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possible to come off the meds?
Wed, 05/03/2006 - 12:09Topic: Medication Issues
Hi
I was just wondering if it would be possible to come off the meds eventually altogether?
I have been taking meds since I was 14 and I am now nearly 30.
I developed epilepsy when I was 10.
I am tired of taking the meds,changing the meds, increasing/lowering dosages, dealing with side effects etc.
I am hoping to have surgery done but I wont know for a while yet if I can.
Has anyone come off the meds altogether ever?
Any comments are welcome.
Thanks
Quirky
Comments
Re: Hi Quirky, There are some
Submitted by quirky on Thu, 2006-05-04 - 07:38
Hi Solis
I'm very happy for you that you had your op and all is well :-)
That's great news!
But what if I cant have the op? Do I have to stay on the meds for the rest of my life? is there no other way? Like mind over matter? Anything?
Re: Re: Hi Quirky, There are some
Submitted by solis on Fri, 2006-05-05 - 20:10
Hi Quirky,
If somone is diabetic can they live without insulin?
Nope.. either pills or injections are necessary. (And diabetes has far more possible side effects than epilepsy. E is known for negatively influencing memory only, whereas diabetes is known to have far more posible medical side effects.)
To answer your question I'll refer you to
http://www.epilepsy.com/epilepsy/treatment.html
I appreciate the kind words, but we don't know that all is well yet. Plus I've had far too many drug disappointments in my life to 'assume' all will be ok until at least 6 months has passed with no seizures.
I am starting to be more positive minded though... so I hope.
Unlike when I was young, today much research is done on E.
And always remember the vast majority of people on E are controlled so try to be positive.
wishing you the best
~sol
Hi Quirky, There are some
Submitted by solis on Wed, 2006-05-03 - 13:15
Hi Quirky, There are some types of seizures that are typically outgrown, but very few of the 40+ different versions. Epilepsy is like diabetes. In most cases, it won't disappear and once you have it you will most likely need to take meds for the remainder of your life. Haha.. You think 'you' are sick of drugs... You haven't even been on them 20 years. I've been on meds since I was 3 = 50 years! I had my operation almost 4 months ago and so far so good. (But I'm very fortunate I could be operated on... as in many cases it isn't an option. 1/2 those tested for surgery don't qualify) To anyone who isn't controlled I'd highly recommend they see an epileptologist (= a neurologist trained to work on epilepsy) best of luck ~sol