“They say high school is meant to be the best years of your life, for me that wasn’t the case,” Renee, who had her first seizure in year seven at school, said.

“Having seizures in front of classmates and friends was the most embarrassing thing I have ever been through. The girl I was before I had epilepsy was confident and accepted. After the first seizure it seemed like all of that had changed.”

After years of seizures Renee consulted with various doctors and decided to go ahead with an operation in the hope of curing her epilepsy.

“We found the perfect doctor, Dr Andrew Bleasel from Westmead hospital and after many consultations we came to an agreement to operate on my brain to try and remove what they called ‘the spot’ on my brain to cure the epilepsy.”

Unfortunately the operation was unsuccessful though Renee still had to deal with the profound effects of brain surgery.

“Two days after the operation I had a seizure and my family and the doctors knew that the operation had been unsuccessful. It took me two months to recover and I had to learn to walk and talk again.”

The devastation of the failed operation saw Renee sink into a deep depression that saw her contemplate suicide before she discovered a form of healing in helping others.

“In 2009 I got my act together and started working again. I then came up with the idea for a benefit night to raise much needed funds for Epilepsy Action Australia. I worked very closely with a very good friend of mine, Margo Isbill all day and all night for months on end to get the benefit night organised.”

It was a huge success with the Newcastle Knights, Parramatta Eels, Sydney Roosters and Steve Waugh all donating auction items. Most importantly for Renee it also involved contributions from two sporting legends who’d endured their own battle with epilepsy, Socceroo Paul Wade and Wally ‘The King’ Lewis who both helped Renee raise over $12,000.

Renee is now far more comfortable with her epilepsy and determined to help others come to grip with the disease through days like Purple Day on March 26.

“These days I would proudly walk around with no hair sporting my very impressive scar,” she says with a laugh.

“Purple Day is all about raising funds, awareness about epilepsy and everyone can help. You can visit the face book page ‘epilepsy action’ or go to the website: www.purpleday.org for more details or better yet make a donation. Hopefully someday down the track there will be a cure so on the 26th of March at work, school or at home GO PURPLE.”