Newthorpe dance school raises awareness on World Encephalitis Day

Two open jazz classes were held at the Katie Wright School of Dance ahead of World Encephalitis Day today (Wednesday, February 22), which is the global awareness day for people who have been affected by the condition.

Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain caused by an infection or through the immune system attacking the brain.

It can have a high death rate and survivors might be left with an acquired brain injury and life-changing consequences.

At the age of nine, dance teacher Katie Stewart was diagnosed with encephalitis and was unable to walk, talk or attend school or dance classes.

She said: “I had chicken pox so it came from that. I just woke up one morning unable to move and felt so poorly.

“Thankfully it was diagnosed quite quickly for me, so my treatment was good.

“But for a lot of people, because of the lack of awareness of the condition, it leads to delays in diagnosis and it can be a poorer outcome.”

After around six to nine months, Katie made a full recovery and considers herself to be very lucky.

She said: “For so many people it can be life-changing and they end up with brain injuries. I’m so incredibly lucky.

“Apparently encephalitis affects one person every minute globally – yet so many people are unaware of it.”

The determined coach ran two jazz classes for both students of the dance school and non-students over two days, raising almost £500 for the Encephalitis Society.

Katie said: “We had over 50 students sign up for the classes and we just asked everyone to pay what they could.

“It went really well and there was such a good energy in the classes and we all felt like we were doing something to help the charity.

“Everyone’s generosity and support was just fantastic and I am so proud of what we have achieved together as a school.

“It is our hope that World Encephalitis Day will play a leading role to increase global awareness of encephalitis and therefore saving lives and building better futures.”