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Upcoming Surgery
Sun, 11/02/2014 - 14:49I am a 44 year old male who has had seizures for about 25 years. Up until a year ago my seizures were nothing more than simple partial seizures that occurred about every 30 days, upon which I would typically have a cluster of about 5-8 seizures. These events did not have much of an impact on life, as I was still able to function at full capacity. In the past year, my seizures have progressed to complex partial seizures where I am now losing awareness during these events. For this reason I have also lost my drivers license, as well as other challenges in day-to-day life. The frequency of one day per month has not changed, but the type and intensity has. It is for this reason that I am now scheduled to go in for right temporal lobe surgery in December of this year.
As the surgery date gets closer and closer, my level of anxiety increases as well. While I know that surgery is the right decision for me, and in some ways I am excited about the future outcome, I must admit that I am terrified of the procedure itself. It is the feelings about the unkown that I find the scariest. I am also struggling with the fact that the rest of family doesn't seem to "get it", and as a result I often feel like I am going through this on my own. I appreciate that they all have a positive attitude and expect that everytihg is going to work out, however I wish that they could understand some of the fears that I am facing as well. Getting upset with me when I talk about those fears, or simply ignoring them, does not help. They are real.
Your family may never get it,
Submitted by Amy Jo on Sun, 2014-11-02 - 15:51
Your family may never get it, or what you'll go through afterward. Is it ok for you to get support from someone else? Does your surgeon's office recommend anyone, they might know someone familiar with the range of needs before and after surgery. Calling your local foundation affiliate might give you more resources to draw upon from support groups to counseling or more.