Woman, 25, left unable to walk or talk after ‘work stress’ triggered brain condition that causes 25 seizures a day
A WOMAN was left unable to walk and talk after “work stress” triggered a rare neurological condition which causes up to 25 seizures a day.
Emily Newman, 25, from Sussex, was in the “best shape” of her life, focusing on fitness and enjoying newly-wedded bliss with her husband James Newman, 28.
However, a sudden seizure that led to her being rushed to hospital marked the beginning of an unexpected and life-altering journey.
Despite numerous scans and tests, medical professionals were initially baffled by her condition.
It wasn’t until Emily faced terrifying bouts of paralysis, rendering her unable to move her legs for up to eight days, that she sought a private diagnosis.
She was diagnosed with functional neurological disorder (FND) – a condition that causes problems with the brain sending and receiving information.
Doctors believe her sudden symptoms were brought on by “work stress”.
Emily now struggles with slurred speech, tic attacks and has to use a walking stick or wheelchair to get around.
She said: “My speech is delayed and slurred. Sometimes I can’t communicate at all.
“If my speech goes it comes back in three to six hours. I have tics as well.
“I have tic attacks. The other day I was progressively hitting myself for two hours. It was really painful.”
Emily said her symptoms leave her family “terrified” and she now has 10 seizures on average a week.
She said: “Last week I had 25 in one afternoon.”
Emily, who works in finance, added: “It’s such as dire condition and it’s not what I expected my life to be at all.
“I’m going through grieving different parts – the life I thought I was going to live, the life I’m currently living and before.”
Emily also struggles with postural tachycardia syndrome (PoTS) – where the heart rate increases after getting up – and had put her “fainting” episodes down to that.
She said: “I was convulsing. I thought to myself ‘it’s that’.”
But when she arrived home later that day she had another three seizures and called an ambulance.
Doctors thought it could be MS so Emily was tested to rule that out but they were baffled when that didn’t reveal what was wrong.
She said: “The week after I had a seizure lasting six to eight hours. I got bouts of paralysis.
“I was paralysed in my legs for eight days. I thought ‘I can’t live my life like this’.”
Emily decided to go and see a private doctor who told her she had FND in December 2023.
She said: “He said there is a 33 per cent chance it will get better, 33 per cent chance it will get worse and 33 per cent chance it will stay the same.
What is functional neurological disorder?
FUNCTIONAL neurological disorder is a “brain network disorder,” according to UK charity FND Action.
The brain is unable to send and receive messages correctly, affecting all parts of the body.
Some symptoms, particularly if not treated, can result in substantial disability.
Treatment includes “retraining” the brain with specialised physiotherapy, distraction techniques and psychotherapy.
But some 70 per cent of sufferers have the same or worse symptoms ten years later.
The exact causes of FND are unknown. Symptoms can appear suddenly after a stressful event or with emotional or physical trauma, including a head injury, migraine, surgical procedure or vaccination.
It can occur as a result of several factors working together, for example, the brain shutting down after perceiving a threat or trying to avoid pain as well as a genetic vulnerability to the condition.
It is estimated that up to 120,000 people in the UK have FND, and there are a further 10,000 new cases per year, according to The Brain Charity. But most people have never heard of it.
“He asked if I had been through anything traumatic but I said nothing particularly.
“He asked ‘were you under a lot of work stress?’ “I said ‘yes’.”
Emily doesn’t have the funds to pay for any treatments but FND currently has no cure.
But she is trying to stay as positive as she can, adding: “I’m trying to do everything I can in different ways. You try and take every day as it comes.
“I still want to be me and be who I am.”