Katie was 13 years old when medications no longer control her epilepsy. Almost a year she spent in the hospital, unable to walk independently. Just two years after discharge, she ran the city’s marathon, and even 7 bouts for 4 hours did not stop her. “Pravmir” tells how a girl-a runner, who experiences more than 10 epileptic seizures per day.
Katie Cook. Photo: irishrunner.ie
- “Get up and go that you never will,” said the doctor
- Why think about why I’m in a wheelchair, if you can just live
- Epilepsy and warm hands of God
- The rapid life of a person in a wheelchair
Mom helped dress me and then I started running
Katie cook lives in Ireland, the girls are aggressive and refractory (i.e., medication does not help with the epileptic seizures) epilepsy. Every day she is experiencing more than 10 seizures.
The diagnosis of “epilepsy frontal lobe” the girl put in 9 years. To 13 years, the doctors were able to control the disease with medication. In the transition to adulthood, the seizures returned, and until now, neurologists can’t find Katie’s treatment.
In 2013, a fifteen year old girl of 8 months was treated in Kruglinski children’s hospital of the mother of God. For Katie it was a difficult time. She was detached from school and their friends, suffered from frequent seizures and constant medication, and was experiencing psychological problems.
In addition, for six months the girl was confined to a wheelchair and in only 16 years has been slow to recover.
“I couldn’t get out of bed, couldn’t do for themselves and could not speak. My mom dressed me and helped to take a shower,” she tells later in the interview.
Almost immediately after discharge, the girl began to work out in the gym, including classes on the run. “I wore sneakers and started running. It sounds like a cliché, but you feel the altitude when unable to do something,” she says. In 2015, Cathy has achieved initial success she ran the Dublin mini-marathon in less than an hour, and in October of the same year completed the Dublin marathon in 4 hours 11 minutes after 7 attacks.
@nike Katie Cooke finishes the Dublin Marathon in 4hrs11mins after 7 epileptic seizures along the way! #worthyoursupport pic.twitter.com/U9EVzgnP5G
— Colin Doherty (@gastaut) October 28, 2015
To stop people who just want to get her in the ambulance
In training and during marathons Katie helps her doctor, neurologist from hospital St James’s Hospital Colleen Doherty. “I am an expert on epilepsy, but my role during the run with Katie is to stop people who just want to get her on the ambulance. I just stand there and say: “is Cathy all right, I’m her doctor, she’ll be fine”,” says Colin.
Katie and her doctor run not just for personal success. Together they raise people’s awareness about epilepsy and help to raise funds for the centre in the hospital St James’s Hospital. Also Katie willingly gives interviews, including allowing journalists to film themselves during attacks, and talks about his illness.
Many believe that the attacks happen all of a sudden, the girl says, but she’s actually aware of the occurrence of most of them. “I sometimes feel signal that warns me about the attack, the so-called aura,” she says.
“It is sometimes worse than the attack, as I feel very vulnerable, I think someone will come for me. It can last for hours”.
Try not to let my illness affect the life of
The disease affects the education of girls due to prolonged hospitalization, she had to homeschool. It should also be very attentive to their own health. “I have carefully meds, because I had more than 20 hospitalizations due to prolonged seizures. But when you are only 18, it’s hard to constantly think about the risks”.
Katie doesn’t like to complain about their health. “I don’t like to talk a lot about how these attacks affect my life. I can talk about the difficulties, especially on how to Wake up after 8 or 10 attacks in the night quite dull and it’s bad for my daily activity,” she says.
“But I try not to let my illness affect me. I have friends that used to my attacks and since I usually recover quickly, we just accepted it and spend most of my “good” days.”
Sport helps Katie cope with the problems that brought her epilepsy. “It’s hard to describe the feeling that I feel after running. As if I was 100 pounds lighter. It helps me deal with stress,” says the athlete.
Photo: Dara Mac Dónaill
“Katie is truly wonderful. She has many seizures every day, and we have yet to find drugs that will help control her epilepsy, but she won’t let disease stop her to achieve success,” says her doctor.
“I first ran with it during a half-marathon in June and then during the Dublin city marathon. She had several attacks on both courses, each lasting 1-2 minutes. And every time she again got up and ran forward. She finished the last marathon in 4 hours, although she had 7 seizures during her journey,” says Colin.
According to the materials of The Irish Times, Inspire More International Epilepsy Day, BBC