North Coventry Twp. man is finally seizure free, climbs Mount Everest

NORTH COVENTRY TWP., Pennsylvania (WPVI) -- Tyler Rogers' story is one of inspiration, but also determination.

Ten years ago, the North Coventry, Chester County man unknowingly suffered the first of what would be many seizures.

Four surgeries later, he is now seizure-free, and he celebrated with the journey of a lifetime.

Rogers says there was nowhere to go but up. So up he went 29,029 feet to the top of Mount Everest.

Tyler's ascension to this moment hasn't been easy, but his positivity and faith have led the way.

"Just keep moving forward and there's always something good in front of all of us, as long as we keep trying," Rogers says.

It's what he learned from his climb.

Rogers' health issues started 10 years ago when he was on the wrestling team at Owen J. Roberts High School in Pottstown.

"My senior year, our first duel tournament of the year, I got a really bad concussion," he explains.

From there, the seizures started. First, they were partial and then they became what's known as grand mal seizures.

"That's where you're flopping around like a fish," he says. "That's the easiest way to describe it. That's what everybody thinks of when they think of a seizure."

The seizures ramped up. Rogers says he started losing words, lost his driver's license, and then started drinking.

"That became a major issue for me going forward," he says, "but I'm actually coming up on two years sober on October 27."

Rogers made it his mission to make up for lost time and live a life that's "worth living."

He started training and climbing, and in May he attempted Everest.

"I wanted to do something that was up to me to do," Rogers says. "I wasn't going to let the drinking, the seizures, or somebody else have the final answer. Either I get to the top, or I don't."

On May 24, he looked down from the summit.

"I got to the top," he says. "I really do feel blessed that I was able to make it up there. I definitely wasn't the best climber or the strongest climber that was on that mountain. It was incredible, that's really the only word that I can use to describe it."

Tyler is now living in Montana and has his eyes set on his next adventure.