Matthew began to experience seizures at the age of six after falling on the back of his head on a stone floor two years previously. By the age of 16 his seizures had become frequent and were having significant impacts on his and his family’s life. Matthew had a placement at a boarding school and as wonderful as the team were, they struggled to accommodate his medical needs. Ultimately, he returned to his family who spent a year trying to find another placement.
Matthew’s father, Simon, reported how hard it was to observe his son having a ‘major’.
“One day we went to Madame Tussauds. It was a typical family day out until he started to have a terrible seizure. We both got down on the floor and I wrapped my arms around him. We were there for a long time. It was around that time that we realised that we couldn’t continue to care for Matthew at home and that we all needed more support.”
“Things changed radically for the better when we were introduced to David Lewis School through a family friend. Matthew was quite poorly at this stage and it felt quite momentous that he could attend a school where he would also have ready access to medical staff. The team were amazing and spent a lot of time understanding him and his condition. Reasonably quickly, his seizures became much better controlled.”
Matthew’s life at David Lewis has been a full one. Over the years he has taught IT to underprivileged young people at a local college, practised his piano and become a skilled carpenter. Now, in his early 60’s he lives with others in a David Lewis community house and has far fewer major seizures than in the early days. Simon notes,
“David Lewis has always been curious on Matthew’s behalf and ready to try new approaches to his care. The game changer for Matthew has been the calmness, the safe environment and the predictability of the care he has received since going to the Centre all those years ago.”