Woman with Epilepsy Helps Erase Myths as H.O.P.E. Mentor

By Sylvia Blair
between us staff
Updated: March 10, 2004

As a H.O.P.E. mentor,
Anna Crowel draws from her
personal experiences
to educate others.

She used to run a support group for people with epilepsy in her hometown.

The horror stories about how they were treated by uninformed people in the community used to make Anna Crowel's heart ache.

But when the Concord, Calif., native witnessed a person with complex partial seizures (aimless wandering and loss of awareness) get arrested by police who assumed the person was on drugs, she decided to take a stand on behalf of people with epilepsy.

You see, Crowel also suffers from epilepsy and wants to set the record straight. She wants people to know there are definite do’s and don’ts for seizure first aid. That people with epilepsy are not crazy. That people with epilepsy can function in society as well as anyone else.

She decided to use her passion for teaching others by becoming a volunteer for the Epilepsy Foundation's H.O.P.E. Mentoring Program. It provides trained speakers, who are directly or indirectly affected by epilepsy, for community presentations about this complex and fascinating medical condition.

The speakers program is part of a national project to demystify the disorder and improve the lives of people who have it. All speakers are recently certified in basic epilepsy knowledge and presentation skills.

"Knowledge is power. The more people know about epilepsy, the less they will fear it," Crowel said.

"I speak to elementary school teachers, dental hygiene students, bus drivers, head start teachers, senior centers staff, and home health aides," Crowel continued. "Their reactions are wonderful. I can share my personal experiences. They tell me they learn so much."

Crowel had her first seizure when she was 14 years old. When she was 17, she had a seizure in the swimming pool and almost drowned. After that, she was diagnosed with epilepsy. She has complex partial seizures that sometimes turn into convulsions.

Thanks to daily medication, her seizures are now well under control. She works as a personnel manager at a temporary help service, which provides respiratory therapists to client hospitals.

Her good health and energy allow her to fit in as many speaking engagements during her personal time as she can.

Neva Hirschkorn, education services director at the Epilepsy Foundation of Northern California in Oakland, Calif., works with Crowel to set up H.O.P.E. presentations.

"It’s amazing how many presentations Anna personally solicits. She knows the community inside and out. She is eager to tell people how to handle seizures, share her personal story, and try to erase the stigma associated with epilepsy," Hirschkorn said.