Epilepsy: What it means for me

Hi Everyone,

So from the title of the post you can see that the post is a little bit different than usual but I am going to talk about the condition I have had for a while now and that is Epilepsy. In June 2015 I woke up on a Sunday morning and I made my way downstairs as usual to sit down and see my family, but I started twitching non - stop for 45 minutes and I at that point had no clue whatsoever what was happening to me or what was going on. Obviously I was frightened and I didn't know what to do and neither did my parents and the twitching would not stop so they took me to the Accident & Emergency Department at the hospital, we didn't have to wait long and the doctors took me into a room where they took vials of blood to test and also gave me a blood pressure test as well. These both came back as normal tests so it was nothing to do with either of these areas of my body, so the doctors then sent me to another hospital in which I had an EEG (electroencephalogram) which tests your brain activity and sees if particular lights or activities spike the waves in your brain and helps to figure out what type of condition you have. I then also had to have an MRI which was terrifying and I was entered into a tunnel shaped machine in which you cannot move for 20 minutes and there are massively loud sounds coming from the machine that you have to wear headphones because of, this ran a test of my whole body and was able to see what was going on throughout my system.

Finally after that I was diagnosed with Absence Epilepsy, a condition which means that you can have anywhere from 1 - 100 absences where you blank out and are not aware of your surroundings for 10 - 45 seconds every day. I was given a prescription of anti - epileptic medication of Lamotrigine and Folic Acid which seemed to work, up until Christmas of 2015. I was on a 1 day cruise with my family in Sweden and I got up in the middle of the night and turned a light on and then the next day I suddenly started twitching again which was a shock to my system. After that we went back to see my doctors and they did more blood tests which were normal and he put me on a mix of Lamotrigine and an anti - epileptic drug called Keppra until I could stop taking the first drug and just take the second to see if it would work better, this really did work and the absences were stopped and I did not have anymore problems and everything was going well... 

This was until September of 2016, it was my second day of my final year in high school and I thought everything was going to be fine and it would be a better year and I had nearly got to school when all of a sudden I just passed out, no memory of it happening but it was like I fainted and I bit my tongue when it happened. I woke up about 15 minutes later not knowing what had happened and feeling disorientated, so my mum took me to the hospital again because this was a new symptom and it was more worrying than the last. I had to have another EEG where there were yet again spikes in my brain that showed I had a type of Epilepsy except this time I did not have Absence Epilepsy anymore it had evolved into full - blown Idiopathic Generalised Epilepsy which is a condition with a strong genetic underlying basis. For example, everyone is born with an epileptic barrier and it can take one thing for them to hit that barrier and become epileptic or they can never get it, I just happened to hit the barrier of epilepsy on that day of school and everything happened from there. I had to up my medication by a serious amount of milligrams and the condition was becoming a real pain for me. I would have seizures a lot and each time I would bite my tongue causing me to have trouble eating for the next week. October was definitely the worst month for my epilepsy with there being almost a whole week of me being off school from having seizures on the way there, I became behind with my work and it has caused me to still be off schedule to this day which is really unhelpful when doing A - Levels. I continued to have a lot of seizures and ended up in many hospitals up until December 10th 2016, that was my last seizure as of now, I have been able to stop taking the medication that makes me really drowsy and things are slightly better now. There is a constant worry it will return but I have to hope it won't and also it just kind of annoyed me that being the legal driving age and not being able to drive was a possibility for me.

The worst parts about Epilepsy were definitely the side effects of the medication (apart from the seizures themselves of course) memory loss is a huge part of anti - epileptic drugs and they make it difficult for information to be taken in and retained by the brain because the lobes are affected by the drugs, when doing revision or work this has made it difficult for me and I am trying now to get better now that the seizures are more under control. The weakness I feel when under medication is not something I enjoy and that is why I want to get back to full capacity as much as possible, although I did decide to have a half mute doctors appointment the other day when at the hospital my doctor decided it would be a good idea if she talked to me about Epilepsy and having a baby RIGHT NOW! I'm only 18 I mean I really am not there yet.

