Alicia’s Story | FND Awareness Day UK 2026

A personal story of living with Functional Neurological Disorder (FND).
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I was enjoying a family holiday abroad when my symptoms hit hard, unexpectedly, with an extremely long NES, with high BP and pulse. This was as I was due to come home and resulted in missing our flight and a hospital admission.

I was diagnosed abroad with a panic attack! As I came back to the UK I faced this diagnosis again until I was admitted into the ward and had a neurology review. I was quickly diagnosed as my symptoms were witnessed, clear CT scan and MRI and bloods.

I’m a midwife and now been off work for 5 months. I experience tremors, high heart rate, brain fog, walking difficulties, pain, fatigue, speech difficulties and more. My life has completely changed I now use mobility aids, have carers, I cannot drive, I cannot go out alone and uncertain if I will return to a career I love. I believe my FND and NEAD was triggered following a viral infection I had before I went on holiday although there isn’t a way to prove this it seems to tally up to me. I had a few balance symptoms prior to the diagnosis, I had lost balance at work and sent home, had the illness and then short lived balance episodes in the run up to the episode that got me admitted to hospital. This condition needs awareness, it needs research and it needs us warriors to fight against the stigma. I have made a TikTok to document my journey and am keen to work alongside charity’s supporting FND.

~ By Alicia, Age 34