Man left to have seizure alone on a busy street

An epileptic man who was left having a seizure alone on a busy street has urged people to be more understanding of his condition.

Joe Robbins collapsed at around midday on Saturday 10 October, close to a main junction in Leamington Spa and near a popular local pub, but no one stopped to help him.

The 29-year-old from Warwickshire has been living with epilepsy since he was six, but said it had become more common for people to walk by if he has a seizure while out and about.

"I think people just assume I'm either drunk or on drugs or just acting erratic," he said.

"I feel disregarded," Joe continued. "I feel people make the assumption... that I'm not approachable and that it's alright to just walk past and someone else will deal with it."

Joe stayed by the roadside for around 10 minutes as he came around after the seizure.

He said during that time "no one approached me, no one talked to me at all".

"I did see people go past, I was just too out of it to talk to anyone," he added.

Epilepsy affects the brain and causes seizures - sometimes called fits - which are usually the only symptom of the condition.

Around one in every 100 people live with epilepsy and while it cannot currently be cured, it can be managed with treatment.

For Joe, it has meant taking dozens of different medications over his lifetime and undergoing four surgeries.

He currently experiences seizures around once a week, meaning he can sometimes be alone when they happen, and wears a necklace alerting people to his condition.

"I've always prided myself on being very independent, but it does make myself and my loved ones worry that I'm going to be in danger," Joe said.

His mother Tracey Robbins said she was "disgusted" by what her son had gone through.

"I can understand it in some way because he's a man, six foot, big, and he could theoretically be drunk or on drugs," she said.

"But you never walk past somebody if they are on the floor. It's human decency, isn't it?"

Joe wants to raise awareness of seizures and what to do if you come across someone who may be having one.

So what is the right thing to do?

"The advice, as simple as it may seem, is to help," said Jon Eaton from Epilepsy Action.

There are 60 different types of seizures, Eaton said, with many people not recognising seizures when they see them.

"They might think they recognise it as someone who is on alcohol or drugs, and that comes back to the fact that people don't recognise all the types of seizures that exist," he said.

The advice from Epilepsy Action is to follow their CARE acronym:

• C - Comfort - support the head and neck using something soft.
• A - Action - take action to clear the area of anything that may cause harm and time the seizure.
• R - Reassure - after the seizure, place them in the recovery position and wait for them to come around.
• E - Emergency - a seizure lasting longer than five minutes, or if it is their first seizure, is a medical emergency - call 999.

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