Anzli’s Story

My name is Anzli, I’m 17 years old and here is my purple warrior story. I started experiencing severe abdominal pain when I was 12. Initially, they suspected it was related to my gallbladder and anxiety, so they performed a cholecystectomy. I felt better for a while, but when I turned 13, my symptoms worsened and progressed. In December of 2019, just four months after my birthday, I was finally diagnosed with generalized epilepsy. Achieving full seizure control took several months, with several medication adjustments, but luckily, the first medication we tried worked right away. Later, in February of 2020, I was also diagnosed with Chiari Malformation, which had been causing me numerous headaches along with various other symptoms. Due to my worsening condition throughout the year, we decided to proceed with surgery. On August 10th, 2020, I underwent Chiari decompression surgery. I felt significantly better and enjoyed almost two years of seizure control. However, in September 2022, out of the blue, I had my first seizure after being seizure-free for a year and a half. We initially thought it might be a fluke due to having had Covid that week. I remember feeling disappointed, especially since it happened right before I was about to get my driver’s license. Thankfully, there were no more seizures until two days after Easter, when I had another one. I thought it might be a one-time occurrence, but my epilepsy then became drug-resistant epilepsy (D.R.E.). Going through this with my family has been incredibly challenging, leading to injuries and significant memory loss. After enduring six months of seizures occurring nearly every day or every other day and trying over 10 different medications, we have embarked on the next stage of my epilepsy journey: epilepsy surgery. After completing the PET Scan and MRI, my next step will be a 5-day EEG. This will undoubtedly be a challenging process, and my battle is far from over. However, I know that with the support of my EpiArts community and Team Booba army, I can overcome any obstacle in my path.