Mom Kelly Duncan had been diagnosed with epilepsy when she was 16, a condition which dogged her into her adult life.
Her condition frequently sent into into fits, but eight years ago she had undergone a surgery which kept it at bay.
“Since then, she’d suffered just half a dozen, which meant [her husband] Paul could take more work away from their home in Hartlepool,” said a Mirror report.
Photo credit: Mirror UK
This also meant that their eight-year-old son Alex was familiar with her mother’s epilepsy. So when she suffered an attack while she was home, he immediately knew what to do and called his father.
Paul recalled that day’s events: “I was working away near Nottingham and Alex called me up at 6:10AM on the Friday.
“He said mom’s had a fit—mom’s not moving’. I said ‘I’m driving home, you call 999 and get an ambulance’.”
Paul got in touch with a friend to check up on his family. The police then got in touch with him and said they had been working on his wife for almost an hour.
“Once I got home, when the police were still there, I knew she was gone,” he said. “I just broke down—I was heartbroken.”
Photo credit: Mirror UK
Paul and his family has since prepared the arrangements for Kelly’s funeral, and to help with the bills, they’ve set up a find raising page on GoFundMe.
“I’ve been feeling the worst first thing in the morning and last thing at night, as that’s the hardest part,” said Paul. “But when I’ve broke down Alex will say ‘don’t worry dad we will get through it’ and he will just cuddle me.
“He just tells me to be brave.”
Next page find out more about epilepsy and its risks
What is epilepsy?
According to Epilepsy Foundation, epilepsy is a chronic disorder characterized by recurrent and unprovoked seizures. “Many people with epilepsy have more than one type of seizure and may have other symptoms of neurological problems as well.”
Because of its effects, epilepsy significantly risks one’s safety, relationships, work, and other activities that require concentration and focus.
“The seizures in epilepsy may be related to a brain injury or a family tendency, but often the cause is completely unknown,” the foundation also said. “The word ‘epilepsy’ does not indicate anything about the cause of the person’s seizures or their severity.”
Epilepsy is also the fourth most common neurological disorder, affects people of all ages.
READ: Harrison Ford opens up about daughter’s epilepsy battle: ‘She’s my hero’
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