Sharing a Dream: About Me

Hi there! My name is Cassie Rowell. I was born in Birmingham, Alabama, but I am a California girl. :-)

I'm an actress/singer currently performing onstage at Knott's Berry Farm. I attended the Alabama School of Fine Arts until I moved to California. I have done tons of musical theatre, but I want to act in film/tv, particularly comedy. Comedy/making people laugh is my forte. The world has enough drama. I would also love a recording career, pop music, showtunes.

I want to make a difference in the world and be a positive role model. I love animals, and hope to have a ranch with tons of animals someday. I would also like to help sponsor local animal shelters, or maybe even open a no-kill shelter of my own. I also dream of designing my own perfumes someday!

I have been in a few movies, very small roles in very big movies.

I am passionate, stubborn, feisty, romantic, compassionate, caring, thoughtful, intelligent, witty, naive, silly, dorky, loving, impatient, considerate, observant, sassy, and sweet. :-) I am a really good person, but also human with faults. I tend to view things in black and white with very little shades of gray. I tend to believe that rules and laws are meant to be followed, not broken. I love cops and firemen. I respect laws. My love for law enforcement agencies began when I was five, when they rescued me after an accident. It's been a love affair ever since. :-)

I do not do recreational drugs, and can't get close to anyone who does. Drugs are bad, mmm'kay???? I just choose to surround myself with positivity & healthiness. As I said above, I respect laws, so I would never put myself in a situation where I am with someone who's breaking one. I am a teetotaler....that means someone who doesn't drink at all, if ya didn't know (it's kinda an old-school word). I detest alcohol. "Unnatural escapism" doesn't solve anything. I have a ton of fun in my life, without drugs or alcohol. If I can, anybody can. I toured to elementary schools for years, performing in shows that taught kids to avoid drugs, alcohol, tobacco, and gangs. I am passionate about all that, and plan to use fame to reach our youth (and adults!) on those subjects. I don't touch tobacco, either. I am allergic to smoke, so I can't even be around someone who is smoking. I know, I know....an actress in Hollywood who--*gasp*--doesn't do drugs, smoke/use tobacco, or drink alcohol? I am a FREAK!!! And proud of it! :-) I have always marched to the beat of my own drum, and I never expect that to change. I thought I would mellow out a bit as I aged, but I have just gotten more feisty! I'm not likely to keep an opinion to myself, but I have somewhat learned how to pick and choose my battles.

I AM going to make a difference in the world. :-)

In 2006, I was diagnosed with Early Onset Posttraumatic Seizure Disorder. I began having tonic-clonic seizures after striking my head at work in 2003. Being diagnosed with a new disability at 34 years old has been an extremely stressful, depressing experience. I tried to get a new job, working in law enforcement, to have greater financial stability while I await my acting/singing dream to come true. Law enforcement agencies were not interested in someone with a seizure disorder (or someone with generalized anxiety disorders, which I have). So I was faced with discrimination I wasn't used to, as well.

I have always been pretty active, and I was scared that too much activity would cause a seizure. Every time I hit my head now, I am TERRIFIED that I will have a seizure. I live with a constant fear of seizures in the back of my mind. I have taken 3 driving tests in 3 years. I am always one seizure away from losing my driver's license, and therefore, virtually my independence (good luck in So. Cal with public transportation....the bus ride to my job is 2.5 hours one way, changing buses in a dangerous area). I have to take anti-depressants to counterbalance the depressive side effects of the anti-seizure meds, and I am terrified that those will lower my seizure threshhold (even though there's only something like a .00000000001 percent chance of that happening with the med I am on). The anti-seizure med I take causes depression, slowed metabolism, severe weight gain (GREAT for someone wanting to be a film/tv actress--where the camera adds 10 pounds--when weight is an issue, already!), constant fatigue, nausea, and severe leg cramps....those are just the main symptoms *I* experience, and my med is one of the best of the available ones. The 3 others I tried made me even more ill. I was told by my neurologist that I am not allowed to swim or even take a bath alone anymore. One dream of mine is to have a home with a pool someday, and swim laps every morning. According to my doctor, I wouldn't be able to do that, without supervision.

I have lost a certain degree of independence at a very young age, but I refuse to buy into it. I will do as I always have, and if I have a seizure while playing in the ocean and drown, so be it. I will have died living my life to the fullest. Carpe diem! I refuse to allow this "disability" to have too much of an effect on my life. When I am successful, I plan to contribute large amounts of money to seizure research. VERY little is known, and all the seizure meds SUCK....for instance, my seizure med says, "This drug is used to control seizures. It is not known how this medication works." Huh? Great. I want to be a role model for others with seizure disorders, showing that you can be HUGELY successful despite the disorder. When I was first diagnosed, I felt massive despair....a feeling that there were so many things I COULDN'T do now. "No one will want to hire an actress who could have a seizure." Heck, the LA Sheriff's Department disqualified me because of the seizure disorder! But I refuse to remain hopeless....I will be a celebrity voice for others with seizure disorders, and fund research for better medication and understanding of the disorder.