7 Questions You Probably Shouldn't Ask People with Epilepsy
In the short three months that I have been running this blog, I have noticed a small trend within epilepsy support groups on Facebook- people complaining about the questions they often get from non-epileptics. Although I am very vocal about epilepsy online and in person, I do not speak for the entire community. We may share the same condition, but each person’s epilepsy is different in its own way.
This month, I decided to ask a simple question in the group: Which questions from non-epileptics bother you the most?
Here are a few responses*
“Why do you shake when you have a seizure?”
“What kind of seizures do you have?”
“Why don’t you drive?”
“What are your triggers?”
“Is it safe for you to be working in an office with computers?”
“Have you tried CBD oil?”
“Why do you have epilepsy?”
We understand that people ask these questions due to lack of knowledge of epilepsy, not out of spite. Certain questions make us uncomfortable and more unwilling to answer them because it feels like an invasion of privacy. It is best to wait for us to bring up the topic of epilepsy when we feel ready to talk about it.
If you have a question about epilepsy, perhaps you can find your answer here.
*Names have been removed due to privacy reasons
-TGWE