Seize Your Adventure is a multi-tool: a great adventure podcast that is also an epilepsy podcast. From long-distance hikes in Europe to skiing in snowstorms, the storytelling episodes share life-changing journeys and the smaller moments spent between seizures. The ‘chats’ with guests dive into the deeper stuff, the hidden aspects of taking on adventures with epilepsy - from carrying medication in a backpack, to assessing seizure risks in the wilderness and recognising limitations. Plus we in ...
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Some monumental moments for our 5th Birthday!
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Celebrate good times! December 5th 2023 marks five years since Seize Your Adventure - the podcast sharing stories of adventure and outdoor living with a focus on epilepsy - was launched. After a hiatus, to mark the show's fifth anniversary Fran is revisiting five monumental episodes. Fran reflects on her interview with Becky Samson, who cycled acro…
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I've delved deep into the archives for this one! Back in 2019, I had a taster session with Archery Fit as part of my 30 at 30 challenge. During the session, I learned the basics of using a bow, and afterwards I sat down with the co-owner, Roman. We had a little chat about archery, and in particular how it’s a very accessible sport for people with c…
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It's Purple Day! Here's some stuff from the cutting room floor
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26th March is Purple Day! The international day of epilpesy awareness when people raise awareness of what it's like to live with epilepsy. Seize Your Adventure is already dedicated to raising awareness of how peole live iwth epilepsy and enjoy adventures and outdoor living. A lot of work goes into the podcast - and a lot gets taken out! Here's your…
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Hello Adventurers! And I can't quite believe it but it has been 3 years since I launched the Seize Your Adventure podcast. Who knew that a podcast about epilepsy in adventure sports would have such longevity? And whilst I have been abandoning you all ever so slightly, I wanted to mark this 3-year anniversary with something a little bit special. And…
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ello Adventurers! Seize Your Adventure has been quite, I know. But there is a good reason for that... Adventurers - let me introduce you to my new podcast: On The Outside! We need to talk about the outdoors. Not just the epic stories, but the important news, the big events and the social issues that permeate the whole of the outdoors. This show is …
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Back in June, I had the honour of being invited on to PODCASTER for a slightly different type of interview... Hosted by V, the Voice of Pod, podcast hosts take a seat in the Podcaster chair, to answer random questions about life and the podcast they have created. I've done a few interviews now - this was one of the most fun and soul-searching! Do g…
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Fran: Advocating For Adventure in the Everyday
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Over the years I have written many articles about adventuring with epilepsy. I wanted to share this one with you because it does not focus on the epilepsy side of things, but rather it was a nice reminder of what adventure can bring to you. How do you have small adventures? Can you have an adventure close to home? And after years of asking other pe…
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This short Q&A with Martin follows on from the Article he read for us at the start of the month. We talked about the types of adventurous activities Martin likes to do, what he would say to someone else who has an epilepsy diagnosis, and - of course - what adventure means to him! Find out more about Martin: https://epilepsytraveller.home.blog/ http…
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This is the second Articles episode! Martin had his first tonic-clonic seizure when he was 10 years old, whilst playing a recorder in a music lesson. Since then, he has lived with epilepsy and seizures. In secondary school, he was told he could not go on a ski-trip because of this epilepsy - not once but twice. But when Martin left school, a friend…
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Episode 2 follows on from Cameron's Article - Learning from Surfing with Epilepsy. Those of you who are very attentive to the Seize Your Adventure feed might well recognise this episode. Due to an issue with my hosting, my Patron-only episodes suddenly went public for a bit - including this Q&A! And I saw many of you downloading it, I started think…
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Cameron: Learning from Surfing with Epilepsy
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Welcome to the first The Articles episode! Is surfing with epilepsy dangerous? What happens if you have a seizure in the water? This is something we hear about in Cameron's story. CW: Cameron goes into detail on the consequences of having a seizure in water whilst he's surfing. So please bear in mind that some of the content and descriptions might …
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Introducing: The Articles FRAN: You’re listening to The Articles from Seize Your Adventure. [Sound of waves breaking] Season 3 of SYA is going to sound a little bit different. The articles are simple stories taken from across the internet and read by the person that wrote them. [Wave sound increases] CAMERON: I remember the first time the instructo…
