Liora Katz

During COVID-19, I was diagnosed with Temporal Lobe Epilepsy which has had a huge life changing impact on my career and ability to perform as the dynamic leader with a proven track record of transforming business units into profitable entities while mentoring and fostering talent. I excelled in operations management and fostering strong client relationships. However, with seizures I had major issues with short-term memory and the anxiety around the onset of a seizure which impacted both my professional and personal life. Once very skilled in strategic implementation and staff development, significantly enhancing operational efficiency and team collaboration, I was retrenched for poor performance due to my epilepsy.

At this time, I focused on what I loved and felt confident doing which is non-profit work. I created a non-profit called SWAK (Sealed With A Kiss) to assist heads of child headed households. I also volunteered for a non-profit which included the implementation of a birthday programme for many of the children who had never been honored or "spoilt" on the day of their birth.

Epilepsy literally stole my life and isolated me from the world by limiting my confidence, talking away my financial independence and affected many close friendships as people eventually get empathy fatigue. Not being able to drive, while living in South Africa with limited public transport, my struggle with processing, memory issues and finding words my world shrunk, along with the person I was. It has taken me three years to learn to love this new version of myself and I am now at a point of having learnt to manage my seizures and have the confidence to work again.

Although I have an MBA and was in many high powered positions, at this point in my life I am no longer focused on my title or achieving the salary I once did, I want to inspire and give hope to this very isolating and life impacting disability, epilepsy.