Community Forum Archive

The Epilepsy Community Forums are closed, and the information is archived. The content in this section may not be current or apply to all situations. In addition, forum questions and responses include information and content that has been generated by epilepsy community members. This content is not moderated. The information on these pages should not be substituted for medical advice from a healthcare provider. Experiences with epilepsy can vary greatly on an individual basis. Please contact your doctor or medical team if you have any questions about your situation. For more information, learn about epilepsy or visit our resources section.

absance seizures and emotional changes in 6 year old

Tue, 07/03/2007 - 22:40
Topic: Living With Epilepsy - Youth
Hello, I didn't see another thread similar to this one, so here goes: My 6 year old son was diagnosed with absance seizures in January (we had noticed eye rolling that seemed to get "stuck" and asked the doctor at his 6 yr appt. and they sent him to get an EEG, now he sees a pediatric neurologist). There were several tiers of meds that he could go through..the first (sorry! I can't remember the name!) was supposed to prevent absance but not grand mal and of course, what did he have 2 of at school? So, now he's on Valproic Acid (I know that's the generic name, not sure what the brand name is!) and we haven't noticed any seizures at all. At first, we had grandparents and such telling us that they noticed he focused better on them when they were speaking to him (there was some concern about ADHD, but I didn't pursue it, wondering if it was just a young child's attention span!). He did not have any trouble in Kindergarten this year, and "graduated" on grade level for first grade. This summer, though, I've noticed a change in him. We had been trying to get him to stop sucking his thumb and he picked his "prizes" for going so many days without sucking his thumb, really into the whole program. Well, I've noticed in the past couple weeks, the focus is off, he's become more argumentative about things (although he is a sweet child and will apologize to me several hours later, we are pretty close!), and he's consistently sucking his thumb, not just when he's tired, which is when he would normally do it. I can't say that he's turned into a behavior problem or anything, just that he's not "right" and I think he feels it, too, when he apologizes to me of his own free will. No matter how much sleep he gets, he still tends to be whiny and very emotional. We had ended Kindergarten with him expressing his frustration better (asking for help, rather than crying about it), but now we're back to square one. There are times when this normally extroverted child seems very introverted and chooses to play alone, rather than be with friends. I've been over this with my husband and friends . . . is it because he's six or can it be something with his epilepsy or medication? Or just summer vacation? (I teach at the school he goes to, so while I don't normally see him during the day, he comes to me after school every day. Now that we're off for the summer, we're both home all the time). Is anyone else experiencing something similar? As a P.S., I did pursue getting him into "child study" so that his teachers will understand the need for repeated directions, etc. that may affect his learning. It's not exactly a 504 plan, but a "continued child study" where we meet if necessary.

Comments

Hello, I am looking around

Submitted by MIATitan on Tue, 2007-10-09 - 21:01
Hello, I am looking around to get information on Gran Mauls. My daughter is turning 13 this month and was diagnosed with absolent seizures a little over a year ago. They were researching Lamictal, to find the dose that was right for children in here age group. She started with a low dose then they saw her every week till the EEG came back with no episodes. We kept here at that dose for one year and she had absolutely no episodes. The doctor told us she would probably grow out of it, so after the one year we started bringing her off of the Lamictal slowly. It looked good till yesterday ( 2 months later) Her teachers started noticing her staring out into nowhere and brought it to our attention. We asked her if she had noticed anything that might make her think it was happening again and she said yes. The one thing I didn't want to hear. I can't bear the fact that she's had to go through this. Now we have her another appointment with the doctor again for a 24 hour EEG to see if she is in fact having the seizures again. Can anyone tell us what we need to do if she starts having Gran Mauls? What do we need to look for? She hasn't had one yet, just the small absolent, barely noticable seizures. We are scared they may grow into Gran Mauls. Is there anything we need to do if she has one? Thanks a lot! When Samantha started having These absolent seizures it took us a while to notice. Well me, my wife said she tried to tell me a little earlier. When we started noticing them they were mild. She would stare out for about 10 seconds or so and would lose all traces of what had happened in that time. So we took her to her doctor and they said nothing was wrong. Then one day my wife and I were sitting in the living room watching TV and Samantha came through, she had an episode and fell over on top of my wife in the recliner. Needless to say we looked at each other scared out of our minds. What if my wife wouldn't have been there to cushon the fall, she could have been hurt pretty bad. Well off to a different doctor we went. This time she sent us to a neurologist and they ran a 30 min EEG and discovered that although they were not that noticable, that she was having approxamately 100 of these episodes a day! We could not beleive it. So that is what led us up to this.. I wouls suggest that if there is anyone having these problems, or your kids are having these problems to ask your neurologist about the Lamectal. Samantha had some side effects such as acking in her legs, a little more tired or groggy feeling, but it is worth it to keep from her getting hurt. If anyone has any information that would be helpfull please reply or email me spawn_qhh@comcast.net thanks. Her grades improved greatly while on Lamictal and she made it into the 7th grade. Now hopefully we get her back on it before its too late for this year. Good Luck! We hope this helps....

Re: Hello, I am looking around

Submitted by joem on Sat, 2011-04-09 - 17:00

Dear MIA Titan,

 My daughter (5 year old) was diagnosed with absance seizures last year.  Our doctor put her on Ethosuximide (250mg twice a day).  Her seizures got much better and we immediately notice a great change in her ability to interact with others.  She is doing great at school, however, her seizures have not subsided.  She still has a couple a day.  As a result, our doctor wants us to keep her on Ethosuximide and add Lamictal as well.  We are concerned about the drug indications and side effects.  It would be great if you can tell me if your experience with Lamictal is still as good as it appeared to be on your post.

Thank you, for your help.

 Regards,

Dear MIA Titan,

 My daughter (5 year old) was diagnosed with absance seizures last year.  Our doctor put her on Ethosuximide (250mg twice a day).  Her seizures got much better and we immediately notice a great change in her ability to interact with others.  She is doing great at school, however, her seizures have not subsided.  She still has a couple a day.  As a result, our doctor wants us to keep her on Ethosuximide and add Lamictal as well.  We are concerned about the drug indications and side effects.  It would be great if you can tell me if your experience with Lamictal is still as good as it appeared to be on your post.

Thank you, for your help.

 Regards,

Sign Up for Emails

Stay up to date with the latest epilepsy news, stories from the community, and more.

Subscribe