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Surprise episode for your audio feed! This bonus episode has come from the Patreon feed. I wanted you all to listen to this one today, not only as a bit of encouragement to head over to patreon.com/seizeyouradventure if you are missing the podcast... but also because it shares some information on what Season 3 of the podcast is going to sound like.…
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"How would you feel if you had a seizure again? Could you emotionally and mentally handle it? Would it feel like everything was falling apart? Would epilepsy have control?” WARNING: This episode contains a graphic descriptions and creative depiction of what it feels like to Jade when she has a seizure. For 2 years, this podcast has been sharing sto…
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The Seize Your Adventure podcast is 2 years old! Join me in the celebrations with a Happy Birthday, some facts and stats about the last 2 years, and a return to where it all started in West Texas with Jade Nelson... The facts and stats: -The first episode of the podcast went live on 3rd December 2018 -But the trailer launched on November 5th 2018 -…
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Surfing, Seizures and Safety with Frankie York
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Is it safe to surf with epilepsy? How can you support somebody who has seizures in the water? And do surfing instructors know how to help someone with epilepsy? In this episode, Frankie York takes us through some of her own experiences surfing with epilepsy, and how having epilepsy affects her relationships with other surfers. Surfing is classified…
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A LIVE Chat with Frankie York: Surfing and learning how to adventure with epilepsy
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Back in July, Seize Your Adventure grew a little bit bigger. Francesca York (who luckily goes by Frankie to stop any confusion!) has volunteered her help over the next few months as an SYA Intern and it will be great to get her fresh eyes/ears on things. This episode shares the Instagram LIVE conversation me and Frankie had back in August, where we…
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A Chat with Chris Winwood: Endurance cycling, backcountry hikes and working in adventure with epilepsy.
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Chris is an Epilepsy Education & Outreach Worker for the British Columbia Epilepsy Society and in summer last year Chris also raised money for BCES by cycling from Prince George to Jasper - a distance of 375KM - in just two days. (N.B. I can't add up and in the podcast I say 275KM... Sorry Chris!) Chris is a hardcore adventurer. I was introduced to…
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Epilepsy, Pregnancy and Birth with Jewel Gibson
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In this bonus episode we get to hear some more of my chat with mom, wife, teacher and blogger, Jewel Gibson. I asked Jewel to tell me a bit more about the specifics of have a baby when you have epilepsy. Last time, we heard about Jewel’s path to an epilepsy diagnosis, and her personal challenge of running the New York Half Marathon to raise epileps…
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A Chat with Jewel Gibson: Catamenial Seizures and Running with Epilepsy
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Jewel Gibson is a mom, a wife, a teacher, and a blogger from Brooklyn, New York. Her Instagram and blog, Life's A Jewel, focuses on motherhood and encouraging women to live healthier lives, experience fulfilling relationships and conquer parenthood fashionably. She also uses her platform to talk about the day-to-day challenges navigating a seizure …
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Cath Shanks Takes Over: Skateboards, Slacklining and Urban Exploring with Epilepsy
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On Tuesday 19th May, I handed over the Seize Your Adventure Instagram account to Cath Shanks, a skate coach who was diagnosed with temporal lobe epilepsy in 2010. In this bonus episode, you get to hear how it went, and listen to the Instagram Live interview we had afterwards. I've only discovered Cath recently, and her account @specialeptic is stil…
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A Chat with Jared Muscat: Surfing, Paddleboarding and Epileptic Opportunity
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For Jared Muscat, surfing has been a passion, an obsession, and in his own words an addiction, since he was a teenager. Surfing was part of what led Jared to his current job working for the outdoor clothing company Patagonia. And it was on Patagonia’s blog that I first read some of Jared’s story about surfing with epilepsy, his hard epilepsy diagno…
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A Chat with Annie Brooks: Swimming, Triathlons and Races with Partial Seizures
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Annie Brooks, is a blogger and Youtuber from the award-winning blog Tales of Annie Bean, a website and video channel that covers fitness, travel, lifestyle and (of course) adventure! Annie was diagnosed with epilepsy in the form of complex partial seizures back in 2012, so a lot of her blog journey has been about learning to be active with the cond…
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Seizure First Aid by Jamie Wissinger from the '1 in 26' Podcast
