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Morning Seizures after Drinking

Mon, 11/29/2010 - 14:34
Hi, To keep it brief, I had my first seizure on May 18 after a night of heaving drinking for a friends birthday. That day I had picked up Red Dead Redemption and was excited to play it, so probably only slept about 6-7 hours before waking and immediately going to the TV. Next thing I know I am surrounded by paramedics and being rushed to hospital. So I have normal CT, EEG, and MRI, and my neuro tells me that I have a mild seizure disorder, and since I had absence as a small child it may just be flaring up because of the partying/videogame combination. He opts not to put me on medication. A month later I had 2 more seizures a week apart, both after a night of partying for my cousins stag and wedding. After visiting my neuro again he still insists that I do not need to go on medication, and should simply curtail my party lifestyle. After that I went a solid 3.5 months before having another one, which was yesterday, again after drinking. To add to the drinking I am also a chronic marijuana smoker in that I smoke daily. I would prefer not to have to go back to my neuro because I have moved and do not want to start the no driving countdown again. Again, all my seizures have occurred first thing in the morning, usually around breakfast. Any advice, help, or similar stories would be awesome. Thank you very much, I am really scared to lose the life I love of extreme sports, fast cars, and living on the edge. Thanks

Comments

Re: Morning Seizures after Drinking

Submitted by filly150 on Mon, 2010-11-29 - 15:49
I have primary generalized epilepsy.  I normally do not drink heavily.  I had a breakthrough seizure in 2007 after a night of heavy drinking.  I am currently on zonegran.  I had not had a seizure in almost a year.  I went out on Halloween and tied one on.  I woke up the next day and had a seizure.  From what I have read, alcohol depresses brain function, and when it tries to restart itself, it has a seizure.  This usally happens between 6 and 72 hours after you stop drinking.  I normally have just one or two drinks, but the zonegran intensifies the alcohol, and I get drunk and don't pay attention to how much I'm drinking.  I decided to give up alcohol altogether.  Smoking marijuana doesn't seem to be a problem with me.  My doctor says that it is beneficial.

Re: Morning Seizures after Drinking

Submitted by phylisfjohnson on Wed, 2010-12-01 - 12:25

Well, your lifestyle is certainly setting off a lot of triggers...

Alcohol

There are two questions that have to be considered when the question of alcohol use and epilepsy comes up. One is the effect that alcohol could have on the medicines used to control seizures. Alcohol can be dangerous when mixed with sedative drugs and can cause coma, or even death. The other question is whether the alcohol itself will cause seizures.

Large amounts of alcohol are thought to raise the risk of seizures and may even cause them. When you drink alcohol, it may temporarily reduce seizures for a few hours, but then increases the chances of a seizure as the alcohol leaves your body.

Lack of Sleep

Inadequate or fragmented sleep can set off seizures in lots of people. In one study, the lowest risk for seizures was during REM sleep (when dreams occur). The highest risk was during light non-REM stages of sleep.

Flickering or Flashing Light

If you have photosensitive epilepsy, certain types of flickering or flashing light may incite a seizure.  The trigger could be exposure to television screens due to the flicker or rolling images, computer monitors, certain video games or TV broadcasts containing rapid flashes, even alternating patterns of different colors, in addition to intense strobe lights.

Cigarette Smoking

Nicotine is both a stimulant and a depressant to the central nervous system. The nicotine in cigarettes acts on receptors for the excitatory neurotransmitter acetylcholine in the brain, which increases neuronal firing.

Caffeine

Much like nicotine, caffeine stimulates the nervous system. Adrenaline is released and the liver begins to emit stored blood sugar. Insulin is then released, and blood sugar drops below normal—a common seizure trigger.  And caffeine can be a “stealth” drug, too.  It can be found as an ingredient in medications, including some antihistamines and decongestants.

Musicogenic Epilepsy

This is a form of reflexive epilepsy in which a seizure is triggered by music or specific frequencies. Sensitivity to music varies from person to person.  Some people are sensitive to a particular tone from a voice or instrument. Others are sensitive to a particular musical style or rhythm. Still others are sensitive to a range of noises.

And my guess is that the recreational drugs don't help either...

So, it's really your choice.  Party lifestyle and seizures...or anti-epilepsy drugs and seizure control.    Phylis Feiner Johnson   www.epilepsytalk.com

 

Well, your lifestyle is certainly setting off a lot of triggers...

Alcohol

There are two questions that have to be considered when the question of alcohol use and epilepsy comes up. One is the effect that alcohol could have on the medicines used to control seizures. Alcohol can be dangerous when mixed with sedative drugs and can cause coma, or even death. The other question is whether the alcohol itself will cause seizures.

Large amounts of alcohol are thought to raise the risk of seizures and may even cause them. When you drink alcohol, it may temporarily reduce seizures for a few hours, but then increases the chances of a seizure as the alcohol leaves your body.

Lack of Sleep

Inadequate or fragmented sleep can set off seizures in lots of people. In one study, the lowest risk for seizures was during REM sleep (when dreams occur). The highest risk was during light non-REM stages of sleep.

