Michael O'Neill

Michael O'Neill's Fundraiser

I am running to support Families dealing with Epilepsy image

I am running to support Families dealing with Epilepsy

Please support my Marathon Fundraiser for Danny Did Foundation

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$200 towards $1,800

Thank you for considering a donation to support my 26.2 mile Chicago Marathon run dedicated to those facing epilepsy.

Hello, everyone! Many of you know me as Mike, or Boomer. I am running my 4th marathon, and my second marathon in support of the Danny Did Foundation. I have chosen to run for Danny Did again because the cause they support affects me directly. I was diagnosed with Epilepsy officially at the age of 2. Growing up, it was a struggle to control my seizures with just medication. By Spring of my freshman year in high school, I had gained a fair amount of weight due to one of the side affects of my anti-seizure medications. I truly just wanted to lose the weight and try something new, so I joined the Track & Field team at school. By the end of track season, I was hooked on distance running. It pushed me to be better every day! By Fall of the next school year, I went out for the high school Cross-Country team. Despite challenges I faced with my epilepsy and just generally with trying to get better at running, by the following year I had earned a spot on the varsity Cross-Country team. The year I earned that varsity spot was also the year I ended up with my first Vagus-Nerve Stimulator. Since then, my VNS has given me such a better quality of life and has drastically helped reduce the amount of seizures I have. Fast forward about 17 years from my first VNS, and I am still running! When training for and running marathons, I always try to give back and raise awareness to the epilepsy community. I am fortunate that my VNS has helped give me the freedom to be independent and have the life I have.

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About Danny Did Foundation

Founded by Chicago parents Mike and Mariann Stanton in 2010 after the sudden death of their four-year-old son Danny, the Danny Did Foundations primary mission is to prevent deaths caused by seizures. The Foundation advances public awareness of epilepsy and Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP), strives to improve communication about SUDEP between medical professionals and families affected by seizures, and advocates for the mainstream acceptance and use of seizure detection and prediction devices that may assist in preventing seizure-related deaths.

Epilepsy affects 3.4 million people in the United States and 65 million people worldwide. One in 26 Americans will develop epilepsy during their lifetime. But what few people understand, including many people with epilepsy, is that seizures can be fatal. More people die as a result of seizures than from fires and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) combined. In addition to deaths caused by drowning, other accidents, and status epilepticus (prolonged seizures), thousands of deaths occur annually from SUDEP, a fact that is little known and too rarely addressed by medical professionals and in public discussions of epilepsy. Danny Did Foundation takes its name from the last line of Danny Stanton’s obituary, written by his dad: “Please go and enjoy your life. Danny did.” We celebrate Danny’s spirit in every child and family we reach.