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My Story - Please Help if You Can????

Wed, 06/28/2006 - 16:19
I'm worried and confused and would like to hear some thoughts from people who have experienced what I have. To make this readable and not too long I will summarize my experience: - 7/8/05 - I had a grand mal seizure in the grocery store. This was my first seizure at the age of 28. The cause was unknown but I ended up waking up in an ambulance with a golf ball sized bruise on my head and a cracked skull. - 7/12/05 - Released from the hospital. The nuros were unsure if I passed out and the impact caused the seizure or I had the seizure and then passed out and hit my head. Because I had an arua, that I never experienced before, they believe it was the later. They prescribed me Dialantin (400mg) and I have been taking it for 12 mos with out any side effects. - 9/15/06 - Couldn't drive for three months so I quit my job because the commute was to much to endour being on a bus four hours a day. Not a problem though because my job was not a good fit for me and I found something closer to home. Just to give you an example...One day I was talking to my boss, at the old job, about motorcycles. I don't really have much interest in motorcycles but that's what he was into and I had trouble finding things to talk to him about that were not related work. It was a job where relationships meant everything in terms of promotions, so I tried to be friendly with him on a business and personal level. Now here's the good (or sad) part...a quote from him "To bad you can't ride a motorcycle because you might have one of those fits". I quit two days later. -10/2/06 - Haven't had any more seizures at this point. I was not embarrassed or ashamed of what happed, so any one who knew me new the story. I started to hear many stories about family members of their's or people they knew that had a seizure and never had one again. Being optimistic, I decided to put myself in this category and went back to living the way I lived before this ever happened...and this included some occasional drinking. Nothing constant but certainly at times too much. Meeting with Co-workers at the bar, bachelor’s party in Vegas, trip to Mexico, hanging out with childhood and college friends. The medicine would make me more hung-over than I used to get but, I hadn’t had anymore seizures. -03/01/06 - Because of the amount of time I spend working I had to cut down on the partying. More of a lifestyle change many people make at this time in their lives but for no other reason than that. I realize now that I should not have been drinking at all and I’m an idiot for even considering it. Still no seizures…. Meetings with nuros went well and they told me I would be off the meds in six months. They would ask if I drank and I would say no, even though I had, just because I was enjoying myself and I didn't want to hear someone telling me I couldn't do what I always had the freedom to do. -6/14/06 - I changed insurance companies and saw a new general practitioner. Since I hadn’t any seizures since the first and only one she wanted to take me off the meds. Before she did this requested that I have another EEG and was appalled that my old nuro hadn't given me one since the seizure in July. 6/25/06 - Results came back and show that I have abnormal readings in my right temporal lobe. I have a meeting with a new nuro at the end of July and the only outcomes I can expect are those that I have done through my own research…. Much of which has been done by reading about the experiences of people on this website. This has all been recent and I don't know much. ......Has anyone ever had a similar experience? Any insight or stories to share is appreciated. To give just a little more background...I never had a seizure until I was 28. I did have very bad migraines as a teenager and unfortunately three head injuries (2 skiing and one mountain biking) from the time I was 10 – 21. All three put me in the hospital.

Comments

Re: My Story - Please Help if You Can????

Submitted by SoccerFreak248 on Wed, 2006-06-28 - 18:23
Yeah, I can't get my parents to take me to the doctor because... I have no idea why but anywho: When I was very little mom said I would just blank out (probably absence seizures) Then I lost all communication skills and developed autism by age 5 (Lennox-Gastuex syndrome?) Then absence seizures stopped but the "dizzy spells" began, losing vision, numbness, shaking, falling down. (simple generalized?) Re diagnosed with asperger's syndrome. Around begining of puperty i started to get myclonic type seizures along with my "dizzy spells." And now just a few years ago, maybe around 13 I started noticing simple partial symptoms, the extreme deja vu and the works.. And now im 15 (soon to get re evalutated to get rid of asperger file) Im starting to studdard and talking seems to become more effort. And It's getting harder to grasp objects. (I take it's not a good sign)

Re: My Story - Please Help if You Can????

Submitted by vrleigh on Mon, 2006-07-03 - 17:52
I'm 43 and just had my first grand mal seizure on May 19, 2006. I have no memory of the incident. I woke up on a stretcher with the EMT telling me I was going the ER because I had a seizure. In the ER, they did an EKG, blood work and a CaT Scan. Nothing showed as abnormal. The ER Dr advised me to follow up with a neurologist, which I did. The neur. ordered an MRI and an EEG. The EEG showed abnormal brain activity and I was told that I am at risk for a seizure at any time. The Dr also said that the type of Epilepsy that I have (primary generalized), any one can develop at any time in their lives. Although, I do have previous head trauma. I was hit by a car as a child and spent 5 weeks in the hospital (broken leg, ribs, and stitches in my head). I was not prepared for this diagnosis. I've no previous symptoms or episodes of any kind. You are not alone!! Good luck to you. Ginger

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