As an individual who has had grand mal epilepsy for 25 years, I want to thank you deeply for your article [“Startling Seizure,” Feb. 18, City Weekly]. While I am considered the more “standard” version of epilepsy, I do appreciate your showing the general public just what we continually go through. While 99 percent of folks have no clue about seizures, the medical world is unable to ever find a cause for around 70 percent of epileptics. I am one of those.
As a longtime stagehand (whose union treats its members with a great deal of care and understanding), I’ve been around many “medical” seminars/shows where doctors reveal their real personalities. What is tragic is how many government organizations (Social Security, Medicare, Deptartment of Workforce Services, etc.) accept “a doctor’s word” at the expense of those of us with a condition that no one wants to help.
For example, on Feb. 8, while doing research at the Provo Deptartment of Workforce Services, I had a grand mal seizure. The employees were very kind and called an ambulance.
But the problem for me: I am being denied Medicare. So, in person, one can see human compassion. But, a system set up to obey details and rules and run by bureaucrats is very negative. I speak personally about the costs of medical prejudice. But I hope this begins a new investigation about how this wonderful society lets many of its citizens go because of previous prejudices and just plain ol’ greed. I wonder how many epileptics are allowed to work on Wall Street?
John Campbell
Provo