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Enjoy this quick bonus episode from Jamie Wissinger, host of the epilepsy podcast '1 in 26' . I thought it was about time to share some official Seizure First Aid , and asked Jamie to share her knowledge as an official trainer. Be Calm Remove Dangerous Objects Always Time the Seizure If the person falls, turn them on their side Never put anything i…
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A Chat with Ian Johnston: Epilepsy, Exercise and the Psychology of Sport with Seizures
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"Having a chronic condition such as epilepsy consistently prevents individuals from participating in sport. For someone with epilepsy the fear of making the condition worse, sustaining injury or even dying (Kale, 1997) are regularly quoted as reasons for very low participation levels, known to be as low as half that of the general population (Han, …
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Coronavirus Complications with Becky Sampson
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In this bonus episode, I catch-up with Becky Sampson. Four months after our initial conversation, coronavirus has changed plans for many. Becky tells me how it affected her round-the-world trip. In today's episode we talk about: Walking the Coast to Coast Track in Australia - in 9 days! Taking epilepsy medication across international borders The li…
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A Chat with Becky Sampson: Travelling the World by Bicycle, with Epilepsy
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Welcome to Season Two of Seize Your Adventure! This season, I will be speaking to even more people about a wider range of sports, and the conversations coming up in Season Two feel even more relevant in the current climate. Today’s chat is with a lady called Becky Sampson. Becky is from the UK, but she hasn’t been based there for over three years n…
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Epilepsy, Adventure and the Outdoors in a Pandemic
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So this is actually a sneaky extra episode of Season Two because I wanted to add a little prologue before we get into the season. Most of the interviews in the first part of this season were recorded in a very different world to one in which they are being released. The UK and a lot of the world are on lockdown because of the coronavirus pandemic. …
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Season Two Trailer: Exploring Adventure Through Epilepsy
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Hello everyone, I am Fran Turauskis and I’m happy to introduce you to Season 2 of Seize Your Adventure. This season continues to explore the concept of adventure on a spectrum. Over the past few months, I’ve been hunting down even more people living with epilepsy who enjoy the adventure lifestyle. This season will have more ‘chats’ with guests. We …
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In 2010, thirteen individuals got together in a hut in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. The group shared a passion for the outdoors, an unyielding enthusiasm for life… and they also shared a link to different neurological challenges. These hardships could easily have led to a more subdued mindset. The thirteen people could have opted for a quieter,…
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This is not quite Seize Your Adventure, but rather a short trailer episode to send you off to another podcast.Over the past few months I’ve been working on an episode for another independent podcast called Out There. It looks at the big questions in life through our relationship with the outdoors, using storytelling.So it is with huge pride that I …
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I get a lot of people contacting me. People who have adventurous souls and lived and breathed their sports before they started having seizures and were diagnosed with epilepsy. And the question I get asked most by people in this situation is “can I do this sport with epilepsy?”. And no matter what the sport is, my answer always has to be the same: …
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Seven Lessons from My Adventures with Epilepsy
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Three months in and seven challenges down, I am right on track with my #30at30forEpilepsy. In this bonus episode, you get to hear the seven lessons I have learned so far from ice climbing, archery, axe throwing, trail running, mountain biking, hiking at altitude and wild swimming. This is how I have safe adventures with epilepsy :) MENTIONS: Archer…
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A Chat with Amanda Plomp: Running with Epilepsy, from Backwoods to Beaches and Beyond
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Amanda Plomp is a runner with epilepsy based in Victoria in Canada. As we heard in the last episode, discovering running in her twenties helped Amanda to feel strong and connected to her body, a feeling she had missed since her seizures started when she was a teenager. Running helps with her epilepsy. And epilepsy helps with her running. In my conv…
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DISCLAIMER: Please remember all stories presented reflect the personal experiences of contributors . We take no responsibility for individual decisions made with regards to adventure sports or medical conditions. For most people, the teenage years are a crucial period in finding out who we are. We try out lots of new things, we meet new people, we’…
