Welcome to the redesigned epilepsy.com
It is now easier and faster than ever to access news, articles and community content. With less clutter and an improved navigation system, your favorite content is now only a click away.
The new features include:
Take control of your epilepsy and seizures. Seizure management has never been easier.
TAKE CONTROL TODAYUse this list of questions to help you consider how your seizures may or may not affect where you want to go and how to get there. Then talk to your doctor for his or her recommendations and guidance. You’ll also want to schedule an appointment with the doctor or nurse to get prescriptions or medical forms updated before traveling.
If you’re traveling for work, you may not have a choice of where to go. Yet if you are planning a vacation, think about where you are going in relation to your seizures. Is it a realistic place to visit, or will you be limited by your seizures once you arrive? If you can’t drive, consider a resort where you won’t need to leave the vacation spot, or make sure that other transportation is readily available. If you’ll need to travel around once you arrive at your hotel, do your homework on accessible forms of transportation well ahead of time.
If you (or your loved one) have frequent seizures, or seizures in which she may injure herself, it’s best to travel with someone who knows about your seizures and what to do if problems arise. If you must travel alone, this may affect where you are going and how to get there, as well as what type of precautions you may need to take.
People with seizures that do not affect their awareness or consciousness will have different concerns than people who have tonic-clonic or complex partial seizures. People who may be confused or need to walk around during or after a seizure may have difficulty if this type of seizure occurs on an airplane where these behaviors may be restricted or can’t be done safely. If you tend to have clusters of seizures or long seizures, you’ll need to think carefully about plans that call for lengthy travel times and how you can get help if seizures occur. Traveling by airplane offers very limited if any in-flight medical help and may not be a safe idea for people with these risks. Consider how likely you are to have seizures while traveling and plan ahead using your Seizure Plan.
Traveling can be stressful and lead to frequent disruptions in sleep schedules, changes in eating habits or medication times. Think carefully about your seizure triggers and how to manage these or prevent them from occurring in the first place! Make sure you plan time to rest, rather than being on the go all the time. This may be especially important for families with young children. If you or your child are photosensitive, be careful when visiting amusement parks, particularly at night – there can be lots of flashing lights and excessive stimuli that can trigger seizures. If you are outdoors a lot or just have a busy schedule, make sure you drink and eat regularly.
Think about your mode of transportation as well as your destination in regards to safety. Then sit down with your doctor, nurse and family to plan how to prevent injuries and make sure the trip is fun and safe! People with seizures should be able to participate in most activities. However, activities that involve significant safety risks, such as climbing high places, flying, and parachuting, are usually not recommended and can pose significant safety risks. Other activities might be possible with practical safety precautions and having a buddy. This is especially important for water sports and swimming.
If you can’t drive, then ideally you’ll be traveling with others. Talk to your doctor, nurse and family about managing seizures on other forms of transportation and if you can do this safely. If you drive, plan plenty of time for breaks, don’t forget your medicine, and don’t try to push it when you are tired! Put safety first, even if your trip will take longer than anticipated. Read about the different types of travel to see what is best for you.
Think about where you are going in relation to what you’ll need. If you are traveling to a resort or city, you’ll probably be able to find a pharmacy, doctor or hospital easily. However, if you are traveling to rural or remote areas, you may not have access to these resources at all or may need to travel just to find a doctor. This may not be wise for people with frequent seizures or who are likely to run into emergency situations. For others, making sure you have adequate supplies of medicines and someone with you may be all that you need. Also make sure you check out your medical insurance coverage before you travel. Find out if you’ll be covered, and if there are specific instructions to follow should you need health care while traveling.
Continue to Types of Travel and Vacations
Topic Editor: Steven C. Schachter, MD and Patricia O. Shafer, RN, MN.
Last Reviewed:7/25/07
Welcome to the Wiki. This space is created for epilepsy.com members to share their own experiences and expertise to help refine and expand the discussion around important topics.
No members have yet contributed to this topic. If you are not yet an epilepsy.com member, register today to get started on this Wiki topic and the many other advantages of being a member. If you are a member and wish to be the first to edit this Wiki topic, please make sure to login, then click on the orange "Start Wiki" button at the top of this page. Or, learn more about Wikis.
