Community Forum Archive
The Epilepsy Community Forums are closed, and the information is archived. The content in this section may not be current or apply to all situations. In addition, forum questions and responses include information and content that has been generated by epilepsy community members. This content is not moderated. The information on these pages should not be substituted for medical advice from a healthcare provider. Experiences with epilepsy can vary greatly on an individual basis. Please contact your doctor or medical team if you have any questions about your situation. For more information, learn about epilepsy or visit our resources section.
Help! I think my 18 month old son is having seizures??????
Fri, 07/14/2006 - 14:17Topic: New to Epilepsy.com
Hi, my name is Lauren and I believe my son, Benjamin, is having these seizures. (complex partial and absence seizures). This all started when he began falling behind developmentally and I wanted him checked out. A neurologist suggested it could be these seizures. (He'll learn something and they poof it's gone like he doesn't remember how to do it. This happens sometimes) He had an EEG last week which showed nothing...we meet with the doc again July 31st. But I am keeping a journal and I am paying VERY close attention to what Ben does. He has these "space out" moments where you can't get his attention. He usually squints his eyes and rubs his hands during them. They seem to last anywhere from 1-10 seconds. He also has done this thing where his eyes will roll back and his body tenses up a little bit. Although this past sunday he did something that really frightened me. His eyes rolled back and his body made two quick but very large jerks. His head looked like it was "hovering" in front of his body a bit during this. He looks like he has "left" his body during these. It is sooo scary. These sound worse than they are and they seem to happen so quickly that if you aren't careful you'll miss it all together...and sometimes if you do see it you aren't sure what you've seen or if it is anything. I guess I am posting this b/c I am really hoping someone can tell me if I am crazy or if these are similar to what they or their family member is experiencing. Since the EEG showed nothing I am worried they won't do anything about these when we go in for his visit on the 31st. Any advice would be so so so appreciated. I am 7 months pregnant with Ben's brother and I have been a nervous wreck. I would love to have someone tell me what Ben is experiencing...I don't think I can wait until the 31st. THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!
Comments
Re: Re: Help! I think my 18 month old son is having seizures????
Submitted by benjaminsmom on Fri, 2006-07-14 - 18:40
Thank you for your advice. I am very glad to hear your daughter is doing well!!! I have been thinking about video taping...or trying to video tape these "episodes" but like you said they don't last long enough to capture. I will definetly give it a shot though in hopes that I will eventually capture something. And again...thanks for your advice I really appreciate it!!!!
Sincerely Lauren
Re: Re: Re: Help! I think my 18 month old son is having seizures
Submitted by malibu on Mon, 2006-07-17 - 08:24
Hi
I have always rolled my eyes back and blinked quickly especially when stressed, and sometimes small jerks to my arms and legs, my parents took me to a doc for this as a child but they said I was OK. As it happens I started to have Primary Generalised tonic clonic seizures at age 15 ( I am 30 now). I had fallen from a horse the previous Summer and hit my head. No one seems to know if they are related but all I can say is that I have seizures about every 2/3 years and then only if I am very stressed and don't sleep. My personal feeling is that the shaking and eye rolling are related to my seizures as they are both aggravated by similar factors. I know you may not want to hear this but Its best that you have as much information as possible. I am not currently taking any medication.
eruditio
Re: Help! I think my 18 month old son is having seizures??????
Submitted by eame on Fri, 2006-07-14 - 15:19
Lauren, I will simply add this. My 2 yr. old was doing something very similar when she was btwn. 4-6 mos. My Pediatrician is great and immediately sent me to Children's to have her seen by a Neurologist. My daughter would do the same where all of a sudden she would tense up and her teeth would clench. I don't recall eyes rolling or anything like that but it definitely was enough to draw my attention particularly since it happened on more than one occassion. Each episode would last no more than 5 seconds or so. In addition, she would also have these spaced out moments where she seemed totally oblivious (have a picture even) to her surroundings even when you called her. Otherwise, she was fine - developmentally, phsically, etc. As a result of my description, the doctors at Children's Hosp. were concerned enough to run tests including an EEG and another test which required she be put under. The one where she was put under (can't remember name) was the hardest b/c I watched as they put her to sleep and she was so lifeless and at that point, we were so clueless as to what was going on. Following the procedures, we met w/ the Neurologist and everything came back fine. There was absolutely no abnormal activity and since she was developing fine and was in the 90th percentile as far as height and weight, they didn't feel the need to pursue unless the episodes continued and suggested the best thing I could do would be to try and catch it on video. There were episodes even after this but b/c they only lasted seconds. We never were able to video and eventually they stopped which the Neurologist told us could possibly occur. However, I will add that it was quite difficult to watch the episodes continue prior to them stopping and we often debated pursuing further. Praise God they stopped but I recall like yesterday what it was when we were in the midst and to witness your child going through it. You feel helpless and clueless. I also can relate to easily missing them if you weren't paying attention and there were times that I questioned if I had just witnessed what I thought I did. I would only add that if you feel like it is something and the episodes continue to occur, PURSUE IT. It wasn't until we did, that we felt better. We were confident that the Doctor's at Children's did everything they could as far as testing and ruled everything out. I would keep searching until you find someone who will listen but you may want to video if able as I was advised then they can't dispute it.