A BANKIE has thanked four Good Samaritans for rescuing him after other people walked past him when he suffered an epileptic seizure in the Kilpatrick Hills and had to be airlifted to hospital.

Brian Rocks has been plagued by fits throughout his entire life and during his episodes he is often mistaken for being drunk or on drugs, which is what he suspects happened during the incident in June.

The 57-year-old was walking in the hills alone when he took a seizure and fell onto a wall, cutting his head, face and neck.

Fortunately, two men and two women were passing by at the time and called an ambulance. After some time, an air ambulance arrived, and he was then flown to Queen Elizabeth University Hospital. The incident has left Brian with face scars and his arm in a sling.

“But for four great people, God only knows where I’d be now.” Brian said. “While I was in that seizure, two people walked past me as if I was on drink or drugs, which I have never touched in my life.

“I want everyone to know there are great people out there. My face is scarred for life, but not because of drink or drugs, but because of epilepsy.

“As I always say, it’s like going 12 rounds with Tyson – to tell people the hell it is at the time. I am very tired, and I am very sore.”

Brian has lived in the town’s Auchnacraig Road his entire life and was diagnosed with epilepsy at an early age.

“Growing up, Brian had many challenges in life.” Brian’s brother Steven told the Post. “He just hated being different from others.

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“He had anger problems and he fought a lot as a child. He made a lot of problems at home and in his early teens he was sent to other homes.

“Being there changed him. He came back to us a much better person.

“After my father died, he helped my mother big time. I feel he still to this day carries the blame on himself for the way he was.”

Brian can no longer work, after a seizure at 21 sent him tumbling off the second tier of building site scaffolding and into a skip, breaking his right leg.

And over the years, heartless thieves have taken advantage of him and stolen his Christmas presents, golf clubs and weekly food supplies while others have hurled abuse at him in the street while he was in the middle of one of his seizures, again thinking he was drunk or on drugs.

But Brian has refused to be put down by these incidents and instead campaigns for those that suffer from epilepsy.

Back in 2014, Brian was chosen to take part in the Queen’s Baton Relay ahead of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow as a reward for his years raising awareness.

He said: “I got to carry the Queen’s baton, and it was fantastic for me – all my friends and my family were there and getting to hold it also. And the best thing about it was everyone carrying it had a number on their top – and my mine was ‘007’.”

Now Brian is writing a book about his experiences and explaining his battles with epilepsy in order to let people who don’t know about the condition to learn more about it.

Brian added: “With everything I have gone through in my life with my epilepsy, all my family and friends said it’s time I did something about it.”