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Any phrase, idea that helped you navigate life with epilepsy?
Epilepsy & Seizures | Last Active: 7 hours ago | Replies (37)Comment receiving replies
OK. I will rephrase as best I can. My post was not meant to cause harm. I have a long list of seizure precipitants. One is extreme unnecessary emotional distress. So this can occur when people with no knowledge of epilepsy etc expect things from you that are not realistic attainable or sustainable then they gaslight you. AKA you are selfish doing something wrong calling you names etc. I have experienced this myself. The consequence was the relationship ended or I set firm limits on my interaction with them.
Replies to "OK. I will rephrase as best I can. My post was not meant to cause harm...."
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Hi @kb2014a
Thank you so much for rephrasing your post.
Emotional stress is a well-recognized seizure trigger and protecting ourselves from unnecessary and harmful stress isn't a luxury — it's part of managing our condition. Toxic relationships that bring that kind of distress certainly belong to that equation. And let's face it — toxic people are part of life, with or without epilepsy. Distancing yourself from those relationships, or ending them altogether, was the right thing to do.
I've done that myself with a few people. Rather than fighting to make them understand my condition and the changes it brought — which in itself only brings more stress — I chose to step back.
When you're well, everyone wants to be close to you. But as soon as you face difficulties, you discover which relationships are true and which were merely built on convenience. One of the bright sides of my epilepsy journey has been exactly that clarity: knowing who the people and friends I can truly count on are.
I'd love to hear from others in the group — has anyone here faced similar challenges? And if so, how did you come out of it?
Chris
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