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Geschwind Syndrome?

Mon, 12/18/2017 - 10:42
I've a sibling with epileptic disorders. Diagnosed with autoimmune encephalitis. Very frequent seizures and convulsions. We started to note changes in personality in between seizures. After each seizure, a shift in alter ego sort of happens, claiming he is a Djinn. I've just found out about the Gerschwind Syndrome and the hyperreligiosity symptoms. Any advice on how to go about looking for treatment?

Comments

I have had temporal lobe

Submitted by birdman on Mon, 2017-12-18 - 22:10
I have had temporal lobe epilepsy for more than 50 yrs.  Along with this I have experienced excessive anger and irritability which I too have noticed come and go with the seizures and medications.  No doctor hasB ever mentioned Geschwind's Syndrome but I found out about it through my own reading and research.  I especially like Eve LaPlante's book, Seized.  LaPlante describes some patients gain from psychotherapy.  I've found that neurologists and even epilepsy specialists tend to focus upon seizures while the other psychiatric and psychological issues get less attention.  That is why they refer us to psychiatrists.  Of course a psychiatrist is likely to put your sibling on more pills which none of us like to have to depend upon.  But the gain for me is worth the suffering I could experience without. To manage my anger and aggression I work with my epilepsy specialists to take the least amount of medication as possible for seizure control.  LaPlante says that many doctors understand the detrimental effects of medication and believe "it's better for a patient to have a seizure no and then, rather than no seizures at all."  Also "tight or perfect control of seizures with drugs can cause psychosis or an exaggeration of Geschwind's syndrome, the goal of anticonvulsant treatment is usually to reduce the frequency of seizures, not to stop them altogether." Of course this needs to be worked out with the patient and his or her doctor.  I've tried a total of 15 different medications, brain surgery to remove tissue from the right temporal lobe, and VNS.  Nothing has yet comfortably controlled the seizures.  There are a half dozen or so new medications that I haven't tried but we know my experience, and statistics show it's not worth the discomfort.  I have long considered treatment using Responsive Nerve Stimulation (RNS) and am a believer that it can make a big difference.  My biggest fear has been what will happen if it works.  Will it exaggerate the anger/ aggression with increased control?  After much research and discussion I understand that the RNS system has the potential to regulate seizure activity better than drug therapy.  Maybe for some of us we cannot comfortably enjoy complete seizure control.  Seizures don't have to be the dramatic "convulsions" that most people think of.  We can and may need to have some mild abnormal brainwave activity in order to remain "sane" and I am hopeful that RNS will allow me to enjoy a better quality of life this way. I am glad that you accept that your sibling's personality changes and other odd behaviors are likely to be linked to epilepsy.  It would be very damaging to treat the sibling as if he or she is "crazy" or sloppy in managing the mood.  Encourage your sibling to seek alternative treatment for the seizures.  And read Seized, by Eve LaPlante.  

Geschwind syndrome is a way

Submitted by epihelp on Mon, 2017-12-25 - 16:31
Geschwind syndrome is a way of looking at some behaviors that may cluster or be seen in people with seizures involving the limbic system of the brain. Many of these structures are in the temporal lobe. The symptoms are not seen in everyone with temporal lobe epilepsy. It's really just a descriptive term - the person would still be diagnosed with partial or focal-onset seizures. Medicines or other treatments that are used for focal epilepsy would be indicated for this. The causes of changes in behavior are complex - may be from underlying cause of the seizure, impact of cause and seizures on the brain areas involved, and/or medicines and other things. To treat this form of epilepsy, if seizures are not controlled, seeing someone at a comprehensive epilepsy center would be best. A neuropsychologist and/or neuropsychiatrist would be worth seeing to help understand behavior changes - what may be related to seizures, if separate mood or behavior problems are present and how to treat.Hope this helps!

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