| Title | Posted | |
|---|---|---|
| Epileptic Seizure Monitor Alarm System | Feb 9, 2012 | |
| onemarvy | ||
| Are these normal migraine symptoms or is there something more to it? | Feb 8, 2012 | |
| xtheotherside | ||
| 5 year old worsening seizures. Pls help??? | Feb 8, 2012 | |
| TIM_C28 | ||
| Trileptal dosage | Feb 8, 2012 | |
| myejk | ||
| SEN and epilepsy | Feb 8, 2012 | |
| Kim Norris | ||
| possible non convulsive epilepticus? | Feb 7, 2012 | |
| rayraykay | ||
| Fight with the sidewalk | Feb 7, 2012 | |
| jasssmit | ||
| Focal activity followed by generalized activity but no epilepsy | Feb 7, 2012 | |
| BendyPianist | ||
| Self-Management of Medication | Feb 7, 2012 | |
| columbia.epilepsy.study | ||
| Feeling Like a Human Guinea Pig | Feb 7, 2012 | |
| christopherpaul | ||
| View all Forums | ||
| Title | Page Views | |
|---|---|---|
| my.epilepsy.com Updates | 20,610 | |
| epi_help | ||
| topamax and weight loss | 19,311 | |
| alexia mom | ||
| kepra | 19,197 | |
| brian mattingly | ||
| Possible cure for absence seizures | 16,342 | |
| pdl1 | ||
| How exactly do aura's feel | 13,990 | |
| WendyBendy | ||
| Sexual Side Effects | 13,513 | |
| George R | ||
| MEDICAL ALERT I.D.'s | 12,427 | |
| picnupthepcs | ||
| Over 40 Different Types Of Seizures - Revised | 10,405 | |
| spiz | ||
| electrical shock in head? | 10,072 | |
| Maggie | ||
| Weight Gain and Depakote | 9,005 | |
| galinda | ||
| View all Forums | ||
| Title | Posted | |
|---|---|---|
| Epilepsy Pipeline Update Conference | Feb 8, 2012 | |
| bryan_farley | ||
| my partial complex seizures | Feb 8, 2012 | |
| Zanna1211 | ||
| The Sunday Dreads | Feb 8, 2012 | |
| johnverling | ||
| Giant Stuffed Animals For The Toddlers | Feb 8, 2012 | |
| zacharysmith | ||
| Frederick's of Hollywood Announces the "Hollywood Love Story Contest" Valentine's Day | Feb 7, 2012 | |
| cn-lightings | ||
| Seizures and medical marijuana | Feb 7, 2012 | |
| seizureprone134 | ||
| From muscle problems to seizures in 6 weeks or less | Feb 7, 2012 | |
| ArizonaAbby | ||
| Speech at Epilepsy Pipeline Update Conference -2012 | Feb 7, 2012 | |
| dayna | ||
| The Doors. | Feb 7, 2012 | |
| BowlofMush | ||
| marijuana | Feb 7, 2012 | |
| ccraven | ||
| View all Blogs | ||
| Title | Page Views | |
|---|---|---|
| my partial complex seizures | 4,402 | |
| Zanna1211 | ||
| Topomax... The Dreaded......... | 3,780 | |
| Dr Jason | ||
| Brain Zaps, tics & twitches | 3,579 | |
| JudiS | ||
| How can you tell if a sleep seizure happens? | 3,537 | |
| epl_controller | ||
| Feeling Sick | 3,308 | |
| JBJ1984 | ||
| side effects of phenobarb. | 3,211 | |
| pksmom | ||
| Tegretol XR and ANXIETY meds | 2,903 | |
| Butterflygrl | ||
| TYLENOL, AEDs & SEIZURES | 2,831 | |
| cmscribbles | ||
| Nonepileptic "Events" vs. "Seizures" | 2,710 | |
| teft | ||
| newborn seizure | 2,254 | |
| Sunny_80 | ||
| View all Blogs | ||
| Title | Posted | |
|---|---|---|
| Had the worse seizure of my life last night! Complex Partial | Feb 8, 2012 | |
| jlamont | ||
| Self-Management of Medication | Feb 7, 2012 | |
| columbia.epilepsy.study | ||
| Dravet Spectrum Disorder | Feb 4, 2012 | |
| mytboy | ||
| Diving with eplilepsy | Feb 1, 2012 | |
| p59 | ||
| Moms of epileptic toddlers | Jan 24, 2012 | |
| Xaviersmom2 | ||
| Autism | Jan 15, 2012 | |
| Aaron Chan | ||
| brain surgery | Dec 26, 2011 | |
| jen020309 | ||
| People in their 20's with epilepsy | Dec 7, 2011 | |
| Mandy911 | ||
| TEAM ETP | Nov 28, 2011 | |
| krisj | ||
| 24yr old male | Sep 21, 2011 | |
| Dave24 | ||
| View all Groups | ||
| Title | Posted | |
|---|---|---|
| My Story - Still Don't Know What it Means | Feb 8, 2012 | |
| arobertshaw85 | ||
| Help me plz. I can't go on like this | Feb 6, 2012 | |
| Lindsea | ||
| For my daughter | Feb 6, 2012 | |
| britni1780 | ||
| Why can't I find out what is going on with me? | Feb 5, 2012 | |
| dgreer27 | ||
| nightime seizure | Feb 5, 2012 | |
| ishaq | ||
| my grandchild with possible panayiotopolous syndrome | Feb 5, 2012 | |
| krys | ||
| Please Read and Help | Feb 4, 2012 | |
| WALLIGAT0R | ||
| Hello. I'm new to the forum | Feb 3, 2012 | |
| Tom S. | ||
| Maxx | Feb 3, 2012 | |
| MDS2006 | ||
| Lyme Disease as a cause for seizures | Feb 1, 2012 | |
| ssidah | ||
| View all Stories | ||
| Title | Page Views | |
|---|---|---|
| Jessica Roiz | 2,412 | |
| kroiz | ||
| my story | 553 | |
| snoby | ||
| Temporal Lobe Epilepsy | 536 | |
| Always Have On Clean Underwear | 499 | |
| crashllama | ||
| my brain has died a thousand deaths........... | 470 | |
| banffgirl | ||
| Kelly's Life With Epilepsy | 467 | |
| kjcanada1979 | ||
| What My Seizures Are Like...... | 418 | |
| javaman | ||
| Nocturnal grand mal seizures (primary generalized epilepsy) | 389 | |
| karalyeva | ||
| Life......... | 371 | |
| dizzygal | ||
| My Daily Philosophy..... | 364 | |
| KatieFerguson88 | ||
| View all Stories | ||
