In a Netflix documentary series released in September, Kentucky Sports Radio host Matt Jones is seen having an epileptic seizure. He has shared why he allowed the video to be shown.
In an interview with Lexington TV station WKYT, Jones says he wants others with epilepsy to know they’re not alone.
“I think the world is a better place when people realize they are not the only ones feeling whatever it is they are feeling,” Jones said.
He shared that talking about the effects the condition has on him breaks down the stigma.
“You know I’m not ashamed to have epilepsy; it’s a medical condition, and there is nothing I can do about it. I take medication, and that helps, and I wanted to show people that you can have a condition like that and still succeed and still go through life, and you should not be ashamed of it,” he said.
The Kentucky Sports Radio host said his first seizure happened when he was 22, which is rare because most people with epilepsy suffer it at an earlier age. He said the seizure he suffered while filming the Netflix series Wrestlers — which features a behind-the-scenes look at Ohio Valley Wrestling and attempts to save the promotion in which Jones is a partner — was one of the worst he’s ever experienced.
Matt Jones told the TV station his only hesitation in showing the footage was he didn’t want his mother to see it.
“The director talked to me about airing it. He basically said are you okay with airing it? My initial inclination was no, not because of me, but because of my mother, and I didn’t want her to have to see it. She had never seen me have one,” Jones concluded.
November is Epilepsy Awareness Month. 1 in 26 people in the United States suffer from the condition.
