Maddi Shaw

Walking for Epilepsy: My Story, My Walk, My Why 💜

Hey everyone! 

If you know me, you’ll know I’m usually pretty happy to have a laugh, get out and about and enjoy life. But in 2025, my life changed in a way I never really expected.

At 24 years old, I was diagnosed with epilepsy.

Before my diagnosis, I honestly didn’t know that much about epilepsy. I knew what a seizure was, or at least what I thought a seizure looked like, but I quickly realised there was so much more to learn.

Epilepsy can look completely different from one person to another, and that’s one of the biggest reasons I wanted to do this walk.

Why am I doing this walk? 

I’m walking to help raise awareness, educate people about epilepsy and raise money to support people living with epilepsy and their families.

Being diagnosed with epilepsy can come with a lot of questions. There can be uncertainty, changes to everyday life and plenty of things you never really thought you’d have to consider at 24.

But I also don’t want my diagnosis to define me.

I’m still Maddi. I’m still 24. I still want to have fun, make memories, laugh way too loudly and probably complain about my legs halfway through this walk! 

So instead of letting epilepsy be something I only see as a negative, I want to use my experience to help create something positive.

Let’s talk about epilepsy

One thing I’ve learnt since my diagnosis is that epilepsy isn’t just about the stereotypical seizure that you might see on TV.

There are different types of seizures, and they can affect people in very different ways. Some seizures are obvious, while others might be much harder to recognise.

That’s why awareness and education are so important to me.

The more people understand epilepsy, the more confident they can be when supporting someone who has a seizure. It also helps break down the misconceptions and stigma that can surround epilepsy.

And honestly, if my walk can help even one person learn something they didn’t know before, I’ll be pretty happy.

Every step makes a difference 

I’m not expecting everyone to be able to run a marathon or suddenly become a professional walker. 

Whether you join me for the walk, donate, share my fundraiser, tell someone about epilepsy or simply take a few minutes to learn more about it — it all makes a difference.

The money raised will help support important work around epilepsy, including awareness, education, support and research.

For me, this walk is about bringing people together and showing that even something as simple as putting one foot in front of the other can help make a difference.

Come walk with me! 

So, if you’re up for it, I’d love for you to join me.

Bring your friends. Bring your family. Bring your walking shoes. Bring snacks. Bring a questionable playlist. 

Most importantly, bring yourself and help me start more conversations about epilepsy.

I might have been diagnosed with epilepsy in 2025, but I don’t want my story to stop there.

I want to use my experience to educate, raise awareness, support others and hopefully make epilepsy a little less misunderstood.

So let’s walk, talk, laugh and raise some money along the way.

One step at a time. 

Thank you to everyone who supports me, donates, shares my story or simply comes along for the walk. It genuinely means so much to me.💜