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Does anyone have any exp. with Autonomic Seizures?

Thu, 10/13/2016 - 02:10
Hello. Some background about me is that I am a 20 y/o female who had complex partial absence type seizures (brief staring episodes with color change and blackness in vision, triggered by sleepiness) when I was 10 - 11 years old, which I grew out of with the help of medication. I haven't had any seizures since then - that I know of. I do have anxiety, depression, & OCD. I am going through a series of tests following the sudden occurrence of bizarre spells. My best way of describing them is as if my brain "skipped" or that I'm kind of lightheaded, however there is no loss of consciousness, no confusion, and seemingly no other symptoms. They last for a second at most, but the feeling is rather off-putting. As mentioned, this came on suddenly and happened very frequently the week it began - I'm talking an upwards of 15-20 episodes a day. So I went to my GP and she was concerned given my history and wanted to make sure we covered all the bases. She ordered an EKG, EEG, tilt table (upcoming in Nov.), 48 hr Holter monitor, CT scan, and a visit to the neurologist (which isn't until next year!). So far I have completed the EEG (normal), EKG (normal), CT scan (normal), and the Holter monitor. When I was on the Holter, I was having several episodes. In one 24 hr period, I had 21 of these strange spells, all of which I marked down on the journal they give you. The results were that I had sinus tachycardia (increased heart rate) which coincided with these spells. Since I began testing (about a month ago now), my spells have almost disappeared. The first 2 weeks they were very frequent, and now they happen about once a week. I do not think this is anxiety. I have had anxiety since I was a baby. I know what it feels like and this happens so suddenly and without any other symptoms that it just doesn't seem to be caused by that. However, I am on Wellbutrin, which is known to lower seizure threshold. None of the Drs I have been to have offered any sort of diagnosis or better understanding, and now that the spells have occurred less, it is making a diagnosis even more difficult. Anyway, to get to the point, I have been doing some research. I read about these autonomic seizures, however there seems to be very limited information on them online. From what I have read, symptoms can include sudden changes in heart rate, and another symptom I saw, which I have experienced, is sudden onset of flushing in the face (this happens infrequently). Neither of these symptoms seem to have any triggers, and come and go at random. Obviously, I am no dr, and I am not expecting any diagnosis, but at the same time I am trying to broaden my knowledge on the possible causes of these strange spells to hopefully better inform the conversation I will have with my neuro in Feb 2017... I was wondering if anyone has had similar symptoms to me or if you have any experience with these types of seizures. If so, any information or experiences would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading my long post!

Comments

WelcomeEven if your come and

Submitted by just_joe on Thu, 2016-10-13 - 11:48
WelcomeEven if your come and go and you are having fewer the tests will give the doctors the information they need to make a diagnosis. Yes they could be types of different seizures. But they could be other things. All of the tests they started with were short until the Holter moniter. It is for the heart and they have an ambulatory EEG for the brain. It works basically the same way. You ar hooked up and leave then go back days later. Now that EEG would also give the neurologist more information since it covers a longr period of time and what the electrical output is during sleep.Your Holter moniter---Sinus tachycardia is a sinus rhythm with an elevated rate of impulses, defined as a rate greater than 100 beats/min in an average adult. The normal resting heart rate in the average adult ranges from 60–100 beats/min.  << so this can be a part of your issue.. I have an irregular heart beat and at times it was faster then normal and it would flip to normal within 30 minutes. After 10 years I still have the irregular heart beat but I now have a-fib. If it is your heart beat beating to fast is can me controlled with medications. I take meds which keep the heart rate around 85 bpm...None of the Drs I have been to have offered any sort of diagnosis or better understanding <<< the people doing the tests may do the testing and know how to do the tests and what needs to be marked and left alone because they are doing several different things in it. It is the Neurologist or Cardiologist that read and understand what they are looking for and know more about the abnormalities and where they came from and looking for those areas in scans or teh MRI.. Also understand that you are having tests on your heart and brain. Both are trying to find the electrical output in order to make a diagnosis. Personally I went thru 20-25 different EEG's that all came back normal. I fell asleep in one that showed abnormalities. In that EEG they saw where they came from and the neurologists tehn looked closer at teh MRI of the 1960's and found the cause of my elipelsy. Scar tissue in the left lobes of my brain.I hope this helps and please relax you can find all kinds of things on the net but without knowing everything you can drive yourself nuts.Joe

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