Is Keppra changing my husband with Temporal Lobe Epilepsy?

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My 30-year-old husband was diagnosed a few months ago with Temporel lobe epilepsy. It has been an exhausting, scary and emotional process for us - as he went from having one seizure a month to seven a day within a month's span (no family history and no understanding as to why it came on so late in life). While they are unable thus far to find anything via MRI and EEG (he has a more advanced MRI scheduled, as well as a 72 hour EEG soon), they have been slowly increasing Keppra. He is now up to 3000mg per day, and he's really like a different person: moody, lethargic, aggressive, agitated, antisocial, no libido at all, and very serious all the time. It's very lonely and difficult to live with a husband who is compromised by a medication like this. Does anyone know if these side effects subside? Any recommendations? I would be so grateful to hear from others who can relate in any way.

Comments

Side effects do go away after

Submitted by just_joe on Sat, 2017-06-24 - 15:46

Side effects do go away after the body gets used to the medication and the therapeutic levels build in his body. That takes 3-4 weeks. If the dosage is changed each time it has to build to that level. Which could take an additional week or so. Been there done that. Understand that seizure medications are not like aspirin where once taken it goes away after a few hours. The therapeutic levels are there to keep breakthrough seizures from happening if a dosage is taken late or even forgotten. Now for the different type of person things. Yes mood swings do happen. Being tired a lot if the time is a definite. But any seizure medication will cause that to one degree or another. They are created to keep electrical impulses from hitting wrong in the brain. It takes a lot of energy to keep the body running and working to complete a days work. I worked just as hard to stay awake and active as I did to do the job I did. It isn't easy. But Keppra is one of the best medications out there and it has fewer side effects then others. I know I was taking dilantin and phenobarbital years ago. We moved and I had to find a neurologist. One of the first questions they had for me was HOW DO YOU WAKE UP IN THE MORNING? I told them and asked why. I was then informed that the amount of phenobarbital I was taking was large enough to put the average man to sleep[ for 24 hours. So I do know what it is like and the energy it takes to complete a day doing anything. As for libido.... Yes it can and has affected mine but there have been just as many times that my libido exceeded that of other peoples. Medications slow down the body. But if tantalized or it hits we can get active and want to over achieve. Ever think about something that is affecting you and try to find answers?? You got serious and thought a lot if you did. Well he is trying to get answers as to WHY ME and WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT. I was a teen when I was diagnosed and the world was a lot different back in the 60's. Things were difficult back then to and we wanted to know what w had and why. Just like today. But research was done in a library. Work still had to be done. School still required homework and writing with pen and paper. Chores were still done. So you get serious about everything and want answers. You know the W's you learned in school. Who, What, When, Where, Why. Followed by the H HOW. His anti socialism could come from people around him. I heard friend say Owww I don't want to be around him anymore. So try and understand that he is going through a lot and getting answers will help him a lot. Also getting the dosages set and maintained can reduce a lot of the things you posted about.It's very lonely and difficult to live with a husband who is compromised by a medication like this... It is just as bad for him or more so because it is him that has epilepsy and him that has to figure out what to do and how to go about doing it.Believe me it wasn't easy when I was a teen and growing up. I learned how to control those things you worry about. I told my parents to not question me all the time. Did you take your meds?? Yes I took them. So they stopped the questioning. But rather then questioning they counted from time to time. I saw my step father counting a few times. I also knew he was wanting to verify I was taking them, He got his answer by counting rather then asking. They soon stopped most of the things because they knew I was doing the best I could and was doing what Doc wanted done. Oh and back then it took time for a lot of the testing. I had 20-25 EEG's all came back normal. The MRI back then I wouldn't put my enemy thru. Give him time and do try to also look at things thru his eyes and mind. My brothers and sister did and they eased up and we haven't talked much about my epilepsy. Other then getting a question now and then about medications or could this have been a seizure. Questions they know I might have an answer to that came from their friends or co workersI hope this helps and he gets used to the best seizure medication I have used in the 5+ years I have been living and dealing with epilepsyJoe

