The Disability Diaries : Supporting Young Epilepsy - My Purple Pledge

**Part of a Series of Posts Supporting Young Epilepsy (www.youngepilepsy.org.uk)**

**Will You Take The Purple Pledge on 26 March 2012?**

The following post comes directly from Young Epilepsy :

Paint the town purple!

Celebrities join forces with Young Epilepsy to launch My Purple Pledge

Young Epilepsy is urging people all over the country to back flagship campaign ‘My Purple Pledge’ this March, and make a difference to the lives of the 112,000 young people in the UK living with epilepsy.

Backed by a series of famous faces including Commonwealth, European and World Champion 400 metre hurdler Dai Greene, Young Epilepsy is asking the public and celebrities alike to do something purple and help put a spotlight on this misunderstood condition. 

Pledges could range from wearing purple to work or school, baking and selling purple cakes, taking part in a Purple Zumba, or even being sponsored to lie in a bath of blackcurrant juice! Anything goes and the quirkier the better! Any pledge – big or small – will help raise vital funds for the charity which is the UK’s only national charity dedicated to children and young people with epilepsy and other associated neurological conditions.

‘My Purple Pledge’ coincides with Purple Day (26 March 2012), the international day to mark epilepsy awareness and National Epilepsy Awareness Week (May 2012).

Young Epilepsy Ambassador, Dai Greene, said: “My Purple Pledge aims to put epilepsy on the map and make people aware of what it really means. I’m fully behind the campaign and will be pledging purple to help improve the lives of a lot of young people with epilepsy. I’m hoping that as many people as possible will be ‘in the purple’ for the 26 March and help raise desperately needed funds for such a deserving cause.

“Epilepsy effects over 112,000 children and young people under the age of 25 – including myself - and is the most common neurological condition in the UK. Despite this, it’s still relatively unknown and has little awareness.”

Lisa Farmer, Director of Fundraising at Young Epilepsy, commented: “My Purple Pledge is a fun way of generating awareness about a very serious condition. All monies raised through the campaign will be used to provide life-changing support through our special school, college, medical centre and residential homes. Ultimately, it will help young people with epilepsy across the country to fulfill their potential.”

Epilepsy is a serious debilitating disorder of the body’s nervous system causing symptoms such as paralysis, muscle weakness and seizures. It affects around one child in every primary school and five in every secondary school. Around 6,000 young people will experience communication, learning or behaviour problems. In some cases they will also have a significantly higher mortality rate.

The Children’s ISA is the main My Purple Pledge sponsor for 2012, with the first commercial partner being EasyLink UK, which provides epilepsy seizure monitors.

Please visit www.mypurplepledge.com for more information or follow My Purple Pledge on Twitter @purplepledge.

Around 6,000 of children have an extreme form of epilepsy, resulting in profound disabilities including physical, learning, psychological, and behavior difficulties, and a high mortality rate.  The complex and severe nature of their disabilities, combined with difficult to control seizures, make it impossible for them to find support in mainstream education.  Young Epilepsy provides continuous care to around 200 children and young people with complex epilepsy and other neurological conditions such as autism. This includes essential education, support and expert medical care on our campus in Surrey and a residential service, which is home to some children 365 days a year.