FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) – November marks Epilepsy awareness month, a neurological disorder that causes seizures. Miss Indiana Teen 2024 was diagnosed with epilepsy, her goal is to spread awareness across the Hoosier state.
18-year-old Bella Bauer was in fifth grade when she experienced a grad mal seizure. During the time of her diagnosis, she found it difficult to find support from others who had experienced what she had.
“Really going through that and steps and process of figuring out what that was and what that would look like for my life was really important,” said Bauer.
As Bauer became more open about her diagnosis, she realized the importance of communicating to her friends and family about what triggered her.
“People don’t know that epilepsy can come in lots of different forms,” Bauer said. “There’s lots of different types of seizures, there’s absence seizures, there’s grand mal seizures, they can all be on set for different things. A lot of people have different triggers, and I think that’s really important to know.”