About David
A storyteller, author and chronic illness advocate.
David fell in love with theatre as a teenager and developed a love of storytelling. As a result, his passion earned him a place to study at the conservatoire, The Guildhall School of Music & Drama, London.
In late 2014, David began experiencing severe breathlessness and dizziness from minor exertion while starting work on a Christmas production. He was hospitalised for tests because of fears of a blood clot in his lungs. The next twenty-four hours became surreal as test after test came back negative. Stumped as to how to explain why his resting heart rate was 140bpm, a senior cardiologist took a shot in the dark and ordered a tilt table test. It confirmed Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome.
Over four years, David saw many specialists, each helping him manage his day-to-day symptoms. Dysautonomia affects the entire nervous system, causing symptoms across most medical disciplines. It ended in the sad realisation that David’s career in theatre was incompatible with his new diagnosis.
The Waking Relief Collection was born after David commented to his sleep therapist treating his chronic insomnia, common to dysautonomia, suggesting he could write his lucid dreams into novels. She agreed.
Today, symptoms still blight his daily life, but his passion for storytelling lives on through the Waking Relief Collection – a collection of independent stories inspired by his lucid dreams, the blurred edges of reality and the resilience of the human mind.
David hopes sharing his work will help others with disabilities feel less isolated and enjoy reading.