Epilepsy, a neurological disorder affecting the central nervous system can cause seizures ranging from mild to severe. It can however lead to two or more unprovoked seizures. Precautionary measures can be taken to prevent extreme injury and people with epilepsy can live normal lives.
Celebrities too have fallen prey to epileptic attacks. Here is a list of few celebrity artists who have dealt with this condition, and later have bravely spoken about it, impacting the lives of millions and bringing awareness.
PRINCE
The Grammy Award-winner, who recently passed away on April.26,2016, suffered from epilepsy as a child. He publicly spoke about his childhood battle in 2009 to the People magazine. He had loving parents, who failed to help the artist in his difficulties. The artist was bullied at school. Keeping the bad memories aside, he successfully made his career in music and developed a style of his own. "Early in my career I tried to compensate by being as flashy as I could and as noisy as I could," said the artist. Prince, went on to become an iconic figure, giving a tough competition to his medical condition.
Neil Young
Singer-songwriter Neil Young also suffered from this medical condition. His daughter too inherited this condition. He wrote about his battle with epilepsy and the painful procedures which gave him excruciating pain in his memoir, "Waging Heavy Peace".
"It has to do with having a radioactive dye injected into your nervous system — basically into your back, so it goes right into your nervous system ... They usually get some bubbles of air and stuff in there too, so when those go through your brain, it's excruciating, " said Young. He is a fighter and his story goes on to inspire millions. He is an inspiration to his daughter as well.
Susan Boyle
The "Britain's Got Talent" star, and great persona who wooed the crowds with her lovely voice has also opened up about having epilepsy. She struggled with the condition throughout her childhood, "At school I used to faint a lot. It's something I've never talked about. I had epilepsy. People in the public eye don't have things like that. All through my childhood they'd say epilepsy is to do with mental function. And now I realize it's not. I was up against all those barriers. It wasn't easy," said Boyle.
Elton John
Elton John, the previous drug and alcohol addict who now leads a much calmer and cleaner life, had opened up to the public after finally seeking help in 1990.John, who suffered an overdose in 1975, would turn blue from epileptic seizures after using cocaine, then snort more when he came back to his senses. He told the "Today Show", that he felt as if he threw away a good chunk of his life to these addictions. He went on to be a role model for those fighting drug addiction and the same disorder.
Amy Lee
Singer Amy Lee rose to fame with the rock group Evanescence, and she used her star power to raise awareness on something that she was personally affected by. Although in this case, it was not her that experienced this condition, but her brother who had his first seizure when he was eight years old. Lee has made it her mission to raise awareness about the chronic disorder. In 2006, she became the American chairperson for "Out of the Shadows", an international foundation for providing education about epilepsy to the masses.
