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Very confused & scared
Thu, 04/09/2015 - 23:50Topic: New to Epilepsy.com
I'm 36. I have a condition called Hemiplegic migraines and have recently been diagnosed with epilepsy. Both run in my family. Migraines I have had my whole life. The seizures are new. My neuro has put me on Depakote twice and I've had to stop taking it. I have horrible side effects. The tiredness I can deal with, but it also causes me to throw up anything and everything. I cannot even keep it down. My neurologist is great with treating my migraines, but doesn't seem to understand my migraines cause my seizures to be much worse. And that I cannot take Depakote. I've been to the ER several times in the last month..... I am thinking of going to a completely different hospital and starting over with new Drs. I'm new to all of this. Could use some suggestion. The last time we tried Depakote was about 8 months ago. This time I took it for 3 and a half weeks with the side effects getting worse everyday.
Emily, I hope you are still
Submitted by Kerry Beth Hart on Mon, 2016-10-17 - 16:06
Emily, I hope you are still out there as I think this post is a bit old. I'm very sorry for all you are going thought. I am sure it is incredibly scary and very confusing indeed! I have familiar hemiplegic migraine type II with dystonia, then 5.5 years in, i developed focal seizures. I have a standing prescription for lorazapam which helps with any seizure activity which usually comes about once every 3-4 weeks or go. Always with the migraine aura. I lost my neurologist whom I loved when the state cut funding to the research hospital and closed his out patient clinic. I will spare you the hell that ensued. Suffice to say that local neuros either won't take me as a patient or they do and they're just kind of ignorant of the disease and what it does. I have decided to travel to the Diamond Headache Clinic in Chicago. I am in the KC area so it's 500 miles from me easy. They have actual experience treating HM. I admit to being more than a little jaded and cynical about doctors but I am trying to keep an open mind. I will try to find this thread again after my appointment with them which is 11-14-2016 and I can let you know what I think of the place, for what it's worth. They have a great website and an inpatient clinic as Prescence St. Joseph Hospital in Chicago. If I were to go back and do it all again, I would have STARTED there! ;) take care, hang in, know you are not alone in this. <3