A woman suffers seizures and paralysis after she fractured her face falling onto a DJ booth in a restaurant.
Emjaye Bowman, 33, of Birmingham, was rushed to hospital in 2006 after the trip in a low-lit restaurant.
But after being sent home, she suffered from worrying symptoms for two years, including headaches, blackouts, seizures and 'numbness'.
Doctors diagnosed Ms Bowman with functional neurological disorder (FND), often described as puzzling and unexplained.
Symptoms occur as a result of problems in the nervous system and how the brain receives signals, and it has been suggested physical injury or trauma is a cause.
Ms Bowman, who has a full-time carer, has been left jobless and previously in fear of leaving her house because of her 'invisible disability'.
But the creative writer has found therapy in music and poetry, saying it has reduced her seizures, and raises awareness with photoshoots replicating her injuries.
Emjaye Bowman, photographed to raise awareness for invisible disabilities, was left with a life-long brain condition after falling over in a restaurant and fracturing her face in 2006
Ms Bowman hit her face on a DJ booth in a dimly-lit room. She received treatment at hospital, but suffered from headaches, blackouts, seizures and 'numbness' for two years
Ms Bowman, who used to work as a senior performance administrator before her accident, was diagnosed with functional neurological disorder in 2008
Recalling the accident, Ms Bowman, who is single, said: 'One minute I was walking across the restaurant. The next I knew I had tripped over a box that shouldn't have been in the middle of the floor and I blacked out.
'After the fall and the initial hospital treatment, I just tried to move forwards and carry on, but it was clear to me that something else was wrong other than fractured bones.
'I was blacking out constantly and even had seizures. I had no idea what was going on. I knew I had to get myself checked out again, so I ended up having plenty of observations and scans over the course of two years, which finally led to a horrific diagnosis.'
FND can encompass a wide variety of neurological symptoms, such as limb weakness, seizures, headaches, blurred vision and loss of sensation.
It is unknown what the prevalence or the cause of the condition is, but it is not uncommon.
Risk factors of developing the disorder include stress, personality disorders, distressing life events and trauma.
FND can encompass a wide variety of neurological symptoms, such as limb weakness, seizures, headaches, blurred vision and loss of sensation
Ms Bowman set up Warriors of The World, a self-funded group, inviting people with invisible disabilities like hers to come together
Ms Bowman has found therapy in music and poetry, saying it has reduced her seizures
Discovering she had FMD was a devastating blow to Ms Bowman, who once worked as a senior performance
