My son Caiolin is 8 years old and we live in Co Antrim, Northern Ireland.

In 2007, when Caiolin was seven, he was out shopping for the day with my daughter Gemma and myself when he experienced his first RAS attack – although I didn’t know what it was at the time. Caiolin had simply nipped his finger on the changing-room door and cried, so I kissed it better and he seemed fine.

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Kirsty’s Story
When my POTS started in 2005, I was on a school skiing trip in France. There were initial signs that may have suggested something wasn’t right within me, but I thought it was just a reoccurrence of the glandular fever I had had the year before. I was very emotional and could hardly eat. Gradually the sickness feeling grew, resulting in my first faint.
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Naomi’s Story

Hi, my name is Naomi and I am 15 years old. In the summer 2007 newsletter I wrote about my experience of living with RAS and about having an ILR (insertable loop recorder) implanted to record my heart rhythm.

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Chelsea’s Story

When I was little I was diagnosed with epilepsy and lots of things would trigger a fit, like being sick. I had lots of medicines to try and control the fits but nothing worked.

I started with attacks when I was a toddler and it wasn’t until I was twelve and became very ill that finally mum became impatient with the hospital and asked for me to be referred to a specialist.  We visited a consultant in Sheffield and he told us it was Reflex Anoxic Seizures.
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Anita’s Story

My problems with pre-syncope spells began 13 years ago when I was 16. I had multiple dizzy spells when standing up. The spells became more frequent and caused me to collapse to the floor, though I never lost consciousness. I was referred to a neurologist who also dismissed it as the result of being a “young female”.

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Suzanne’s Story
I’d never had fainting problems as a child, but during my first pregnancy (at 8 months pregnant) I stood up and felt like I was going to pass out. I didn't know what was wrong and just put it down to late pregnancy and stress. ...
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Dominic’s Story

Dominic was 8 months when he started having what we thought were ‘funny turns’. He would cry and seem to not breathe for 5 or so seconds, and his lips would turn blue.

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Joel’s Passion

Joel would have had multiple RAS attacks per day, especially when he was toddling.Naturally I wanted to wrap him in cotton wool and protect him from any incident likely to lead to an RAS. I remember wondering if Joel could have the normal life other little boys have. Read More

Eliza’s Story

Eliza became upset and suddenly blacked out, going completely still and stiff and a ghastly shade of grey. She remained like this for almost a minute and only came round when I frantically stuffed a dummy in her mouth - I have to admit I was almost hysterical and thought she was dead.
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Carole’s Story
Carole has lived a healthy life without major illness, but has experienced fainting and convulsion throughout much of her life. Read more...

Kellie’s Story
Life was pretty good for my daughter Kellie in 2005. She was happy at boarding school with plenty of friends, doing very well academically (on an academic scholarship) and enjoying her new love of rowing. Then, out of the blue, she started collapsing for no apparent reason Read more...

Mari & Lowri’s fight for Referral
Mari & Lowri first experienced fits at the age of 18 months but it took much longer for a diagnosis or a referral. Read more

Jennifer's Syncope Story

Jennifer is 20 years old and suffers with Neurocardiogenic Syncope - read her story

Rona’s Story

Jennifer is a primary school teacher who suffers with Nerocardiogenic Syncope (also known as Vasovagal Sycnope),
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Louise’s Story

Louise had her first episode when she was 8 months old. She was eventually diagnosed with Reflex Anoxic Seizures.
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Sam’s Story

Sam is a 31-year-old woman diagnosed with Vasovagal Syncope and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome 10 years ago.
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Immanuel's Story

Manny was diagnosed with RAS at the age of 11 months...read more.
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Wesley's Story

Wes had his first attack at 4 when hit in the face by a ball. Wesley became distressed, but then was also not able to breathe. His whole body stiffened, contorted and shook, his eyes rolled up and his face turned grey and looked ‘horror struck'. He then passed out and started breathing again before regaining consciousness a few moments later...Read More

Ela's Story

Ela had her first attack while working behind a bar. She was diagnosed with Epilepsy and spent 6-months on epilepsy medication.
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Shelley's Story

Shelley is drama teacher who has suffered with Reflex Anoxic Seizures for 25 years, but was only successfully diagnosed 3 years ago.
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Sarah's Story

Teenager Sarah has suffered with Reflex Anoxic Seizures for most of her life. Her first attack happened when she was just 2 years old
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Joel's Story

Joel was 5 months old when he had his first seizure. It occurred in a relatively normal situation. He went rigid for a few seconds, then went floppy.
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Alex's Story

On the way out of the playground with his mother Alex stumbled and then fell, apparently lifeless to the ground. It wasn’t the first time she had had cause to worry about Alex’s health. He had been having ‘strange episodes’ since he was a few months old. Read more..

Julie’s Story

From an early age Julie was prone to fainting. She was always tired and lacked concentration. Her mother was called into school to discuss this issue. The school felt it wasn’t normal for a child of 8 to have such a lack of energy or to spend so much time “daydreaming”, as it was called. After visiting her GP and undergoing tests, it was decided it was down to her age and she would grow out of it.
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Natalia's Story

Young mum Natalia, from County Durham, first began to have unexplained blackouts when she was expecting her second child, in February 2002. Doctors put it down to her pregnancy but as the weeks went by, Natalia began to suffer the blackouts at least once, sometimes twice a day and all she wanted to do was sleep. Read more..

Tabatha's Story

Amanda, who lives in Weymouth, Dorset, was already coping with her son Elliott, who had been diagnosed with a heart rhythm disorder, SVT. Then her only daughter, Tabatha, came along. Amanda was overjoyed to have a daughter after four sons, but at she knew something wasn’t right with her little girl. Read more

Fiona's Story

Fiona was diagnosed very early on with RAS, but we were given no information

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Benjamin's Story

As a special needs teacher, Suzanne is accustomed to dealing with a range of distressing medical conditions but when her own son began having seizures at just 8 weeks old, she was totally devastated. Read more..

Nicola's Story

17-year old Nicola was diagnosed with RAS at the age of 2.
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Claire's Story

Claire was five years old when she fainted for the first time. One evening two years ago, Claire fell into her mother’s arms during dinner. She simply stared and fell over.
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Siobhan's Story

Siobhan had her first episode in 1996. She describes is as having a blackout but being aware of it to being with, but during 2003 the episodes became very bad and more frequent.
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Josephine’s Story

Josephine is diagnosed as suffering from RAS. Her first seizure occurred when she was 9 months old during her bath time. She had gone rigid, her eyes had rolled up into her head and she had gone a strange blue colour.. Read more

Jennifer's Story

Jennifer’s first attacks happened while at school and at Air Training Corps. At first, it was thought she was having a bad asthma attack or an epileptic fit, it was then put down to teenage hormones.
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