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I've been there, I've done that.. Now I want to help you guys

Tue, 09/10/2013 - 02:16

Hello fellow teenagers...

My name's Austin. I am 19 years old living with Epilepsy, and I want to help you out. I dealt with a lot of confusion, lonliness, and depression around 2008-2009 ever since I was diagnosed with Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy.

With the help of this website, as well as my family and friends, and of course my doctor, I learned to control my JME. I have about one seizure a year, and that's it. I'm currently interning and I'm going to a nice college. I'm going to do what I love with my life. Epilepsy will not hold you back; it will only change you, and make you a more ambitious person. But it's NOT EASY.

Please contact me guys, if you just want someone to talk to. It made all the difference when I was a younger teen, and I want to be there for you guys as well. It's a terrible thing to think about, and I want to show you how to, well, live easier.

Just trying to reach out. This forum has worked wonders for me since 2008 and I want to give back. 

Just hit me up. I'm here, I'll listen, and I'll help.

-Austin

Comments

Re: I've been there,

Submitted by mereloaded on Tue, 2013-09-10 - 16:38
Thank you Austin. you have helped me already, with the words you said to me about parenting my son. I am hard on him sometimes and thanks to you I understand the fears and frustration he goes through and also, how important it is to have OPEN communication so he is not afraid to tell me if he is suffering from symptoms. BTW, how are you doing? Thank you so much for sharing your experiences here because as a parent of a teen with epilepsy, I don;t know how is like. Knowing that you are going to school and living a happy life gives me hope for my son. I hope all is well and thank you ! P

Re: I've been there, I've done that

Submitted by mereloaded on Tue, 2013-09-10 - 16:46
Oh, and I have a question. My son is a very smart kid, always had, but it takes him forever at times to do homework for example. I can only describe a slow thinking at times, this is not all the time. is this something that you have experienced? thanks. P

Re: I've been there, I've done that

Submitted by just_joe on Tue, 2013-09-10 - 18:21

I was always being questioned by my mother about the time it took me to do my studing. You posted sometimes but not all the time. I was faster with math and some other subjects English gave me fits. So those days he takes longer he may have a subject that takes hin more time to absorb the information. I was and always have been a slow reader which at times didn't help. When I was a teen the medications were basically downers and the amount of medications I took in one day could put the average man to sleep for 24 hours. Medications like those were also reasons I had with readingHowever after reading things I remembered them. It was like having a photograph memory. That was due to the time it took to read. Speed reading can get you thru the information written but you do not have everythng in context of how and why it was written. In some subjects I got thru easily others took more time so your son may be like I was. Taking time to absorb ALL the information and not just the words or numbers. Sometimes what you think may be slow thinkers could be going over the information and verifying his answers.  I am like the person that posted this. Been there Done that.

The way I help is checking out posts and giving answers at times

Another way is working with my neurologist in drug studies for new medications. I have been in studies for several new medications that are now available. I know many of them work on some of my seizures. While in those studies the number of seizures went done from 4-6 a week to 4-6 a month.

I do that because I do not want kids like this poster having to deal with the medications I delt with.

Hope this helps

Joe

I was always being questioned by my mother about the time it took me to do my studing. You posted sometimes but not all the time. I was faster with math and some other subjects English gave me fits. So those days he takes longer he may have a subject that takes hin more time to absorb the information. I was and always have been a slow reader which at times didn't help. When I was a teen the medications were basically downers and the amount of medications I took in one day could put the average man to sleep for 24 hours. Medications like those were also reasons I had with readingHowever after reading things I remembered them. It was like having a photograph memory. That was due to the time it took to read. Speed reading can get you thru the information written but you do not have everythng in context of how and why it was written. In some subjects I got thru easily others took more time so your son may be like I was. Taking time to absorb ALL the information and not just the words or numbers. Sometimes what you think may be slow thinkers could be going over the information and verifying his answers.  I am like the person that posted this. Been there Done that.

The way I help is checking out posts and giving answers at times

Another way is working with my neurologist in drug studies for new medications. I have been in studies for several new medications that are now available. I know many of them work on some of my seizures. While in those studies the number of seizures went done from 4-6 a week to 4-6 a month.

I do that because I do not want kids like this poster having to deal with the medications I delt with.

Hope this helps

Joe

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