Panic attack versus seizure

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What is the difference between a panic attack and a seizure? The seizure I had this evening started with a sheer panic attack and progressed into a complex partial seizure. I felt sheer terror at first working up my spine and then it generalized into a true seizure, where I lost consciousness.

Has anybody else had this happen to them? Any information or response would be grateful.

Comments

Re: Panic attack versus seizure

Submitted by rbrotsky on Tue, 2009-03-10 - 12:16

Ditto for me too. My Dr. and I thought I was having panic attacks until we did an eeg and found out I have TLE. That feeling of fear that comes at the beginning of my complex partials is like nothing else and I'm thankful that the Depakote ER seems to be keeping things controlled.

Re: Panic attack versus seizure

Submitted by iraq on Sun, 2009-04-19 - 09:31

My husband was in combat for 3 years, exposed to roadside bombings etc. He now started to have seizures, grand mal convulsive seizures, he has been put on Depakote ER. His seizures usually happen during his nightmares of combat, he goes back to Iraq everytime he closes his eyes. He attends therapy regularly. Two times his seizures happened during the day, the first one lasted 30 minutes, he was lucky to live long enough for the ambulance to get here. The second one during the day was only 4 minutes but started with the symptoms of panic attack, something stressed him, he got very confused, depressed and thought he was going crazy for a few hours, it finally ended in a major seizure. The Va hospital claims that his EEG and MRI are normal. We have eliminated VA doctors and now see civilian doctors only. Depakote worked well at 1000mg per day, the doctor increased him to 1500mg and he started to become extremely depressed, paranoid, distorted reality and memory loss. We cut him back to 1000mg, and so far have good results. Be careful with the dosage, the side effects can vary greatly and become very dangerous.

Re: Panic attack versus seizure

Submitted by wichitarick1 on Mon, 2010-08-16 - 12:44

peace R.C.

Hi not High!.......Not sure I could add anything to what all you folks have to say BUT I am wanting to make sure this stays bumped to the top for a day because it best describes so much of what so many of us are doing either once or for a lifetime. I have just spent over a week in an aura like state and a panic,doom hanging over me after a med change and 5 g-mals in one night as I drifted into my first r.em. cycle .

I have also done EVERYTHING that is described in these paragraphs for many yrs. possibly a lifetime and after obtaining sobriety 17 yrs ago AND assuming I knew what a panic attack was lol I just brushed this feeling off as a possible "flashback" from drug use or hyper-active ? a panic attack from just being fidgety my whole life lol.

Not even close to what really was happening ,that HEAD-RUSH most people get lasts a second or two not 5-10 or 30 seconds or even minutes long with all the things described above in them even smells,vision,hearing all of it. I waded my way through P.T.S.D. shock for over 20yrs. nightmares panic by association -meaning every time I heard a certain noise or found a certain smell I did certain things ,not paranoid schizoid behaviour but a little bit of a weirdo none the less,lol BUT I WAS AWARE OF IT -ALWAYS and still am.

The seizure disorder is different,it comes at all times in all places and until recently did not have a particular trigger like so many have,like lights,heat, food,etc. etc.I have certain triggers now that I'm still sorting out?

When I am swallowing hard trying to stay focused in a store I understand it is a what I am calling a partial sz.and I may do this multiple times in one store from the old style fluorescent lights flickering ,I "think" medication keeps this from progressing into a gran-mal type sz. BUT I also understand now I will have a full seizure with in days in my sleep . I also "feel" keppra xr is preventing this from happening at the moment.

The panic state is simple I do not get the head ache, with the p.t's I often have a mild pain in my front left lobe that will not go away until I have a huge amount of sleep or a gran-mal sz or both lol.

As I said I can not add much to what you fine folks have said but I BUMP this because the descriptions here are what someone needs to copy/paste to their next m.d, neuro visit.

Just remember "IT'S NOT THE CRAZY PEOPLE YOU WORRY ABOUT....IT'S THE ONES THAT DON'T KNOW IT" R.C.

peace R.C. Hi not High!.......Not sure I could add anything to what all you folks have to say BUT I am wanting to make sure this stays bumped to the top for a day because it best describes so much of what so many of us are doing either once or for a lifetime.   I have just spent over a week in an aura like state and a panic,doom hanging over me after a med change and 5 g-mals in one night as I drifted into my first r.em. cycle . I have also done EVERYTHING that is described in these paragraphs for many yrs. possibly a lifetime and after obtaining sobriety 17 yrs ago AND assuming I knew what a panic attack was lol I just brushed this feeling off as a possible "flashback" from drug use or hyper-active ? a panic attack from just being fidgety my whole life lol.  Not even close to what really was happening ,that HEAD-RUSH most people get lasts a  second or two not 5-10 or 30 seconds or even minutes long with all the things described above in them even smells,vision,hearing all of it.   I waded my way through P.T.S.D. shock for over 20yrs. nightmares panic by association -meaning every time I heard a certain noise or found a certain smell I did certain things ,not paranoid schizoid behaviour but a little bit of a weirdo none the less,lol BUT I WAS AWARE OF IT -ALWAYS and still am. The seizure disorder is different,it comes at all times in all places and until recently did not have a particular trigger like so many have,like lights,heat, food,etc. etc.I have certain triggers now that I'm still sorting out? When I am swallowing hard trying to stay focused in a store I understand it is a what I am calling a partial sz.and I may do this multiple times in one store from the old style fluorescent lights flickering ,I "think" medication keeps this from progressing into a gran-mal type sz. BUT I also understand now I will have a full seizure with in days in my sleep . I also "feel" keppra xr is preventing this from happening at the moment. The panic state is simple I do not get the head ache, with the p.t's I often have a mild pain in my front left lobe that will not go away until I have a huge amount of sleep or a gran-mal sz or both lol. As I said I can not add much to what you fine folks have said but I BUMP this because the descriptions here are what someone needs to copy/paste to their next m.d, neuro visit.  Just remember "IT'S NOT THE CRAZY PEOPLE YOU WORRY ABOUT....IT'S THE ONES THAT DON'T KNOW IT" R.C.      