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repeating words forward and backward

Sun, 08/27/2006 - 01:17
I have temporal lobe epilepsy and for as long as I can remember, at times during the day (when I am tired, stressed, etc...) I get a word stuck in my head that I repeat (in my mind)forwards then backwards. This goes on - back and forth - for awhile. Sometimes I get focused on adding numbers up and repeating the math problem forwards and backwards. I don't know if this is just a weird nervous habit or a symptom of my seizures. Has anyone else out there ever experienced this?

Comments

Re: repeating words forward and backward

Submitted by silentsufferer on Sun, 2009-03-15 - 17:43

Reassuring to know others have pretty much the same strange things,I don't repeat words just count in my mind never more than ten,although I am bilingual it is only in english and non-stop day and night,Have TLE since age of 11 with no fits but other symtomes and was treated for 15 Years .Last 10 years no more problems until this counting started a year ago.Neurologist,doctor, Shrink all say they don't know what it is or how to treat it.brain scans Etc. perfect! Is there anyone who has the same problem which is so tiring?

 

Reassuring to know others have pretty much the same strange things,I don't repeat words just count in my mind never more than ten,although I am bilingual it is only in english and non-stop day and night,Have TLE since age of 11 with no fits but other symtomes and was treated for 15 Years .Last 10 years no more problems until this counting started a year ago.Neurologist,doctor, Shrink all say they don't know what it is or how to treat it.brain scans Etc. perfect! Is there anyone who has the same problem which is so tiring?

 

Re: repeating words forward and backward

Submitted by coopernicus on Mon, 2009-03-16 - 23:37

Hi Silent,

In the past (thank goodness it rarely happens now!) I would get totally focused on adding numbers down to a single digit.  It was a weird obsession or habit that I couldn't stop no matter how hard I tried.  I would usually focus on license plate numbers but then it would include any numbers that caught my eye.  It was like the forward/backward word thing in that I would think 4 and 5 is 9 is 5 and 4.... ad nauseum.  It became a joke with close friends that I could look at a license plate and say the value of the numbers when added up almost instantly (for instance 2xxx479 = 4 because 2+4+7+9=22 and 2+2=4).  Of course, then I would have to search out other numbers that added up to 5 because the series would be incomplete if the final number didn't equal 9. Cray making for sure!

I have gotten so fed up with these habits that I have been noticing how I feel when I get the word thing (or number thing) going in my mind.  I get really tense and keyed up.  I have been trying to acknowledge the inner feeling of tension and the feeling of my 'engine reving' so I can try to consciously relax.  So far so good.  The whole thing makes me want to scream at times!

What is it like when you count?

-Coopernicus

Hi Silent,

In the past (thank goodness it rarely happens now!) I would get totally focused on adding numbers down to a single digit.  It was a weird obsession or habit that I couldn't stop no matter how hard I tried.  I would usually focus on license plate numbers but then it would include any numbers that caught my eye.  It was like the forward/backward word thing in that I would think 4 and 5 is 9 is 5 and 4.... ad nauseum.  It became a joke with close friends that I could look at a license plate and say the value of the numbers when added up almost instantly (for instance 2xxx479 = 4 because 2+4+7+9=22 and 2+2=4).  Of course, then I would have to search out other numbers that added up to 5 because the series would be incomplete if the final number didn't equal 9. Cray making for sure!

I have gotten so fed up with these habits that I have been noticing how I feel when I get the word thing (or number thing) going in my mind.  I get really tense and keyed up.  I have been trying to acknowledge the inner feeling of tension and the feeling of my 'engine reving' so I can try to consciously relax.  So far so good.  The whole thing makes me want to scream at times!

What is it like when you count?

-Coopernicus

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