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I have seizures and they affect my speech

Tue, 01/25/2005 - 16:10

Hi,

 I am 33 years old and I have been having seizures now for about 3 years. It happened shortly after a toxic reaction to topomax. I was in the hospital for a week then and every since then I have had minor seizures off and on. When I do it affects my speech and I stutter bably and lose my thoughts and words. I feel so weird when this happens. I don't know anyone else like this. I have bipolar and dissociative identity disorder (multiple personality). I heard people with these illnesses can have seizures, I just don't know what type. I hate being like this. It makes me more depressed. I am getting so frustrated. I have two young boys and they don't understand why all of a sudden I loose my words or thoughts or I sound funny as they call it. My oldest one is 7 and he does ok. He helps me with my words and he answers the phone for me when I am having trouble talking. I just don't know what to do. My therapist wants to know more information about why it affects my speech but I have nothing to offer because I have been struggling to find information myself. Does anyone have suggestions?

Kym

Comments

RE: I have seizures and they affect my speech

Submitted by Karolwf on Fri, 2005-01-14 - 06:34

You are having Simple Partial Seizures that might also be going into Complex Partial Seizures. There is a lot of information you can get to your therapist on the Internet. Look on www.webMD.com -- www.epiliepsy.com  www.epilepsyfoundation.com and also search under Seizures and look for Simple Partial and Complex Partial

Your speach is being affected because your seizures are in the temporal lobes of your brain that controls speach, emotions, etc. Your Bi-polar symptoms could actually be seizures themselves. Do you have a GOOD neurologist that specializes in Epilepsy? If you don't I would advise you to get one-- NOT ALL NEUROLOGISTS AND DOCTORS KNOW ABOUT EPILEPSY and its effects on your life-- do not be taken in by that myth. You have to find a doctor that deals with epilepsy either exclusively or he is VERY knowlegeable about it.  YOU HAVE TO ASK because they will not tell you.

I have speach problems and I do just what you do and sometimes I cannot even talk for hours after a seizure.

God be with you.

PS: as a side point TELL YOUR CHILDREN everything that is happening to you-- tell them Mommy has an illness that she cannot help and this is what happens to her. I made the mistake of not doing that and my children grew up with a lot of resentment and hurt. Tell them you do not want to be the way you are and that you wish anything that you could change it and you are trying everything you know to get help. Tell them that you love them so much and that it is not contagious and that just because you have this problem they will not get as they are afraid of that. Tell them that you love them with all your heart and sometimes people get sick and they cannot help it but that you are trying to do everything to make it easier for them.  Tell them Tell them tell them

You are having Simple Partial Seizures that might also be going into Complex Partial Seizures. There is a lot of information you can get to your therapist on the Internet. Look on www.webMD.com -- www.epiliepsy.com  www.epilepsyfoundation.com and also search under Seizures and look for Simple Partial and Complex Partial

Your speach is being affected because your seizures are in the temporal lobes of your brain that controls speach, emotions, etc. Your Bi-polar symptoms could actually be seizures themselves. Do you have a GOOD neurologist that specializes in Epilepsy? If you don't I would advise you to get one-- NOT ALL NEUROLOGISTS AND DOCTORS KNOW ABOUT EPILEPSY and its effects on your life-- do not be taken in by that myth. You have to find a doctor that deals with epilepsy either exclusively or he is VERY knowlegeable about it.  YOU HAVE TO ASK because they will not tell you.

I have speach problems and I do just what you do and sometimes I cannot even talk for hours after a seizure.

God be with you.

PS: as a side point TELL YOUR CHILDREN everything that is happening to you-- tell them Mommy has an illness that she cannot help and this is what happens to her. I made the mistake of not doing that and my children grew up with a lot of resentment and hurt. Tell them you do not want to be the way you are and that you wish anything that you could change it and you are trying everything you know to get help. Tell them that you love them so much and that it is not contagious and that just because you have this problem they will not get as they are afraid of that. Tell them that you love them with all your heart and sometimes people get sick and they cannot help it but that you are trying to do everything to make it easier for them.  Tell them Tell them tell them

RE: I have seizures and they affect my speech

Submitted by burningman30 on Fri, 2005-01-21 - 14:35

I too would suggest that you should get a second opinion on your bi-polar disorder.  I hope it relieves you to hear that I have had exactly the same challenges and my doc labels them simple partial and complex partial.  I learned more to relieve my stress on this site than ever before.  But I have had the same speach problems and have even done weird stuff during seizures that my doc says some docs would have hospitalized me for. Such as leaving my house and walking down Main St...trying to "run away" at 30 years old.  Trying to give my dog away, give my car way, all things that would parlay into very half hearted suicide attempts.  DURING ALL OF THIS....I could hardly speak to my family. Anything spoken was complete mish-mash and I don't remember most of it today.

My point....a lot of this would be labled as bi-polar.  But my doc. spent a lot of time with me....added Lexapro as an anti-depressant and Ambien to sleep.  He has spoken to me from home on several occasions and I know that what is happening are seizures after all the reading.  I AM FINALLY NOT FEELING CRAZY!!!  

It's amazing to learn that you aren't the only one.

