Young Laois woman talks about balancing business and brain surgery

A young Laois woman has spoken about the challenges of balancing brain surgery with running her own business.   

Flower Child, a sustainable gardening, wellness, and aromatherapy brand, has announced its founder Alex, is sharing her health journey during the last six months, and the impact it has had both professionally and personally. 

Alex was diagnosed with frontal lobe epilepsy at the age of eleven and received brain surgery at thirteen to lessen the effects of the seizures. With the surgery deemed a success, Alex was able to lead a life with minimal disruption from her seizures. She has continued to live with her neurological disorder for the last thirteen years and in this time, Alex has completed a college degree, ran for charity, and launched her aromatherapy brand, Flower Child. 

Now aged 26, Alex wants to share the recent developments in her health journey, and how this difficult time became one of the most rewarding. 

In January 2023 Alex’s health took a turn for the worse when she found herself in A&E after a serious nocturnal seizure that left her unconscious for days. This experience led to numerous hospital stays and the opportunity for Alex to receive more surgery in the hopes doctors could cure her epilepsy altogether. 

This life changing surgery would allow Alex to continue as she was before, working on designing new products and developing her brand, but it would come with risks, such as loss of function on the left side of her body.  During this difficult time, Alex focused her energy on her brand, Flower Child, securing new stockists and developing future campaigns. 

“I refused to let my health define me and chose instead to maintain my focus on being a woman in business” Alex said. 

“I focused all my energy on Flower Child, and ensuring my brand would stay running smoothly, despite everything I was dealing with.” 

While her health rapidly declined, her brand grew stronger than she ever could have dreamed,  

“One part of my life was falling apart, I was having more and more seizures every day, but my brand was reaching new heights! I was going from days of not being able to leave my bed to visiting my products on the shelves of some of my favourite stores. The past six months were a roller-coaster of highs and lows.”

Alex had her second brain surgery on July 12. “I decided the risk was worth the reward,” she revealed. This decision has led Alex to where she is now, seizure free and attending rehab to regain the mobility lost in her left arm. 

Rescheduled Ossory Agricultural Show all set for Sunday

“I really have been living my best and worst life simultaneously these last six months.” With a road of recovery still ahead of her, Alex shares her story in the hopes it inspires others to keep going and to focus on the positives in life. 

She repeatedly shares her positive mindset through her online channels and hopes to show others that even during hard times you can choose to focus on the windows of positivity. 

To read more about Alex’s story visit https://www.flower-child.ie/