New - Purchasing Medication from Canada
 Loading
|
Take control of your epilepsy and seizures. Seizure management has never been easier.
TAKE CONTROL TODAY
Well this is my first time EVER blogging, and i thought what a better place than here with fellow ppl that are or have gone through what I am going through now. He's a brief history of my epilepsy condition
I had my first one when I was 12 year old, I am 32 now, at that time my PCP placed me on Dilantin, they started out low 200 mg a day. Well over the next 10 years the seizures kept reoccuring and eventually my Neuro moved me up to 500 mg a day b/c my body wasn't absorbing the medication, and I thought everything was fine until i had another seizure 4 years ago, at that time it was the worst one I had had, it was a Grand-Mal and lasted almost 4 mins according to witnesses, well apparently my body wasn't absorbing the meds properly again and I was increased to 700 mg a day, and I forgot to add that all this time if/when the dr did blood work I was told "YOUR LEVELS ARE GREAT NO NEED TO WORRY".
Well then 2 years ago, 2007, I had yet another grand mal, 6.5 mins in duration and this time I had a massive cut to my head and had to get 20 staples to my head, and yet i was told my meds were okay and I started questioning the dr at that time and he said I don't want to change anything I want to increase you to 900 mg a day, so I did.
Well 14 days ago I had yet another Grand Mal Seizure, this time it lasted 8.5 minutes, i know myself because I was at work and I watched the security cameras the other day, and this i done a number on myself, I tore part of my ear off and they had to DermaBond(literally GLUE) it back on. When I went to the ER because I always go when I have one, that's what I've done for 20 years, the ER doc drew blood, ALOT, because I wanted an "outsiders" opinion on my levels and such, and like I thought, my Dilantin level was a 2, I take my meds everyday at the same time and everything, and then and there I knew that my doctor wasn't taking proper care of me, and had them (ER) to refer me to another Neurologist @ Vanderbilt University Medical Center( GO DORES!!! LOL)
Well I went to him and he's kept me on the Dilantin and we are adding Keppra and in the same turn while "building up" to the Keppra level he wants we are gonna start decreasing the Dilantin, BUT if my levels are so low why doesn't he say stop the Dilantin because he also told me that my body isn't absorbing it anymore and it's "ruining my liver", NOW I am worried about that as well.
One thing i've noticed though is with the Dilantin and Keppra "combo", instead of it making me drowsy or tired, IT DOES THE OPPOSITE, as with almost any med if it is suppost to make you tired it does opposite for me, for example if I take Ambien, instead of putting me to sleep it keeps me awake, BUT if I take something like DayQuil, it knocks me out, I've always been like this, I am just worried cause I am not sleeping but maybe 3 hours a night and I am a type of person who needs his full 8 if not 9.
So I guess my question(s) are as follows:
Is it normal for the combo (in anyone else's experience) to keep me awake so much?
Does anyone have any advice about the liver situation
 hkhoyt |
 j5freye1 |
 jojo76 New - Keppra AND Topamax....any history anyone?
Created by jojo76at9/24/09 - 4:57 pm|2 Comments Posted To: |
 Row_cat changing from carbamazepine (Tegretol) to keppra
Created by Row_catat7/21/09 - 3:06 pm|1 Comment Posted To: |
mykidz... |
 kattat... |
Jammin... New - Too many side effecs with Keppra. What should I switch to??
Created by Jammin...at6/22/09 - 5:30 pm|13 Comments Posted To: |
adamss... Some random keppra advice that helped me
Created by adamss...at5/19/09 - 10:41 am|7 Comments Posted To: |
GottaJ... |
allisonot |
 Tabby |
victor... |
MayaBlue |
Britne... Frontal Lobe Epilepsy W/Partial Complex & Absence Seizures
Created by Britne...at11/26/08 - 5:44 pm Posted To: |
Britne... Frontal Lobe Epilepsy W/Partial Complex & Absence Seizures
Created by Britne...at11/26/08 - 5:40 pm Posted To: |
Shawn L |
bykerb... |
bykerb... |
densol |
 SLW |
 Dar51 From Depakote to Keppra... Right or Wrong Choice?
Created by Dar51at9/1/07 - 5:32 pm|44 Comments Posted To: |
Wardy01 |
SickOf... |
Liam.Mc |
baubua24 New - Topamax,Keppra causing liver damage?!
Created by baubua24at11/7/09 - 5:48 pm|3 Comments Posted To: |
Recent Comments on this Discussion
hi there John
well dilantin, keppra ... just about all the meds leave those lovely side affects and yes it is hard to read what to do next. All meds react different for everyone.
ive gone through 5 Dr.s the first one was just like you were explaining about your dr
if I had a sz he'd say "weeellll I dont know if it was a sz" I wanted to ... well any ways all he really did was up my Dilantin and guess what it didnt work. I changed Dr. well my Mom did I was only 15 I went through 2 years of that.
I used to be addicted to Pepsi and for 15 years I thought I was an ansomniac now I'll only drink Diet and at that only 1 a day I'm not a big coffee drinker
the only thing I liked about my first Doc is that he told me not to take over the counter meds cuz they would affect my Dilantin evern though Im not on it anymore I still go by it
I do is take my meds at least 3 hours before I go to sleep
the only other thing is the liver is very strong it could be put through the ringer and it will keep ticking
I hope this helps a little
`Christina Vargas
I find your story very interesting. I too respond opposite on many medications when it comes to sleep/energy. I tried Dilantin, poison. My dr transitioned me to Keppra XR (1500mg nightly) within 5 weeks of starting Dilantin because it was just sitting in my liver. I was oblivious to the world around me. Like being on a 24 hour drunk. Keppra has been amazing for me and I couldn't be more thankful for anything, ever! You need to sleep, for sure, or you will have another seizure. One thing I can note is that Keppra and caffeine DO NOT MIX. I drink about 3-4 cups of Folgers 1/2 caffeine coffee and no sodas during the day. That's equal to about 1-2 cups of regular coffee. Stay away from energy drinks or any kind of sport drinks. They too interfere with sleep patterns. Tylenol puts out a product called "Simply Sleep" that works for me but I can only take 1 tablet because 2 keep me awake ALL night. I hope this will help you and you continue to make good progress. Keep me posted on how you're doing.
Best wishes.
Dear John,
Aren't Grand Mals fun? I have had some similar experiences to yours, but for my staple in the head incident, I only needed five of them to close the cut. Of course, when I decide to keep my hair short, like in the summer, the scar is pretty noticeable.
As far as timing the seizures, I have never done that because I never considered it significant. As long as I come to, I really don't care too much how long it lasted. Also, what do I time? The amount of time I spend twitching, the amount of time I spend unconscious, or the amount of time it takes for me to actually come out of it to the point that I can talk making sense and can remember my name and answer questions lucidly?
With the liver question. Just about anything you take that your liver tries to wash out of your system is hard on your liver. If the doc says it's a problem you should probably address it. The good thing is that the liver is one of the most regenerative organs in the body. If you stop beating it up, it will start to recover right away, and soon it will be as good as new.
I don't have any experience with Keppra, so someone else here will have to give you an opinion on that subject.
Matt