Actor Fatima Sana Shaikh has openly spoken about living with epilepsy. In a recent interaction, she recalled an incident when she suffered multiple seizures during a flight, which led her to cancel the shoots of two major film projects.
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Speaking to Humans of Bombay, she said, “I had a major episode when I had multiple seizures. I was travelling to the USA and it was via Dubai flight. I got seizures on the flight. Then I was taken to the airport hospitals, I was given the medication but then also my seizures weren’t stopping, then they give me a very high dose.”
Fatima revealed that since the seizures wouldn’t stop, she was administered two doses of strong medication, which left her heavily sedated and immobile. “They gave me a certain chemical and I was already on a different chemical. So in epilepsy you have to wean off one chemical before you can take another one. So, I was so drugged out.”
She was in the middle of shooting two films at the time, and the health scare significantly impacted both productions. “I was shooting for Sam Bahadur and I was also doing another film with it, I think Dhak Dhak. I had to cancel shoot, one of the guy called me and asked me if I can shoot and I started crying because I couldn’t get out of the bed.”
She further added, “I couldn’t get out of the bed. I was constantly dropped out. My emotions were all over the place. I was like this is my reality now. At that time I accepted that this is my disease and people also should know about it as it will help others.”
When asked what helped her during that time, Fatima shared that support groups and meaningful conversations played a vital role in her recovery. “I got help from conversations and support groups, and now I am very much stable, and I haven’t gotten an episode since a while now.”
On the professional front, Fatima is awaiting the release of two major projects—Metro… In Dino and Aap Jaisa Koi.
