AN Aberystwyth woman who lost her brother seven years ago has spoken of her determination to raise awareness of the condition that killed him.

Cheryl Morgan-Walker, who lives in Penrhyncoch, lost her brother, Martin Morgan, to Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP). He was just 37 years old. Determined to keep his memory alive and raise awareness of SUDEP, this year Cheryl and her family completed a walk in Martin’s memory.

“Every year we raise much-needed awareness of SUDEP through the charity SUDEP Action,” Cheryl explained.

“SUDEP is not often spoken about, and 42 per cent of epilepsy deaths are preventable. The charity works so hard in raising awareness and raising funds to further research why these deaths occur and to stop the heartache of families who lose their loved ones to epilepsy each year.”

Recalling the terrible time she lost her brother, Cheryl said: “Our family had no idea what SUDEP was until we lost Martin and, had we have been better informed, may have reduced the risk.

“Martin was diagnosed with epilepsy from a young age. He spent most of his childhood in and out of hospital due to the severity of his epilepsy. His seizures were controlled later on in life and he hadn’t had a seizure in over 15 years prior to his death in 2015. He had no idea that he was at risk of SUDEP.”

SUDEP Action Day is held every October.

This year it was on Wednesday, 19 October, and Cheryl and her family marked the day, once again.

“This year we completed SUDEP Action’s My Way to 5k challenge in memory of Martin and all those who have lost their lives to epilepsy,” said Cheryl.

“Those who took part in the 5k walk this year were myself, my husband Paul Walker, my daughter Darla-Rose, our auntie, Sally Walker, my cousin Sara Jones, daughter Hanna, Mitchell Moore, my husband’s friend and the two dogs, Missy and Jack.

“I miss my brother every day and hate what epilepsy did to him. He was so high on life and had so much to live for.

“It would mean a lot if people read about him to rise some much-needed awareness of SUDEP.”

Martin went to Penglais school. He lived in Penrhyncoch and wanted to pursue a career in entertainment, specifically as a singer.

“He was often seen around town and up the university with his Uncle Patrick on the karaoke, as well as entertaining down the beach bar in Clarach,” Cheryl recalls.

“He moved to Birmingham and then worked at the NEC before finally settling in Scunthorpe where he became fondly known as the local legend.

“Martin auditioned for Britain’s Got Talent in 2014 but his audition never got aired. However, with pressure from his family, they finally released the footage and you can still watch him on YouTube today.”

Martin died in July 2015 but he will never be forgotten.

“We always try to raise awareness of SUDEP and people are able to donate to the charity, either directly on their website or through a Just­Giving page,” Cheryl explained.

“I didn’t set up a fundraising page on this occasion as my main goal was to raise awareness, but people are more than welcome to donate to the charity where all funds will go towards research to find out why SUDEP happens, and to prevent it.”

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