*** Update it's the beginning of November and at the beginning of October I had 3 seizures in one day that's right 3, the worst attack of epilepsy I've ever had and I had to spend the night in the hospital with a cannula in my arm and have numerous blood tests yet there is still nothing that can cure anyone with epilepsy, only tablets can help you to lead a hopefully normal life, I had been getting better until that point and it definitely seems that my seizures are caused by a hormone imbalance which I'm trying to fix. 

Anyway I hope this has been a little bit insightful into what I have been through and what Epilepsy is and that you understand my story:)

Love, Grace x

Rose & Rosie

When I started watching Rose and Rosie's videos on youtube they very quickly became my favourite female Youtubers of all time. Their videos are full of comical elements and a lot of the time a spontaneous song.

The reason I love their videos is as well as being hilarious, they also talk about real issues and dealing with them. There is also a variety of Vlogs and I think that they are absolutely adorable as a married couple. 

Rose and Rosie connect with their fans and talk to them a lot. I was upset that I couldn't make B2B in July but my time will come. I really enjoy the weekly younow broadcasts because it gives me a way of stress relief and I always end up cry laughing at them.

This is updated but my favourite video that I've watched of theirs is either I proposed, Speed Dating, stories from the road or Siri smack down ft Kristen Stewart. On Rosie's channel I really loved Vlogmas 2015, there were so many adorable moments as well as some hilarious ones, my favourite was Rose' face when Rosie surprised her it, was so cute. 

Overall I would recommend you watch Rose and Rosie's videos because you will end up with a huge smile on your face. 

Grace x

My passion - Cheerleading

Hey Guys,

So today I wanted to tell you about my favourite hobby and way of exercising and that is Cheerleading. 

I started Cheerleading in 2010 and I am now coming towards the end of my 5th season of it and I can safely say I could not love it more. Cheerleading is a great way to exercise and you make so many friends through your team, programme and through the people you meet at competitions from other programmes. I even got to appear on CBBC on a show called my team: the cheerleaders last season with my team at the time Unity Allstars Pearl. I am still at Unity Allstars however I have now changed to a different team. 

Last weekend I went to Liverpool to attend Jamfest European Nationals and my team Saffron were crowned European Champion in the Senior Large All - Girl level 3 division which made me super happy🎉 

My friends Aimee (left) & Elena (right) from Rising Stars cheerleading in Manchester

One of my best cheer friends Jess 

My best friend Amy whom I met through cheerleading in my first year

My team Unity Allstars Saffron, I love them

Cheerleading has definitely helped my confidence and I have gained so many skills from doing it. I used to do gymnastics and I didn't learn much at all from it, when I started cheerleading I gained so many new skills it really made my confidence grow. 

The coaches are amazing and I am so happy to be a part of such an amazing programme. I'm excited for the final competition of the season in Bournemouth in just over a week and cannot wait to kill it with my team for the last time this year. 

Also, to anyone that is considering starting cheerleading anywhere in the world I would say do it because it's such a good and fun way to exercise and make friends. 

I hope you enjoyed this post and I'm sorry it's the first one in a while I apologise for that but anyway, 

See you soon, byeeee

Grace x 

Love, Tanya review | Grace Johansson

Hola Guys, 

Today I'm going to be doing a review of Love, Tanya by Tanya Burr, I hope you enjoy. 

So, I got Love, Tanya in late January it was either the day it came out which was the 29th January or the day after which was the 30th January. I read it pretty quickly because after starting to read it I became hooked and I also read quite quickly anyway so I finished it in only a few days which is quite quick even for me. I think Love, Tanya is one of my favourite books because not only is it about Tanya's life but it also shares her tips on skin care, makeup and beauty and allows you to put your top 10s and your experiences as well as adding pictures to give you a glimpse of Tanya's life which I really love as it makes the book so much more personal. My favourite chapter is probably the love chapter or the confidence & happiness chapter as they just make me smile to read (well the whole book does but those chapters especially). The skincare chapter really helped me as it made me realise I should care more about what I do to help my skin and how I should look after it and I have to say now that I have a routine my skin is so much better and less prone to outbreaks if spots so thank you Tanya. I love the fact that the book is hardback and the cover is beautiful I really love the design, I would really recommend reading the book and buying it because it's honestly beautifully written and I am going to read it again because I loved it so much.

