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New & Wondering: meds neccessary for absence?
Sat, 05/05/2007 - 21:44Topic: Parents & Caregivers
Our pediatrician thinks our 8 year old son has absence epilepsy. We have our first EEG appt. on Tues. and I have been reading and reading all I can find.
Can someone tell me the purposes of the medications besides controlling the seizures. The absence seizures my son has last 7-10 secs. and I have witnessed 5 - 7 a day. My husband is wanting to avoid medication if possible after hearing about all the side effects but at this point we know nothing about whether they are supposed to stop it completely or whether the seizures are "bad" for his brain.
We homeschool so I sit with my son and wait for him to "ride" out the absence seizures. Then we resume with his work. I have noticed that they have increased in frequency since we first recognized them.
I realize we need to discuss all this with the dr. but we have been waiting for two weeks to get in. I'm so curious and this is not something I could find in any of my searches.
Thanks, Kim in CA
Comments
Re: Re: New & Wondering: meds neccessary for absence?
Submitted by Nolansmom on Tue, 2007-05-08 - 19:07
Thanks for your response. I may email you as I absorb all of this. We just had our first consult this morning and the dr. got our son to hyperventilate in order to bring on a seizure. It was so strange, seeing him cause one to happen. His comments were that if he is running etc. and becomes winded or hyperventilates, it could bring one on. It is during this sort of activity that could cause harm. My husband is against the meds if we can avoid them.
Also, the dr. made it sound very certain that he would outgrow this in a couple of years whether or not we treat it. We were just recently thinking of putting him in organized sports this year so that may affect our decision. We really haven't had time to discuss it without kids around yet. I appreciate your input
Re: Re: Re: New & Wondering: meds neccessary for absence?
Submitted by tlee827 on Tue, 2007-05-08 - 19:37
Absolutely feel free to email me anytime if you have any questions. We have been through the exact same thing. I'm certainly no expert but I can always give you insight on our very own experience. I remember the hyperventilation exercises and the agonizing decision of whether to medicate or not. Your husband is very much like my own. He was very against medication and it took him a while to absorb all of this and try to figure out what to do next. I feel for you and your family and please feel free to be in touch anytime for questions or support.
Tina
Re: New & Wondering: meds neccessary for absence?
Submitted by tlee827 on Mon, 2007-05-07 - 18:21
My child is 6 and was diagnosed about 8 months ago with absence seizures. My husband and I went through the very same thing - afraid to put him on med if he didn't need to be. After consulting with 2 doctors we decided to place him on medication solely for safety reasons. While the seizures themselves are not harmful, what he is doing while he has them could be. Crossing the street, climbing trees, taking a bath or hanging on monkey bars could be dangerous if he has a seizure during these activities. It is a long process trying to get him on the right dosage and the right medication. We still have not found that perfect combination for him and he still has breakthrough seizures from time to time. As a parent, it never gets easier to watch your child go through this. Being homeschooled might save your child from falling behind in his education. My child is in kindergarten and has always been a bright kid. This year he has had trouble keeping up, concentrating and remembering simple tasks. In the beginning we wondered if it was the seizures themselves, and now we are wondering if it is the medication and all of its side effects. I don't have an easy answer for you. I hate the seizures and I hate the side effects of the medicine so you just kinda have to figure out the lesser of the evils. We are continuing our path of finding the perfect drug for him because I worry about him and we have had instances of having to physically remove him from climbing on the playground due to having a seizure and I never want to wonder what would happen if I weren't there to watch him 24/7. I understand your reluctance because we have been there, but I just wanted to let you know our experience. If you have any other questions, please feel free to email me. tlee827@bellsouth.net Tina