Despite having seizures for years....this just started getting bad the last little while...after 8 years.  But it can be handled...Thank God!

-Brandon

I too would suggest that you should get a second opinion on your bi-polar disorder.  I hope it relieves you to hear that I have had exactly the same challenges and my doc labels them simple partial and complex partial.  I learned more to relieve my stress on this site than ever before.  But I have had the same speach problems and have even done weird stuff during seizures that my doc says some docs would have hospitalized me for. Such as leaving my house and walking down Main St...trying to "run away" at 30 years old.  Trying to give my dog away, give my car way, all things that would parlay into very half hearted suicide attempts.  DURING ALL OF THIS....I could hardly speak to my family. Anything spoken was complete mish-mash and I don't remember most of it today.

My point....a lot of this would be labled as bi-polar.  But my doc. spent a lot of time with me....added Lexapro as an anti-depressant and Ambien to sleep.  He has spoken to me from home on several occasions and I know that what is happening are seizures after all the reading.  I AM FINALLY NOT FEELING CRAZY!!!  

It's amazing to learn that you aren't the only one.

Despite having seizures for years....this just started getting bad the last little while...after 8 years.  But it can be handled...Thank God!

-Brandon

RE: RE: I have seizures and they affect my speech

Submitted by kymlovejoy on Sat, 2005-01-22 - 11:29

Hi, and thanks so much for your words of wisdom. I have been talking to my psychiatrist because she seems to know more about what is happening than my nuerologist. She is wonderful. She calls me at night because she knows my husband works at night just to check in and that she doesn't have to do. I am very thankful for that though.

The seizures are coming on more rapidly and they are mostly when I am sleeping now or when I first wake up. My speech clears some but then goes back to pot again. My husband says that is how he knows I have had one.  Sometimes that is how I know too. Some people say I am having psuedoseizures, to me that is saying they are in my mind or that I am lying. I just don't know psuedoseizures that affect me like these do. I am trying so hard to stay positive and not get depressed about it but I do.

The doctor said to expect a wave of different emotions with this and because my bipolar is out of control also. I have been crying a lot and feeling suicidal. I don't want to go into the hospital for the suicidal thoughts because all they will do is drug me and they won't help with the seizures. I am confused and don't know what to do. Seems like the more upset I get the more the seizures happen. I guess I need to learn to channel the emotions else where.

I just don't understand a lot of the seizure stuff and it scares me to think I am going to be talking like this and feeling like this for awhile. I was talking real slow the other day in the grocery store so my sons who are 7 and 6 and don't understand what has happened to me, and the lady beside me thought I was deaf so she was using all these sign motions so I would understand. My oldest which can be a real smart alleck, said "Lady my mom can't talk she ain't deaf!" I was so embarassed but it felt good for him to stick up for me. He is a real trooper. He practices words with me most every day.

My 6 year old he just reminds me every so often he loves me. Which is enough. This confuses him but I have taught both of them 911 and Jacob has call my nuerologist before when I had a bad seizure and I couldn't. The nuerologist didn't like a 6 year old calling him in the night and trying to find out whose mommy he was calling about but he was call I taught him well.

Well enough about that, I just want to find some relief with all of this. I don't hardly believe these seizures are psuedoseizures. My psychiatrist don't think so either. Who do you believe?

Kym

Hi, and thanks so much for your words of wisdom. I have been talking to my psychiatrist because she seems to know more about what is happening than my nuerologist. She is wonderful. She calls me at night because she knows my husband works at night just to check in and that she doesn't have to do. I am very thankful for that though.

The seizures are coming on more rapidly and they are mostly when I am sleeping now or when I first wake up. My speech clears some but then goes back to pot again. My husband says that is how he knows I have had one.  Sometimes that is how I know too. Some people say I am having psuedoseizures, to me that is saying they are in my mind or that I am lying. I just don't know psuedoseizures that affect me like these do. I am trying so hard to stay positive and not get depressed about it but I do.

The doctor said to expect a wave of different emotions with this and because my bipolar is out of control also. I have been crying a lot and feeling suicidal. I don't want to go into the hospital for the suicidal thoughts because all they will do is drug me and they won't help with the seizures. I am confused and don't know what to do. Seems like the more upset I get the more the seizures happen. I guess I need to learn to channel the emotions else where.

I just don't understand a lot of the seizure stuff and it scares me to think I am going to be talking like this and feeling like this for awhile. I was talking real slow the other day in the grocery store so my sons who are 7 and 6 and don't understand what has happened to me, and the lady beside me thought I was deaf so she was using all these sign motions so I would understand. My oldest which can be a real smart alleck, said "Lady my mom can't talk she ain't deaf!" I was so embarassed but it felt good for him to stick up for me. He is a real trooper. He practices words with me most every day.

My 6 year old he just reminds me every so often he loves me. Which is enough. This confuses him but I have taught both of them 911 and Jacob has call my nuerologist before when I had a bad seizure and I couldn't. The nuerologist didn't like a 6 year old calling him in the night and trying to find out whose mommy he was calling about but he was call I taught him well.

Well enough about that, I just want to find some relief with all of this. I don't hardly believe these seizures are psuedoseizures. My psychiatrist don't think so either. Who do you believe?

Kym

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