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Challenge One : Ice Climbing with Vertical Chill
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Today’s story is a small epic of a tale. It starts on the other side of the world, it includes some dramatic moments, some aspirations achieved. I also had to download a beep sound to censor some swear words in this episode - and you’ll soon understand why. This is the story of my first #30at30forEpilepsy challenge. This is my ice climbing adventur…
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We’ve heard from people with epilepsy how they seize adventure. Now it’s time to put some adventurers on the spot. I talk to three people who work within the adventure field to find out what they know about epilepsy, what they don’t, and how we can get more people with epilepsy in adventure. We mention: -These three adventure professionals’ first a…
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A Chat with Jake Quigley: Brain Surgery, Hiking the Himalayas and the Fundamentals of Mountain Biking
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Jake Quigley is the executive director of the non profit Outdoor Mindset. The organisation’s mission is to unite and inspire people affected by neurological challenges through a common passion of the outdoors. It is a free membership-based community. When he is not working, Jake can be found adventuring outdoors with his wife, Jeanie, by foot, bike…
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For Jake Quigley, adventure is more than just a past time, or even a passion. Adventure is a lifestyle, and one he built up around his epilepsy. Jake was diagnosed with epilepsy when he was eleven years old. Rather than being scared by the condition, those around him encouraged and supported Jake to try adventurous things. But having carved out his…
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Adventurer. Soldier. Author. Jordan Wylie is known for his challenges at the extreme end of the adventure spectrum. Described by Sir Ranulph Fiennes as “A determined, fearless adventurer and an inspiring man”, Jordan has run races in Iraq, Afghansistan and Somalia, he has written a book about his time tackling pirates off the coast of Africa, and h…
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Fran Chats: Adapting Adventures, Hiking in Wales and My Next Epilepsy Challenge...
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Advocate for adventure and epilepsy awareness. Writer. Editor. Podcaster. Public Speaker. In this interview (of sorts) you get to hear more from me, Fran Turauskis. To celebrate the one-year anniversary for seizeyouradventure.com you asked me about my adventures, epilepsy, and more. I talk about: Finding the way when you’re lost Adapting adventures…
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Let me take you on a very intimate journey from my first seizure to walking the Norte and Primitivo Caminos. With music recorded whilst I was walking, this will give you an insight into my experience of The Way. On a post-referendum quest to discover more of Europe, I decided to take a five-hundred mile walk across Spain. In the summer of 2017, I s…
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A Chat with Joe Stevenson: Hiking, Medication and Mindfulness when Living with Epilepsy
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It is important to acknowledge when we do impressive things. Not just because a sense of pride won’t do us any harm. But because it makes our stories more realistic to that person who is scared that it’s too hard for them. In a strange way, if we acknowledge that something is hard for us, it makes it more attainable to everyone else. Joe Stevenson …
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This podcast takes you to one of the most remote parts of the UK, an area renowned as the last wilderness of Britain. Even the most touristic areas take some effort to get to. Welcome to the Scottish highlands. Joe Stevenson tells us about a charity hike he did a couple of years ago. Charity events are a great way of becoming a little bit more adve…
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A Chat with Jade Nelson: Keto for Epilepsy, Camping and her Sport and Seizure Story
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In this Q&A, we’ll learn a bit more about Jade Nelson, who wrote and read the Episode 1 story, “Peace in West Texas”. Jade is a licensed Massage Therapist, Epilepsy Advocate, Public Speaker and Writer based in Austin, Texas. Her focus is helping spread awareness of epilepsy and the ketogenic diet (a high fat, low carb diet that was invented in the …
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Camping is one of the simplest ways to spend some time outdoors, so when Jade was determined to get back out into nature, a short camping trip seemed like the obvious choice. When she and her husband Eric set out with their dogs, she had specific expectations. Fond memories of camping trips in the Pacific Northwest and New England meant she hoped t…
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Start gearing up for the Seize Your Adventure podcast: this is where the adventure community and the epilepsy community meet. This podcast will share intimate stories and conversations from people with epilepsy who enjoy the adventure lifestyle. For those of you who have no contact with epilepsy, these stories will let you connect with the people b…
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