As a young mother — barely out of her teens — Sarah DuCloux-Potter found herself trying to juggle a baby, a job, her college classes … and seizures.

“My epilepsy actually started from pregnancy or childbirth, maybe from the hormones, nobody knows for sure,” says the St. Paul woman, now 38.

At first, she was in denial.

“I actually ignored it,” she says. “I blamed it on nightmares. People kept telling me to get help.”

Eventually, she did.

“I was 20 when I got the diagnosis of epilepsy from a neurologist,” she says. “I got very angry and upset. That meant no driving. I was sure life was over, that this was the end of things. I looked into assisted living. I was sure that I was disabled, that everything was done.

“It took me a long time to realize that this wasn’t a death sentence.”

Eventually, she found hope.

“Art helped, actually,” she says. “I wrote a lot and I drew a lot and I worked with our Epilepsy Foundation here in Minnesota and learned that there are other people who are doing just fine with epilepsy.”

Eventually, she found a way to take back some control.

“I started running,” she says.

At first, it was a secret.

“I hid it from my family because I was embarrassed,” she says. “I’d just throw on sweatpants and just really quietly run laps in my kitchen to try to get healthy. I thought if I could get some things under control, I wouldn’t feel so out of control. Seizures rob you of control; I was trying to take back some control.

“Slowly, things fell into line. It was a confidence boost. Once I got my confidence back, it was all uphill from there.”

Due to another health condition that affects her muscles — dystonia — DuCloux-Potter has had to leave running behind in favor of stair climbing, yoga and boxing. She also had to undergo brain surgery — not due to the seizures, but due to trigeminal neuralgia, a chronic pain condition that affects a nerve in the face. In her case, it was severe and debilitating. It’s also been enlightening.

“When someone says they are having pain or are uncomfortable, I don’t take that lightly,” she says. “I try to help them find their way without diminishing what they are feeling.”

In the midst of all these struggles and lessons, DuCloux-Potter decided to return to school.

“That was a really difficult decision because I have memory issues from the meds and the epilepsy,” she says. “I didn’t want to fail.”

She didn’t fail:

In fact, she has been awarded the 2016 UCB Family Epilepsy Scholarship through UCB, a global biopharmaceutical company, which is helping her pursue a degree in health management at the University of Minnesota.

“Once I finish my bachelor’s and go on to earn my master’s, I’d love to work somewhere in ethics or project managing for epilepsy or dystonia or both,” she says.

Meanwhile, she hasn’t left behind her first coping mechanism: art.

“At the Creative Arts Showcase for the Epilepsy Foundation of Minnesota (in November), I read my poem, ‘Independence’:

“Dear Epilepsy,

“It’s time we had a chat. I know you thought you had me. For a while, I almost gave in to you. I nearly surrendered in defeat. I started to walk away from everything that made me ‘me’ as you stole bits and pieces of my personality both directly through your misfires in my brain and indirectly through your need of medications that altered my state of self.

“Not so fast dear epilepsy. You don’t get such an easy pass into my life. I demand some authority. You may rob me of control for blips of time but you cannot strip me of my spirit. I am taking it back.

“I sure fooled you didn’t I? You lost your hold on me epilepsy! I have you in the crossfire now. You don’t OWN ME. I am the master of my destiny. I have proof that I can conquer the likes of you. I reached for the stars and swung amongst them. I laughed in your face and felt no fear. I smiled a thousand smiles.

“You told me I couldn’t, but I did. You told me I would never, but I made it.

“I ran 50 miles. I crossed the finish line. I conquered you. You will never own me.”

The best part of the reading, she says:

“A lot of people came up to me afterward and talked about how what I faced and accomplished in the face of epilepsy motivated them to try, too,” she says.

FYI

2017 UCB Family Epilepsy Scholarship Program

Details: UCB — a global biopharmaceuticals company — will offer 30 scholarships of up to $5,000 and two scholarships of up to $10,000 in 2017 to people living with epilepsy, their family members and caregivers, to help them achieve their goals of pursuing higher education.

Info: Applications are due by March 10. Get more information and apply at www.ucbepilepsyscholarship.com