A BRAIN haemorrhage left Allison Tordoff with a frightening condition she will have to deal with for the rest of her life.

Her epilepsy means the mum-of-two, of Waterhill Lane, Friendly, Sowerby Bridge, has to take medication to prevent her having fits.

But now she is speaking out about her experiences to help other sufferers.

"People need to know about epilepsy," she said.

"People should be aware of what they should do if they see someone with epilepsy having a fit."

Allison, 38, is supporting a campaign to highlight the conditions and what it means for women with it.

She was diagnosed in 2002 after suffering a sudden brain haemorrhage while driving home from college in Bradford.

She crashed her car and was taken to hospital where she needed weeks of treatment before six months at home recovering.

When they found out the haemorrhage had caused her to develop epilepsy, she and her husband Richard – a firefighter in Bradford – had to explain the condition to their sons Jack, now 12, and James, nine.

Back then she didn't know much about epilepsy and was worried what would happen if she had a fit when she was not at home or with her sons.

Allison's epilepsy is now under control, thanks to medication, so fits are rare for her, but she still needs to make sure she can make herself safe if she does have one.

"I know about 10 minutes before that it's going to happen," she said.

"I get a buzzing in my ears so I know something is going to happen and I can get myself to a safe place."

She makes sure her neighbours and colleagues at Warley Town School, Warley, Halifax, where she is a teaching assistant, know about her condition.

But she says it is always at the back of her mind because stress or excitement can trigger fits.

"You learn to deal with it," she said.

"I used to think because of my disability I wouldn't be able to go into teaching but I'm getting the support for it."

Epilepsy Action's campaign – An Ideal World For Women – aims to highlight the treatment needs of women with epilepsy.

It says women can need support at the onset of puberty, pre-conception counselling, joint maternity care with a midwife and an epilepsy specialist nurse, information on how epilepsy can impact on caring for a baby and advice on the effects of the meno-pause.


Fact file
* Epilepsy is defined as a tendency to have recurrent seizures. These are caused by a sudden burst of excess electrical activity in the brain, resulting in a temporary disruption in the normal message passing between brain cells. This disruption results in the brain's messages becoming halted or mixed up.

* There are different types of seizures, ranging from brief absent moments to episodes of losing consciousness, falling to the floor and convulsing.

* Lack of sleep, stress, flicking or flashing light and excitement can trigger fits.

* If you see someone having an epileptic fit you should keep calm, monitor how long the seizure lasts, prevent others from crowding round, prevent injury by cushioning the head and removing any sharp objects from nearby, and only move them if they are in immediate danger.

Famous epileptics
* Max Clifford
* Danny Glover
* Dean Ryan
* Rabbi Lionel Blue
* Julius Caesar
* Vincent Van Gogh