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Sexual Side Effects

Wed, 03/29/2006 - 14:24
Why do you suppose that more neurologists and epileptoloists do not mention that a majority of anti-seizure pills do often make "normal" sexual performance for men difficult--if not sometimes impossible when it comes to erections? The first answer will pop up. And that is, even better-informed male patients will say "...to hell with my pills" and choose to live their sexual life "normally". Mind you, that last word I put in quotes, for who anyway should define "normal"? However, after having tried about as many anti-seizure drugs as the number of years I've had epilepsy (that's 35), I can speak as something of a lab rat. Many pills do affect a man's bedroom performance. And while this shouldn't become our reason for living, it is part of being a human, whether single, married or just evaluating our private parts. As society's attitude toward we handsome, educated humans with epilepsy matures, so does its understanding of "performance" when it comes to sex. Mind you, an honest woman will explain when love-making isn't just the thing for her; that does occur. My point is that this topic shouldn't remain in the proverbial "closet" any longer. Let's talk about it on this fine site, as well as face-to-face. Studies reveal how many men live virtually their entire lives feeling guilty for not performing sexually 24-hours a day, where in fact, there's most likely not one who ever has, other than in movies. And that includes this writer!

Comments

Re: Sexual Side Effects

Submitted by 3Hours2Live on Sun, 2008-11-30 - 06:13
Is this limited to Sexual Side Effects of AEDs, or does it include the Sexual Side Effects of Epilepsy too, which secondarily includes AEDs? AEDs improves performance for individuals like me who had untreated temporal lobe epilepsy throughout childhood, adolescence, and early adulthood. It is still about as much fun as doing a rep of any other exercise, but the doctrine of "use it or lose it" might be true. TLE left me in innocence for a long time, being more occupied by things still more important: chasing butterflies, wondering why soap bubbles are spherical, to trying to decide if honeybees in truth make hexagonal honeycombs. (These things ARE IMPORTANT for science, just ask Nabokov, Feynman, and von Frisch.) TLE didn't protect me from having my innocence stolen, by individuals denouncing the very act, such absurdity gave me the lasting mischievousness of Puck and arrogance of Tadzio, though apathetic indifference is the TLE rule otherwise, with a strong dose of skepticism and contempt of authoritarians. The economics of American reality and TLE turned parts of my youth into a nightmarish epileptic version of MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO, but I managed to emerge fairly unscathed. My fleeting youth may have left me with worsening TLE, and now gran mals, at least my absence of youth has neutralized the annoying face-to-face fascination and questioning of many physically pesky and trouble-making individuals about my TLE apathy, even though they had no interest or knowledge in epilepsy.

Re: Sexual Side Effects

Submitted by jencas16 on Wed, 2008-09-17 - 00:16
I am glad to see so many posts about this issue.  I am a woman, and was diagnosed 8 years ago.  I am on a combination of Lamictal and Topamax.  Initially, I had plenty of sex drive (being a healthy 18 year old, although on depakote).  After having only 1 Grand Mal, I was seizure free for 3 years and released from meds, after which my slightly declined sex drive returned to its shining glory. After another couple big ones, I was put on the med I am on now and dosages gradually increased with every seizure until my most recent, now I am at the max.  I have zero sex drive and have had none for SO long.  I had a healthy pregnancy, my son is 1 year, but we struggled to get pregnant, it just wasn't "fun".  We want another, but I am slightly relieved we can't, my epilepsy has become uncontrolled now and cannot risk pregnansy until I have been controlled for at least 6 months.  I have recently confided in my husband my lack of desire and blame of the drugs and it helped his understanding.  He had thought I just didn't care.  We are trying to find other ways and means to rev things up in the bedroom.  It may seem unnatural, naughty, and "juvenile" to some people, but I feel that it is very important to my marriage that I be able to find a way to be turned on by my husband even if he need to use help (visual, audio, manipulative aides).  I hope I am not being to graphic but I am trying to give people advice on what we have found to be helpful for us.  It is helpful in more than a physical manner.  It provides a band in our marriage as well that we are finally communicating and he is helping me with my shortcomings.

Re: Sexual Side Effects

Submitted by chicko on Sun, 2008-11-23 - 06:52

i have e and take the drug Epanutin at 200mg twice a day.i have got useless sex drive and don`t know what if anything i can do.i`m 42 years old.any advice welcome.

 

i have e and take the drug Epanutin at 200mg twice a day.i have got useless sex drive and don`t know what if anything i can do.i`m 42 years old.any advice welcome.

 

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