Josh Provides - Epilepsy Assistance Foundation

by SAVANNAH KNIGHT

My name is Savannah, and I was diagnosed with epilepsy when I was 6 years old. I am now almost 11, and I have been living with epilepsy for the last 5 years. The first few years had ups and downs, but my epilepsy was mostly controlled with medication. Unfortunately, in the last two years my seizures increased and they severely impacted my life. And last summer things felt unsafe for me. I had a seizure while in the crosswalk of a street and it made my mom very nervous.

It was at that point that my mom said that we could start researching service dogs, and put my name on the waiting list for a seizure support dog. We were not sure how to pay for the whole expense, but figured we could work something out if the opportunity presented itself.

Then, last fall, September 2022, we were connected with a service dog. Her name was Tundra and she had been waiting to help someone like me.  My mom researched financial assistance for seizure response dogs, and found the amazing community of JoshProvides. We emailed and are so thankful that even though we live in Bend, Oregon, we could still apply for financial assistance.

Because of the help from JoshProvides, we welcomed Tundra to our family in October, and she has made me feel safe at home, and at school. Tundra will lay down next to me when I have a seizure. She lays under my desk at school, and she sleeps in my bedroom at night. We are very thankful to have Tundra in our family, and thankful to JoshProvides for helping us. I still have many seizures, but Tundra makes my epilepsy easier to manage.