"A Letter To Young Natalie"
Blog with Living Well with Epilepsy & sponsored by Sunovion
Hello Natalie
You are such a beautiful child. Your smile brightens the room and everyone in it when you enter. It’s like you have the light when it’s dark. You were only five when you were diagnosed with epilepsy. At times, life may seem hard for you, but know that you are strong! I am here to share some advice that may help you along the way.
I know you are frightened of elementary school because there are so many people there who aren’t your family. Sometimes you’re embarrassed about a visible bump or bruise from a seizure. You want to stay home from school to hide it. Please don’t spend so much time feeling afraid of embarrassing yourself and your family. You’re putting that shame on yourself. You have amazing and supportive people around you—friends and teachers who are right there with you. No one will bully or make fun of you because of epilepsy—and when you grow up, you’ll help young people living with epilepsy who have been bullied. You’ll help them be strong because you are strong, even though you might not know that yet.
I see you standing at the classroom door saying, “I don’t think I want to go to recess today,” because you don’t want classmates seeing you have an episode. But your friends are knocking at the door, asking you to come out and play, because they don’t care that you have seizures.
Natalie Y. Beavers
Survivor, Advocate, Mentor
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