Lottie Wynn, 37, who is often left ‘black and blue’ after an epileptic fit, faces rude comments and stares from the public who assume she has been beaten up
A woman who is often left “black and blue” after an epileptic fit says strangers assume she has been in a fight.
Lottie Wynn, 37, is often faced with rude comments and stares from the public who assume she has been beaten up.
The customer service representative can be seen with black eyes and cuts after banging her head during a seizure.
Lottie, from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, is sharing her story to raise awareness of epilepsy injuries in a bid to prevent judgemental stares.
“Unfortunately, it is quite common for me sustain an injury when I have a seizure,” she said.
“I always seem to fall forward and bang my head. One time, I came round and blood was gushing down my face.
“It turns out, I had face planted a radiator when I had a seizure. I had to get stitches and I now have a scar on my right eyebrow.
“I have also been left with black eyes and a huge lump on my forehead following a seizure.
“I do my best to cover up bruises but it can be hard when my face is swollen. The bruises make people feel like they should be wary of me as they think I have been in a fight or hit by a partner.
“Nobody ever thinks it is an epileptic injury. I feel vulnerable and uncomfortable with the injuries in public. Someone has asked me if I had a fall out with my partner which made me feel very uncomfortable.”
The single woman explains there are many symptoms that come with the condition.
She suffers from losing awareness that causes her mind to go ‘completely blank’ along with twitches and seizures.
“Epilepsy is so misrepresented,” she added, “it is not what people think. It’s not just convulsions and blacking out, there’s other symptoms too.
“I have twitches daily but and my brain goes completely blank. I have probably had epilepsy for about 99 per cent my life and I didn’t know.
“I used to black out and faint a lot but it took years to get a diagnosis. I didn’t ever think it would be epilepsy until I was diagnosed in March 2022.
“Fortunately, I haven’t had a seizure for 12 months so I am hoping to get my driving license back soon.”
Lottie is now sharing her story to make people think twice when they see someone with bruises.
She said: I want to open up the bigger picture and remove the assumptions.
“It is taking a step back and looking at the bigger picture. I am hoping people can be more compassionate and sympathetic when they see someone with bruises on their face.”
Source: mirror.co.uk, Lucy Notarantonio, Adam May
