Bolton family raise awareness of epilespy after diagnosis

Fourteen-year-old Eva Tucker from Horwich has had epilepsy since she was five-and-a-half months-old.

She was on a beach with her mum, Sarah, in Valencia on July 18 when she had a series of seizures one after the other and was airlifted to a hospital for treatment, but the severity of her seizures meant Eva sustained possible brain damage and was put into a coma to prevent this getting worse.

Now, Eva is back in the UK, at the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital and has been out of the coma for three weeks. It is expected she will stay in hospital until at least after Christmas.

The seizures have left Eva unable to eat, drink, talk or walk,

She is currently undergoing assessments.

Dad, Mark Tucker said: “She has a hell of a way to go but I am absolutely amazed and inspired by her every day.

“It’s very scary because we do not know what Eva we will get back and do not know what the future holds.

“I want to hear her say ‘I love you’ and ‘I am hungry, I want pizza’.

“She was a mischievous, cheeky little girl but this has hit her so hard.”

Eva, a student at Rivington and Blackrod High School, is a keen horse-rider, swimmer and dancer.

Eva can now recognise people, smile, and laugh but Mark is unsure if she will be able to do her sports again.

Mark said: “She has got her mischievous face back and her character is still in there somewhere.

“I think we will get her back, I have to believe that.”

To raise awareness around the devasting impacts epilepsy can have, Mark ran ‘The Lap’ which was a run around Lake Windermere, raising £6000 for the Young Epilepsy charity.

He said: “I would never have done this run if not for her and would have sacked it off, but I thought about what she has been through, has to go through and will go through.”

Mark also thanked both the NHS and the medical care Eva received in Spain.

He said: “The hospital in Castion were fabulous looking after her and even the NHS care was second to none.”