Memorial
funds - Rachel Lucy Wardleworth (nee Rahman)
"Rachel died in her sleep as a result
of SUDEP (Sudden Unexplained Death in Epilepsy)
on the 26th November 2010 at the age of 31
years. Rachel was very happily married to
Phil, and had two wonderful young sons, Joseph
and Liam. Joseph, Rachel's eldest son, was
born very prematurely at 23 weeks and spent
a number of months in a critical condition
in intensive care at Addenbrooke's Hospital,
Cambridge. During this time Rachel was always
by his side, fighting every battle with him.
Through her love and support Joseph has developed
into a happy, healthy boy.
Rachel had suffered from epilepsy from
the age of 11 years when she had her first
nocturnal seizure. At the age of 17 years
Rachel also started to have day time seizures.
She had no warnings of the seizures and
often damaged herself in falls. On the afternoon
of the 1st of January 2008 whilst at a family
dinner party, Rachel suffered multiple seizures
and was hospitalised. Rachel's memory was
badly affected by this experience, particularly
her short term memory, and her health never
fully recovered. Liam her youngest son was
only 10 months old at the time. Rachel was
placed on new medication following the multiple
seizures and she managed to go until August
2008 without any seizures, but then they
started again. At the time of her death
Rachel was taking large doses of medication
which impacted on her quality of life. She
suffered from exhaustion and her immune
system seemed to be incredibly weak. The
seizures continued.
Despite her poor health Rachel refused
to let her epilepsy inhibit her love of
life. She never, ever felt sorry for herself
and remained the most independent of individuals.
She was great fun to be with and had a quirky
personality and wicked sense of humour.
Rachel was also an extremely caring and
compassionate individual and a passionate
supporter of the 'underdog' and Middlesbrough
Football Club!! Rachel supported other epilepsy
sufferers through internet chat lines and
was a volunteer at a night shelter for the
homeless. She had a guaranteed place on
the Great North Run for 2011 where she was
running for epilepsy charities.
When she died she was at her happiest:
she loved her boys, her husband, her family
and her new house. She was particularly
happy with the early Christmas present of
a dishwasher from her parents Dawn and David.
Life was good. She had so much to look forward
to.
Her family wish her memory to live on through
this memorial fund."
Dawn, David and Tim Rahman; Phil, Joseph
and Liam Wardleworth, December 2010
Donate to the
Rachel Wardleworth Memorial Fund
Epilepsy Research UK would like to thank
Dawn and David Rahman and their family for
their involvement with us. Our memorial funds play an essential part
in funding the charity's research. This
year, they are supporting a project led
by Professor
Mark Richardson, which is exploring
the complex brain networks involved in temporal
lobe epilepsy.
