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Leaving for College/Grandfather Died from Epilepsy, Now I Have It... :'(

Tue, 07/24/2012 - 21:35
I was diagnosed with epilepsy on April 27, 2012. I had only been 18 for two weeks and was four days away from the May 1st deadline for choosing my college. Luckily my parents allowed me to choose the college I would have chosen anyways, a university in Pittsburgh a full day's air travel from my hometown of San Diego. Now (1 month from when I leave for college) my mom is considering moving my whole family, including my four younger siblings, to Pittsburgh to be there for me in this time of great transition. I know I should be thankful that my parents are willing to do this for me, but it scares me how serious it makes this condition seem. I have had two seizures - the first on April 7, a grand mal seizure that no one saw except my 15 year old brother, and the second, on April 27, a grand mal seizure in front of my whole English class. I have been on Keppra since the second seizure and haven't had one since (about 3 months), so is it reasonable to say that my seizures are controlled? Or do I need to wait longer to say so? Both times I was sick, the first with a minor cold and the second with a major flu. Since I was diagnosed, I had a minor cold once with no seizures but I haven't been really sick. The worst part is that my grandfather - the only other person known to have epilepsy in my family - died from a seizure when my mom was 18. My mom has become what I think is obsessive about preventing my seizures and dangerous situations for seizures. I can understand why she feels this way, but she's only making things worse for me by her intimations that as soon as I go to college I'm going to die. I think I'm okay with my family moving to Pittsburgh with me (I would still live in the dorms and only see them when I felt like I needed/wanted to), but it scares me so much how big of a deal my mom makes of this. My grandfather's seizures were not controlled and they had just lowered the level of his medication due to adverse side affects when he died. I'm not sure how serious this really is - doctors continue to assure us that not many people die from epilepsy, but my mom never fails to remind me that people do die from it. I'm so confused!!!

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