very interested in starting our own gym. We are looking to raise funds so I can both start paying off my student loan of $45,000, and we can begin creating and building a private gym that is open to anyone interested in PT training and bootcamp sessions.

We want to create a place that is supportive and open to everyone, no matter what level of fitness they’re at or what health conditions they may have. We want to encourage people to make and meet their goals and to feel successful and accomplished.

If anyone out there is kind enough to donate some money, thank you and much appreciated!

If you have any questions feel free to ask.

Cheers,

Alex