Peer 2 Peer Round 2

As the semester is quickly coming to a close for many high schools and colleges across the country, Peer 2 Peer (P2P) is getting up and running in a number of affiliates across the country. The goal of P2P is based in the idea that adolescents living with epilepsy are going through a tremendous amount of transitions during these years and with some support from each other we can all not only face these transitions and get through them, but we can have adventures beyond our wildest dreams.

I look  back on my freshmen year of college now, and I never thought that I would be taking road trips and running marathons. I knew it would be a blast, and that I would meet incredible people, but these last four years have nothing short of awesome. The one facet that I think was missing was the peer support that I believe P2P can offer. I knew having epilepsy would affect my college years, but if I had the support and friends that I have now with the National Youth Council earlier, I think I would have begin to adventure much sooner. These past two years thanks to the love and support of these close friends, I have plunged into some pretty wonderful opportunities. In fact, I traveled so much this semester, that this past week was the first week that I was actually home for seven days in a row (do not worry, I still am pulling a 4.0 semester). I have been at numerous conferences, visiting friends, traveling with the Saint Louis University Pep Band for March Madness (Go Billikens!), and just having a blast. As a freshmen, with a lot of concerns about the negative effects of epilepsy on my independence, I never would have dreamed of this semester ever happening.

I encourage those living in the Central & South Texas, Florida, Northeastern New York, Greater Cincinnati and Columbus-Cincinnati, and Greater Cincinnati and Columbus - Columbus regions to please reach out if you are a high school or college student looking to have a great time and meets some new people! Having a group to bounce ideas off and challenge you is great way to make you face some of your fears and just explore! Take the first step and become a part of this year's P2P groups adventure! The greatest regrets in life come from the opportunities we choose to ignore!

Happy end of the semester!
Maureen