Dixie D’Amelio 'Felt Scared' Experiencing Her 1st Seizure Since 2017
Dixie D’Amelio “felt scared” while experiencing her first seizure since 2017.
“I was driving to go film and I feel my chest getting really heavy. [I] just felt like there was something wrong with my body,” Dixie, 21, shared during The D’Amelio Show season 3 finale, which premiered on Wednesday, October 18. “I thought I was shutting down.”
Dixie explained that when she was in high school, she was diagnosed with Psychogenic Nonepileptic Seizures (PNES), which are “a physical symptom of anxiety.”
PNES attacks “may look like epileptic seizures but are not caused by abnormal brain electrical discharges,” according to the Epilepsy Foundation. “Instead, they are a manifestation of psychological distress.”
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After Dixie’s seizure, Greg Goodfried, president of D’Amelio Family, LLC, could be seen speaking on the phone with her dad, Marc D’Amelio.
“We were down the street; we were about to shoot a scene with Dixie, and she’s had one of her seizures or something. She’s on the ground,” Greg said. “She looks like she’s in another planet, she’s not speaking. So, Hulu immediately called an ambulance.”
Dixie, for her part, was crying and apologizing to her parents as the paramedics asked her questions. Her seizure took place hours before the family was set to host a party celebrating the D’Amelio Footwear Launch.
“I just got a call that Dixie had a seizure right down the street from our office. … It’s heart-wrenching and terrifying,” Marc, 54, recalled during his confessional. “It’s not the first time she’s had a seizure, but I don’t think a parent could ever get used to that phone call. I’ve seen it and it’s scary so I’m thinking the worst.”
Marc further explained that because the family has “been through this before,” they know the scare was caused by Dixie’s PNES and can “rule out epilepsy right off the bat.” However, when Dixie was taken to the hospital, “they want to check for epilepsy.” After some tests, Dixie “asked to be discharged.”
While Charli D’Amelio was not present during the medical emergency, she was getting frequent updates and shared a conversation with her sister from earlier in the day.
“When she drove me here, she was like, ‘Yeah, I really don’t feel good, can you get me a Red Bull,’” Charli, 19, recalled, noting that her sister was driving and had to pull over before the ambulance was called. Elsewhere in the episode, Dixie explained that that her seizure was caused by “lack of sleep, dehydration, caffeine — it was a perfect storm.”
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While Charli was getting her makeup done for the family party, she noticed that Dixie had been posting on Snapchat from the hospital.
“She doesn’t care,” Charli said of her sister. “I feel like it’s a little scary.”
Ultimately, the entire family made it to the D’Amelio Footwear launch party — even though Marc and Heidi D’Amelio were concerned about their daughter’s health.
“This shoe launch is very important. Building up to this for six months, it’s a very big deal,” Dixie explained in her confessional. “I don’t think there’s anything that could get me to miss this party. I could be on the road, flopping like a fish and I will still be there.”
All episodes of The D’Amelio Show season 3 are now streaming via Hulu.
