My family, they just kind of let things go over their heads, they don’t try to let it go in too much. Like when my mum was told she just ignored it kind of thing, but then like when I spoke to her like a few months after she said oh she did cry, and went down to her mum’s, my nan’s. She said she like still thinks about it, but she doesn’t, we don’t really speak about it much together. We just kind of joke around about it like, we try not to acknowledge it too seriously, we just try to let it go over our heads, because it’s much easier that way.

What would you joke about it?

My dad would just like take the mick, and just say like, “Ah yeah come on I want to see you shake around on the floor and stuff, I want to film you and show all my friends”. And I just wouldn’t mind and he just tries to say like jokes about epilepsy and all that, and I laugh along with it, because it’s not a serious problem to be honest [laughs]. It’s alright.

Would you make jokes as well?

Yeah, I don’t mind, if people say a joke to me I’ll laugh along with them because I find it quite funny as well. I’m not a too serious person anyway.

So would you ever be upset about any of those jokes?

No, not really, not really no. I don’t mind it, as long as the right person is saying it like because like I don’t mind if it’s like a jokey joke, but if they take it too far, then you can get upset sometimes but you just say to them, like stop, it’s gone a bit too far, and they’re like, alright, then they just say sorry, and it’s okay.

With the humour aspect’ say we’ll talk about doing things as a group of mates, and certain circumstances where I’ll go out with friends it’ll be little comments like, ‘Oh the last thing we want to happen here is for Ben to go down. I’m really the same saying things like, ‘Yeah I suppose I’ll bounce off there will I?’ You know just being blunt about it, you know. It is an issue, you don’t have to discuss it as such but discreetly making jokes about it. It’s easier that way than it is to say, ‘Look if you’re gonna have one, you know, tell me, sit down, relax, okay, not a problem, are you alright? Are you sure?’ To just turn around and say, ‘If you have a fit now I’m gonna be really peed off.

You just talked about having a laugh about epilepsy on the webforum, so could you tell me a bit more about that?

Well it varies really. I mean there’s people there, you know if you are having a bad day and you having a rant and stuff and they’ll sort of try and make you feel a bit better. Or tell you to just get on with things and stop moaning you know and they’ll sort of post bits of information and stuff as well. But there’s also a side of it which is sort of like we have a laugh and joke about things as much as possible you know.

So would you make jokes with each other?

Yeah. Jokes about it and sort of epilepsy related and how it makes us different from everybody else, you know and that kind of thing as well.

So what sort of jokes, could you remember any?

Well I mean they vary and depending on various sorts of circumstances but really it is sort of the way we sort of relate to the seizures as well. Some of names we have for them whereas I know that we call mine a gravel grovelling [laugh] session which is quite funny. And it is sometimes good to refer to them like that rather than say oh it is atonic drop seizures and stuff.

And what other nicknames would you have?

Well there is various things like referring to epilepsy as Mr E you know and oh breakdancing and all this sort of stuff you know.

Do you ever get upset about any jokes or having a laugh?

No. I mean sometimes you can, but really you have to take them at face value really of what they are and not try and sort of think too deeply about them you know.

I’ll have petit mal and where I have petit mal before I go into a grand mal, I’ll stutter. So like with situations they [mates] will take the mickey out of that. You know, talking on the phone and ordering a pizza, we make a laugh out of it in the case of can you imagine ordering a pizza and then sitting on the phone and saying, ‘Yeah I’ll have a peh-peh-peh-peh-peh-peh-pepperoni pizza please.

What do you make jokes of?

Hmm, just like that things like I have all my exams in a little like disabilities room, everyone else has to go and find their timetable sheet, what building, what seat they are for each exam, I just stroll up to the same room every single time, always there. They always say why should I get that privilege, just ‘cos [laughs] I’ve got a disability. But they’re like I say, joking. But, they’re all really good about it and my girlfriend makes fun mostly. I woke up one time to take my tablets but I was sort of half asleep, and I started saying, ‘I need my hip hop tablets, where are my hip hop tablets,’ [laughs] so she was just like, ‘Make sure you’ve taken your hip hop tablets. Don’t know why [laughs]. Maybe I thought that somehow that taking those tablets makes me cool. I’ve got loads of other, I’ve got a kidney missing and broken my arms, I’ve broken my arm five times. I’ve got that, it’s not a very good medical history. So I’m known as a bit of a weakling, which is fine by me. I don’t mind [laughs].

‘What to do if your, your washing machine’s broken? Put your clothes in a bath with an epileptic. [Laughs] And that obviously is not as offensive, but, I prefer the first one really. Kind of it gets the quiet reaction of ‘What?’ [Laughs].