Maddie was 19 when she had her first seizure.
Now 22, in the last five months she has experienced more than 400 seizures.
Your tax-deductible donation can help ensure Maddie, and thousands of Queenslanders like her, get the support they need.
The night that changed everything
“I was 19 when I had my first seizure. That was November 2023 and then a month later I had my second and was formally diagnosed with epilepsy.
“It came out of the blue. I had no idea that epilepsy could develop at any time of life - I always assumed it was something you always had or you didn't have.
“Wrapping my head around that was hard. I’d gone through my whole life up until that point without any issues and, suddenly, everything changed.”
- Maddie
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Maddie's first seizure
"The night of my first seizure, I was sitting around atable chatting with friends when I leant over, almost as if I was trying to show them something, and started talking, but I wasn't making sense.
“My head suddenly slammed down onto the table as I went into a tonic clonic seizure for about five minutes. The first I knew of it was waking up in hospital the next morning.
“At that time, I thought it would be a one-off. But after the second seizure happened, the neurologists asked a lot of questions. It turned out that what felt like ‘zoning out’ in high school - including periods of total blackouts, where I just couldn’t remember what had happened – was probably absence seizures.
“With medication, my seizures were managed and, for almost two years, I was seizure free. Then last November (2025), when I was driving home from my sister’s house, I felt an aura come on just as I was passing a satellite hospital, so pulled in there. My seizures had started again.
“Over the next five months, I had over 400 seizures. Some days, I’ll have two or three, other days I’ve had as many as 17.”
Epilepsy can change a life in seconds. Epilepsy Queensland can change what happens next.
Your tax-deductible gift allows us to bridge the gap between clinical care and everyday life for people like Maddie, empowering them to live safely, confidently, and with dignity.
Personalised plans keeping people with epilepsy safe
$99
Every person living with epilepsy experiences the condition differently. Your gift of $99 will provide an Epilepsy Management Plan (EMP) tailored to a individual's specific circumstances, giving those around them the information they need to keep that person safe.
Building confidence and understanding
$250
Many parents have never heard of epilepsy before their child is diagnosed. Your gift of $250 will provide a family with a free education session to equip them with the knowledge they need to better understand and manage their child's condition.
Partnering with families to navigate complex needs
$500
There is no one-size-fits-all answer when it comes to epilepsy support. Your gift of $500 will provide comprehensive and holistic support to a family or individual, allowing them to move through complex challenges at any stage in their epilepsy journey.
