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Simple Partial Seizures Masquerading as Panic Attacks?
Sat, 03/05/2016 - 01:07Hi everyone,
So, I have had convulsive seizures where I lose consciousness for 20 years (I am a 23 y/o female), and was finally diagnosed with IGE in January after undergoing a sleep study to see if I could have a temporal lobe resection. At the hospital, I thought I had a panic attack (which is not normal for me), but the EEG recorded it, and it was actually a partial seizure. I hyperventilated, my face was tingling, I started crying, felt very overwhelmed, got up and walked around the room and retained consciousness, even though I didn't really know why I got up. I didn't know seizures could take this form, but I took my neurologist's word for it. My old neuro had me on Trileptal, which is one of the worst meds for IGE, so my new neuro put me on Topamax, and decided to taper me off once I was on the full dose of the Topamax (this past week.)
So, this past Tuesday I was walking into a lecture at school and felt the overwhelming pull to walk from the third floor of the building to the first. So I did, but didn't know why, and just sat there. I tried to get up after a few minutes, but physically couldn't, and started crying. I started hyperventilating and my face became tingly, and when I was able to, I walked back up to my class. My entire body was shaking (not convulsing, just a mild shaking, almost like a nervous shake), and my best friend kept asking if I was okay. I remember I started crying and got my stuff and left without saying anything. When I saw her today, she told me that she kept trying to talk to me, but that I wouldn't respond. I kept looking at her and away again, and picking up my phone and putting it down, and smiling at her, but not speaking. She said, "You were looking in my direction, but not AT me, it was really weird." I had kind of brushed it off as a panic attack until I spoke to her today, so I'm wondering if anyone else experiences stuff like this, because now I'm thinking it was a seizure (possibly from switching all of the meds around?)
A person can have different
Submitted by just_joe on Sun, 2016-03-06 - 09:57
A person can have different types of seizures. I had grand mal and focal seizures that becams convulsive during the first years I had epilepsy, In 1970 I went into status epilepticus having 40 convulsions and hour. Since then I haven't had a convulsive seizure. I still have seizures but they are now called partial seizures. They range from simple partial to complex but almost all have been simple. So yes seizures can change. For all you know you might have had seizures that were seconds long and not know it. The reason I know I have a seizure is because they start with my right hand feeling weird. Yes I am fully conscious and know what I am doing. They last a few seconds and focus time is also the same length of time.