Beyond the Spotlight: Alina Guzman’s Journey from Prom Queen to Living with Epilepsy (Feature Story for MEA-110: Writing for Journalism and New Media)
From being crowned prom queen and leading cheers under the stadium lights to spending weekends thrifting vintage high-end designer pieces, Alina Guzman carried herself with a bright, stylish confidence that made her unforgettable in high school.
That shining confidence was tested in late November 2023, when she experienced her very first unexpected seizure—a moment that dropped her world in slow motion.
Two months later, a second seizure struck even harder than her first: longer, more violent, and frightening enough that she collapsed twice, hitting her head as though the floor rushed up to meet her before she even realized she was falling.
The episodes were later identified as myoclonic seizures, characterized by sudden, shock-like muscle jerks that steal control from the body in an instant.
After each episode, she was left with a pounding headache and a heavy mental fog—known as the postictal phase—that made simple conversation impossible for several minutes. Those moments blurred together into weeks of fear, confusion, and silence.
By March 2024, doctors diagnosed the 19-year-old Guzman with Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy (JME), finally giving a name to the uncertainty she had been navigating alone. The diagnosis forced her to reevaluate her identity, her ambitions, and the life she had imagined for herself, reshaping her college experience with a new kind of resilience.
"I felt like my life stopped for a second. It limited my abilities to do almost anything—my diagnosis took away almost everything and every opportunity I was given or had," she said.
At first, she kept her condition private, unsure how to explain something she had barely begun to understand.
"I never shared it with them until I knew for sure," she recalls.
But once doctors confirmed JME, she told her closest friends immediately. Their response was instant and unwavering:
“You’re not alone. Let me know if you ever need anything,” they told her.
That affirmation softened the fear she’d been holding in silence.
Her classmates in Writing Multimedia Journalism—also known as MEA-110—describe her as a "busy woman," a title she lives up to by walking into class each week loaded with tripods, camera bags, microphones, and gear slung over both shoulders.
Carson Kratzberg, a classmate, notices it every time.
"Alina is always carrying camera equipment into class every week," he said.
Another classmate, Logan Galarza, adds:
"She's always put together, hardworking, such an Ariana Grande fan... Alina is a very admirable classmate. She's involved in so many MEA classes at COC—and she's a damn good journalist!"
Her peers see what her professors see: a student whose work ethic and presence stand out.
James Alfaro, who has worked with Guzman in both Intro to Multimedia Journalism and News Production I, echoed those impressions.
"She's an amazing person, a hard worker, and always pays attention in class," he said.
He also shared a more personal reflection on her resilience:
"She's a really nice friend to have around—knows the struggles of college life," he said, adding that she's "more brave than me when it comes to news anchoring."
That bravery shows most in how she adapts when things don't go as planned.
Alfaro recalled one of her standout stories for Canyons News—a feature on a local pumpkin patch event.
When the main organizers refused interviews on camera, Guzman didn't flinch.
Instead, she improvised.
Over the next two days, she tracked down five to six attendees, gathering enough soundbites to craft a full, compelling news package.
"I like that during the event she had to improvise by thinking on the spot," Alfaro said.
Born in Ventura and raised between Port Hueneme and her small hometown of Piru, Guzman now moves through college with the kind of strength most people never see.
She first entered COC as an English major, but after discovering the world of multimedia storytelling, she shifted her path toward journalism—specifically fashion reporting.
It's a blend of everything she loves: creativity, culture, personal expression, and the thrill of storytelling.
Her journey from prom queen to navigating epilepsy to rebuilding her academic direction reveals a story about identity, vulnerability, and reinvention.
Her diagnosis didn't just interrupt her life—it demanded she redefine her worth, her limits, and her future.
Even now, as she balances coursework, her health, and her passion for fashion journalism, she continues to rebuild herself one challenge at a time.
According to the National Institutes of Health, juvenile myoclonic epilepsy accounts for 5-10% of all epilepsy cases, making it one of the most common generalized epilepsies.
While some childhood-onset epilepsies fade over time, studies show that JME is typically a lifelong condition requiring consistent medication.
Doctors warn that stopping treatment leads to seizure recurrence in more than 80% of patients—underscoring the seriousness of the diagnosis Guzman now lives with.
Now, looking back on the last two years, Guzman speaks openly about the parts of her life that changed her: the fear after her second seizure, the uncertainty of switching majors, and the comfort of finding her passion for fashion journalism during a time when everything felt unstable.
Her story began long before her diagnosis—but how she responded to every moment afterward reveals who she is and who she is becoming.
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