recently diagnosed with epilespy

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Hello everyone,

I have known for a few years now that i was sick or something was wrong because i kept passing out. I kept going to the ER and making doctor appoinments and every time i was diagnosed with something different. Finally, i had an eeg that showed epileptic brain patterns/waves and the fainting spells were actually siezures. Well, i am 27, a full time student and i live on my own. So i guess i would just like some feed back, i have heard of epilespy mostly from movies but i realy dont know much about it. I have been a bit emotional since i found out last week and was just basically hoping for some feedback on how people cope. As of now my epilespy is more of a mild form i guess you can say, i dont have seizures daily just every few months. But in between those seizures i have times were i wake up in the morning confused, tired or with horrible migranes, does anyone else expericnce that?

Comments

Welcome Those mornings you

Submitted by just_joe on Mon, 2014-10-20 - 21:15

Welcome Those mornings you wake up confucced and not focused could have been mornings after you had a seizure at night. You didn't post the type of seizures you have or the type of epilepsy you were diagnosed with. Also the medication the doctors have put you on. There are many different medicatins and they all work. Dosages are generally set with the doctor knowing a patient having the same type of seizures as yours. But dosages and medications are alike in a few ways. A medication and dosages that workes for one may not work for the next. I hope this helps and please do come back and let us know how things are going

Good keppra is becomming the

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 2014-10-21 - 15:18

Good keppra is becomming the go to medication. I have been using it for about10 years now. It not only reduced the number of seizures I was having but it also shortened the time in those seizures. My partial and some focal seizures were 5-10 minutes in length followed by an additional 15-45 minutes to get focused (get back to normal). Now those same seizures are 5-10 seconds and the focus time is 8-10 seconda. I could have a seizure while talking to you and unless you knew what to look for you would know nothing about the seizure.Now as for taking your medication. Dosages are set and if meds are taken 2 times a day then be sure those dosages are taken at the same time 12 hours apart. There is a reason for it If you take the morning dose at 7am and the pm dose at 10pm then the hours between 7 & 10 pm your dosage is low enough to cause you to have breakthru seizures. The medications lose their strength as they disolve in your system so if you are to take meds 2 times a day try hard to be sire those times are as close to 12 hours apart. Unless otherwise stated by your neurologist. The MRI will show them a picture of your brain and they can see if there is anything there which might cause a problem. I was diagnosed back in the early 1960's. The did an neuro-angeogram (MRI of that time) they originally saw nothing. After I fell asleep in the final test which was about the 30th EEG I had had. That EEG showed abnormalities (seizure activity) When they saw where in the brain the activity was comming from they looked closer at the MRI of that time and they found scared brain tissue. That scar tissue was from a hemmorage to the brain. A blow to the head when I was 6-8 cause the hemmorage. I am one of the lucky ones since my doctors have actually found the reason I have epilepsy. I thnik your neurologist will go over the MRI with you and ask questions about the keppra. If you are not having problems with it the neuro may raise the dosage. Doc (my neuro) normally eases people onto all their meds. However I had to come off one and onto keppra and do it rapidly. I was put on a high dosage and as the other medication was reduced the keppra was increased. It took me about 1 week to be on the highest dosage of keppra doc has had anybody on. But then he has seen my file and all the medications I have been on since 1970 even tho he has been my neurologist since about 1998 since he asnwered a few questions I had when I called rather then making an appointment. Phone calls can answer questions and if the doc thinks you need further assistance or he wants to questions you more then he will set one up. I have been lucky to be with the same group of neurologists since 1970. One retires the next took his place. He moved and I got the next he retired and I got the next. Doc was about the 8-9th different neurologist and I know and have dealt with the other 2 in the group. Oh and thats not counting the other neuros in the group that handle the kids and there are several there. I do hope the keppra works and the MRI comes out fine and you get your seizures under control. Joe

