Raising awareness of epilepsy in Berkshire
Friday 26th March is 'Purple Day'
Purple day is a time to get people talking about epilepsy, raise awareness of the condition and raise vital funds.
The day was started in 2008 by Cassidy Megan and since then it has grown to be a global event raising awareness of the impact epilepsy can have on people's lives.
Epilepsy is one of the most common serious neurological conditions in the world that affects around 600,000 people in the UK.
There are over 40 different types of seizure, and not all of them are physical which is why epilepsy can also be an invisible condition.
50% of those with epilepsy say they wish the public knew that the impact of the condition is so much more than seizures – including medicine side-effects, mental health impacts and memory problems’.
Kevin Boyle from Epilepsy Berkshire told us they would normally be raising awareness at the Royal Berkshire Hospital today, but due to restrictions everything has been moved online:
"We've got two zoom sessions today, one in the morning at 10.30 where I'll be giving a short presentation about epilepsy for those who are not perhaps familiar with certain aspects of it and then in the evening at 7.30 we have another zoom session for our members which will be a bit more fun.
"We're aiming to wear our t-shirts which we've just had produced for us all and purple rosettes, we have a purple themed quiz, purple pictures from grandchildren, poems with a purple theme and some music as well."
Epilepsy Berkshire is a small charity that was set up to help people in the area and close to the boarders of the county living with Epilepsy.
It's run by people living with Epilepsy, carers and people who have volunteered to support them in their aims.
You can find out more about the the charity by visiting the Epilepsy Berkshire website.