If you've read Love, Tanya comment below and tell me what you thought as well as your favourite chapter I'm interested to know.

See you soon, 

Grace x

Zoella Beauty Review | Grace Johansson

Hola guys, 

Today I'm going to be doing a review of the products in the Zoella Beauty range available in Superdrug in the UK and online at feel unique. 

1. Blue spotty eyes make up bag

This is one of the more expensive items in the range but it is by far one of my favourites. I use this makeup bag to store all my cheerleading competition makeup and all the makeup I use most and it is really handy as it fits everything I need it to and it is easy to store in most bags I own so I can take it anywhere with me. All in all I really love this makeup bag, there are also 2 other varieties you can purchase and they are also gorgeous, I really recommend them. 

2. Creamy, Madly, Dreamy Body Lotion

First off this product has really helped my skin as I have quite sensitive skin and it can get quite itchy sometimes through my clothes rubbing against my arms and little things like that. The packaging is really pretty it is like a cream colour with pink and coppery shiny writing and a pink lid which I really like because it looks nice and makes you want to buy it so that's a real plus for me as well. I use this product almost every day and it has honestly helped me so much so if you have dry skin I really recommend it as it is really good for that. 

3. Blissful Mistful Body Mist

The body mist is in a square clear bottle with a pink shiny lid and white spots with pink and coppery shiny writing which is so pretty and really nice to look at which I liked. The smell is really nice and fruity smelling I think which I have begun to like more and more and this has quickly become one of my favourite scents to use as it is fresh and sweet which is what I like. It is handy as it is 45ml which is a travel size if you want to take it in hand luggage on an aeroplane and it is quite easily portable so you can take it anywhere with you which I think is always good in a body mist. 

4. Fizz Bar

The fizz bar is very handy for baths as it is split into squares so that you can break them up and use them for lots of baths whenever you want which is very handy. I like the creamy packaging and pink details as they are dainty and pretty and I really like them. The bar is just about the right size which is really good as the squares are not too big or too small and so it gives the right amount of fizz in a bath although if you prefer you can use more than one square in one bath I just prefer to use one at a time also that way they last longer. 

5. Soak Opera bath soak & shower cream

This product is really good because it is a 2 in 1 product as it is a bath soak and a shower cream so it is multipurpose which is always a plus. The packaging is the same as the other products in the range with pink and cream which is nice as everything matches and creates a theme between the products which is always good. The product is creamy and feels really nice when being used which is very important in bath soaks & shower creams as you don't want something that harms your skin or makes it worse so I really would recommend buying this if you have the chance. 

I hope you enjoyed my review see you all soon, 

Grace x

Youtube it's what I do

Hola Guys, 

So in about October I started posting on my own youtube channel, I post every day on a Tuesday and I'm really enjoying it, I got the idea to start after I'd been watching Youtuber for quite a while. So yesterday I think it was I went on my youtube and I realised I had 500 channel views and 32 subscribers which made me happy, I know it's not that much but it's more than I thought I would get so thank you if you watch my youtube videos. 

I wanted to say though if you want to start a youtube channel or your own blog, go for it. It's such a good way to express yourself and it's so much fun to write stuff and talk to people from all over the place about stuff that's important to you, also it makes a lot of people a heck of a lot more confident and they really shine which makes me so happy. 

Always follow what you think will be best, don't listen to what other say if you don't agree with it, that's a mistake I've made a heck of a lot more than I should've done and boy do I regret it. 

See you soon, I love you all 

Grace x

Heritage

Hola Guys,

Today I'm going to be talking about my roots and where I come from just so you understand me a bit better and get to know me a little bit more.

I am half Swedish and half English which is because my Pappa is Swedish and my Mum is English,
I live in England but I visit Sweden almost every year and I especially love to go in the Winter because it snows and as you may know if you're English, we hardly ever get snow. I have family over in Sweden but it is not nearly as big as my English family and I kind of wish it was because then I'd have a lot more cousins and family to visit when I go there. Below are some pictures of me in Sweden and they may include my little sister.

Sweden is a really nice place to visit and if you haven't been I recommend going, it's truly beautiful.

Grace xxx