Good keppra is becomming the go to medication. I have been using it for about10 years now. It not only reduced the number of seizures I was having but it also shortened the time in those seizures. My partial and some focal seizures were 5-10 minutes in length followed by an additional 15-45 minutes to get focused (get back to normal). Now those same seizures are 5-10 seconds and the focus time is 8-10 seconda. I could have a seizure while talking to you and unless you knew what to look for you would know nothing about the seizure.Now as for taking your medication. Dosages are set and if meds are taken 2 times a day then be sure those dosages are taken at the same time 12 hours apart. There is a reason for it If you take the morning dose at 7am and the pm dose at 10pm then the hours between 7 & 10 pm your dosage is low enough to cause you to have breakthru seizures. The medications lose their strength as they disolve in your system so if you are to take meds 2 times a day try hard to be sire those times are as close to 12 hours apart. Unless otherwise stated by your neurologist.   The MRI will show them a picture of your brain and they can see if there is anything there which might cause a problem. I was diagnosed back in the early 1960's. The did an neuro-angeogram (MRI of that time) they originally saw nothing. After I fell asleep in the final test which was about the 30th EEG I had had. That EEG showed abnormalities (seizure activity) When they saw where in the brain the activity was comming from they looked closer at the MRI of that time and they found scared brain tissue. That scar tissue was from a hemmorage to the brain. A blow to the head when I was 6-8 cause the hemmorage. I am one of the lucky ones since my doctors have actually found the reason I have epilepsy. I thnik your neurologist will go over the MRI with you and ask questions about the keppra. If you are not having problems with it the neuro may raise the dosage. Doc (my neuro) normally eases people onto all their meds. However I had to come off one and onto keppra and do it rapidly. I was put on a high dosage and as the other medication was reduced the keppra was increased. It took me about 1 week to be on the highest dosage of keppra doc has had anybody on. But then he has seen my file and all the medications I have been on since 1970 even tho he has been my neurologist since about 1998 since he asnwered a few questions I had when I called rather then making an appointment. Phone calls can answer questions and if the doc thinks you need further assistance or he wants to questions you more then he will set one up.  I  have been lucky to be with the same group of neurologists since 1970. One retires the next took his place. He moved and I got the next he retired and I got the next. Doc was about the 8-9th different neurologist and I know and have dealt with the other 2 in the group. Oh and thats not counting the other neuros in the group that handle the kids and there are several there. I do hope the keppra works and the MRI comes out fine and you get your seizures under control. Joe

Good keppra is becomming the go to medication. I have been using it for about10 years now. It not only reduced the number of seizures I was having but it also shortened the time in those seizures. My partial and some focal seizures were 5-10 minutes in length followed by an additional 15-45 minutes to get focused (get back to normal). Now those same seizures are 5-10 seconds and the focus time is 8-10 seconda. I could have a seizure while talking to you and unless you knew what to look for you would know nothing about the seizure.Now as for taking your medication. Dosages are set and if meds are taken 2 times a day then be sure those dosages are taken at the same time 12 hours apart. There is a reason for it If you take the morning dose at 7am and the pm dose at 10pm then the hours between 7 & 10 pm your dosage is low enough to cause you to have breakthru seizures. The medications lose their strength as they disolve in your system so if you are to take meds 2 times a day try hard to be sire those times are as close to 12 hours apart. Unless otherwise stated by your neurologist. The MRI will show them a picture of your brain and they can see if there is anything there which might cause a problem. I was diagnosed back in the early 1960's. The did an neuro-angeogram (MRI of that time) they originally saw nothing. After I fell asleep in the final test which was about the 30th EEG I had had. That EEG showed abnormalities (seizure activity) When they saw where in the brain the activity was comming from they looked closer at the MRI of that time and they found scared brain tissue. That scar tissue was from a hemmorage to the brain. A blow to the head when I was 6-8 cause the hemmorage. I am one of the lucky ones since my doctors have actually found the reason I have epilepsy. I thnik your neurologist will go over the MRI with you and ask questions about the keppra. If you are not having problems with it the neuro may raise the dosage. Doc (my neuro) normally eases people onto all their meds. However I had to come off one and onto keppra and do it rapidly. I was put on a high dosage and as the other medication was reduced the keppra was increased. It took me about 1 week to be on the highest dosage of keppra doc has had anybody on. But then he has seen my file and all the medications I have been on since 1970 even tho he has been my neurologist since about 1998 since he asnwered a few questions I had when I called rather then making an appointment. Phone calls can answer questions and if the doc thinks you need further assistance or he wants to questions you more then he will set one up. I have been lucky to be with the same group of neurologists since 1970. One retires the next took his place. He moved and I got the next he retired and I got the next. Doc was about the 8-9th different neurologist and I know and have dealt with the other 2 in the group. Oh and thats not counting the other neuros in the group that handle the kids and there are several there. I do hope the keppra works and the MRI comes out fine and you get your seizures under control. Joe