Side effects do go away after the body gets used to the medication and the therapeutic levels build in his body. That takes 3-4 weeks. If the dosage is changed each time it has to build to that level. Which could take an additional week or so. Been there done that. Understand that seizure medications are not like aspirin where once taken it goes away after a few hours. The therapeutic levels are there to keep breakthrough seizures from happening if a dosage is taken late or even forgotten. Now for the different type of person things. Yes mood swings do happen. Being tired a lot if the time is a definite. But any seizure medication will cause that to one degree or another. They are created to keep electrical impulses from hitting wrong in the brain. It takes a lot of energy to keep the body running and working to complete a days work. I worked just as hard to stay awake and active as I did to do the job I did. It isn't easy. But Keppra is one of the best medications out there and it has fewer side effects then others. I know I was taking dilantin and phenobarbital years ago. We moved and I had to find a neurologist. One of the first questions they had for me was HOW DO YOU WAKE UP IN THE MORNING? I told them and asked why. I was then informed that the amount of phenobarbital I was taking was large enough to put the average man to sleep[ for 24 hours. So I do know what it is like and the energy it takes to complete a day doing anything. As for libido.... Yes it can and has affected mine but there have been just as many times that my libido exceeded that of other peoples. Medications slow down the body. But if tantalized or it hits we can get active and want to over achieve. Ever think about something that is affecting you and try to find answers?? You got serious and thought a lot if you did. Well he is trying to get answers as to WHY ME and WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT. I was a teen when I was diagnosed and the world was a lot different back in the 60's. Things were difficult back then to and we wanted to know what w had and why. Just like today. But research was done in a library. Work still had to be done. School still required homework and writing with pen and paper. Chores were still done. So you get serious about everything and want answers. You know the W's you learned in school. Who, What, When, Where, Why. Followed by the H HOW. His anti socialism could come from people around him. I heard friend say Owww I don't want to be around him anymore. So try and understand that he is going through a lot and getting answers will help him a lot. Also getting the dosages set and maintained can reduce a lot of the things you posted about.It's very lonely and difficult to live with a husband who is compromised by a medication like this... It is just as bad for him or more so because it is him that has epilepsy and him that has to figure out what to do and how to go about doing it.Believe me it wasn't easy when I was a teen and growing up. I learned how to control those things you worry about. I told my parents to not question me all the time. Did you take your meds?? Yes I took them. So they stopped the questioning. But rather then questioning they counted from time to time. I saw my step father counting a few times. I also knew he was wanting to verify I was taking them, He got his answer by counting rather then asking. They soon stopped most of the things because they knew I was doing the best I could and was doing what Doc wanted done. Oh and back then it took time for a lot of the testing. I had 20-25 EEG's all came back normal. The MRI back then I wouldn't put my enemy thru. Give him time and do try to also look at things thru his eyes and mind. My brothers and sister did and they eased up and we haven't talked much about my epilepsy. Other then getting a question now and then about medications or could this have been a seizure. Questions they know I might have an answer to that came from their friends or co workersI hope this helps and he gets used to the best seizure medication I have used in the 5+ years I have been living and dealing with epilepsyJoe

Side effects do go away after the body gets used to the medication and the therapeutic levels build in his body. That takes 3-4 weeks. If the dosage is changed each time it has to build to that level. Which could take an additional week or so. Been there done that. Understand that seizure medications are not like aspirin where once taken it goes away after a few hours. The therapeutic levels are there to keep breakthrough seizures from happening if a dosage is taken late or even forgotten. Now for the different type of person things. Yes mood swings do happen. Being tired a lot if the time is a definite. But any seizure medication will cause that to one degree or another. They are created to keep electrical impulses from hitting wrong in the brain. It takes a lot of energy to keep the body running and working to complete a days work. I worked just as hard to stay awake and active as I did to do the job I did. It isn't easy. But Keppra is one of the best medications out there and it has fewer side effects then others. I know I was taking dilantin and phenobarbital years ago. We moved and I had to find a neurologist. One of the first questions they had for me was HOW DO YOU WAKE UP IN THE MORNING? I told them and asked why. I was then informed that the amount of phenobarbital I was taking was large enough to put the average man to sleep[ for 24 hours. So I do know what it is like and the energy it takes to complete a day doing anything. As for libido.... Yes it can and has affected mine but there have been just as many times that my libido exceeded that of other peoples. Medications slow down the body. But if tantalized or it hits we can get active and want to over achieve. Ever think about something that is affecting you and try to find answers?? You got serious and thought a lot if you did. Well he is trying to get answers as to WHY ME and WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT. I was a teen when I was diagnosed and the world was a lot different back in the 60's. Things were difficult back then to and we wanted to know what w had and why. Just like today. But research was done in a library. Work still had to be done. School still required homework and writing with pen and paper. Chores were still done. So you get serious about everything and want answers. You know the W's you learned in school. Who, What, When, Where, Why. Followed by the H HOW. His anti socialism could come from people around him. I heard friend say Owww I don't want to be around him anymore. So try and understand that he is going through a lot and getting answers will help him a lot. Also getting the dosages set and maintained can reduce a lot of the things you posted about.It's very lonely and difficult to live with a husband who is compromised by a medication like this... It is just as bad for him or more so because it is him that has epilepsy and him that has to figure out what to do and how to go about doing it.Believe me it wasn't easy when I was a teen and growing up. I learned how to control those things you worry about. I told my parents to not question me all the time. Did you take your meds?? Yes I took them. So they stopped the questioning. But rather then questioning they counted from time to time. I saw my step father counting a few times. I also knew he was wanting to verify I was taking them, He got his answer by counting rather then asking. They soon stopped most of the things because they knew I was doing the best I could and was doing what Doc wanted done. Oh and back then it took time for a lot of the testing. I had 20-25 EEG's all came back normal. The MRI back then I wouldn't put my enemy thru. Give him time and do try to also look at things thru his eyes and mind. My brothers and sister did and they eased up and we haven't talked much about my epilepsy. Other then getting a question now and then about medications or could this have been a seizure. Questions they know I might have an answer to that came from their friends or co workersI hope this helps and he gets used to the best seizure medication I have used in the 5+ years I have been living and dealing with epilepsyJoe

Is Keppra changing my husband with Temporal Lobe Epilepsy?

Comments

Side effects do go away after

Submitted by just_joe on Sat, 2017-06-24 - 15:46

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