Flickering or Flashing Light

If you have photosensitive epilepsy, certain types of flickering or flashing light may incite a seizure.  The trigger could be exposure to television screens due to the flicker or rolling images, computer monitors, certain video games or TV broadcasts containing rapid flashes, even alternating patterns of different colors, in addition to intense strobe lights.

Cigarette Smoking

Nicotine is both a stimulant and a depressant to the central nervous system. The nicotine in cigarettes acts on receptors for the excitatory neurotransmitter acetylcholine in the brain, which increases neuronal firing.

Caffeine

Much like nicotine, caffeine stimulates the nervous system. Adrenaline is released and the liver begins to emit stored blood sugar. Insulin is then released, and blood sugar drops below normal—a common seizure trigger.  And caffeine can be a “stealth” drug, too.  It can be found as an ingredient in medications, including some antihistamines and decongestants.

Musicogenic Epilepsy

This is a form of reflexive epilepsy in which a seizure is triggered by music or specific frequencies. Sensitivity to music varies from person to person.  Some people are sensitive to a particular tone from a voice or instrument. Others are sensitive to a particular musical style or rhythm. Still others are sensitive to a range of noises.

And my guess is that the recreational drugs don't help either...

So, it's really your choice.  Party lifestyle and seizures...or anti-epilepsy drugs and seizure control.    Phylis Feiner Johnson   www.epilepsytalk.com

 

Re: Morning Seizures after Drinking

Submitted by balkan on Thu, 2011-01-13 - 07:16

Hi, I am 32 years old, and had two gran mall seizures, first 2,5 years ago, and second 2 months ago. I had febrile convulsions as a kid. I am not a drinker, but sometimes with friends and family I drink (per night) 0.2 litres of spirits, or 1-2 litres of beers, very rarely 0.5 litres of spirits, or 2-3 litres of beers, in special occasions. I smoked one box of cigarettes per day. I am 115 kg weight (height over 2 metres), so I can drink one litre of beer per an hour or two, so I don`t become drank after several hours of drinking. First seizure was after a few months of less physical activities and then after a exausting road trip (increased alcohol consumption), that lasted 5-6 days, with less hours a day asleep, was drinking all night (mostly beer) until 5a.m., and had seizure after being awake at cca. 12a.m. CT&MR were good, neurologist didn`t make any EEG or blood tests, he gave me frisium and depakine (excluded alcohol), then only depakine, and after one month made EEG (was good) and excluded therapy and told me not to combine alcohol, overstrain, lack of sleep, flashing light, stimulation drinks etc.

...and I didn`t combine it! But two months ago, after a few months with less physical activities and more frequent consuption of alcohol (mostly beer): amounts of 1-2 litres (sometimes even 2-3 litres) per night, I had another seizure, also in the morning. Previous night I was fresh (slept afternoon), but I drank cca. 3 litres of beer until 3a.m. In the morning I had coffee and breakfast, ate 4 boiled eggs, and walked to pay some bills, immediately before the seizure I was feeling good. Neurologist, 7 days after the seizure, made EEG which performed some epileptogenic activities, and prescribed lamictal therapy for 2 months (starting with 25mg, increasing to 100mg). Excluded alcohol, smoking and cofee...On my own, I made blood tests, and had AST (aspartate aminotransferase) higher, and HDL (high-density lipoprotein) lower, everything other was good (tests were made 20 days after the seizure). Thought the liver was the cause for seizures, while it had probably problems to work all the beer in the morning, so I started drinking 0.3-0.4 litres of whey per day, with some meds for liver regeneration, with food therapy also. After 15 days of that regime, ultrasonography showed the liver was good, maybe little bit bigger than usual for the male of my size.

My opinion is that alcohol causes some state of liver that can cause seizure, and if man drinks more frequently in some period, than the liver is more sensitive to that kind of state. I was more drank many times in my life than those two times I had seizure, but what was characteristic was the ongoing accumulation of unhealthy behaviour, beer consumption, etc. If the alcohol is the cause for seizure only in neurological way, the seizure would occur during the drinking or while asleep, and there would be, in my case, clear treshold amount of drink consumed per night causing seizure. But if it occurs in the morning, obviously the metabolic disorders following hypoglycemia are the cause for the seizure.

Hi, I am 32 years old, and had two gran mall seizures, first 2,5 years ago, and second 2 months ago. I had febrile convulsions as a kid. I am not a drinker, but sometimes with friends and family I drink (per night) 0.2 litres of spirits, or 1-2 litres of beers, very rarely 0.5 litres of spirits, or 2-3 litres of beers, in special occasions. I smoked one box of cigarettes per day. I am 115 kg weight (height over 2 metres), so I can drink one litre of beer per an hour or two, so I don`t become drank after several hours of drinking. First seizure was after a few months of less physical activities and then after a exausting road trip (increased alcohol consumption), that lasted 5-6 days, with less hours a day asleep, was drinking all night (mostly beer) until 5a.m., and had seizure after being awake at cca. 12a.m. CT&MR were good, neurologist didn`t make any EEG or blood tests, he gave me frisium and depakine (excluded alcohol), then only depakine, and after one month made EEG (was good) and excluded therapy and told me not to combine alcohol, overstrain, lack of sleep, flashing light, stimulation drinks etc.

...and I didn`t combine it! But two months ago, after a few months with less physical activities and more frequent consuption of alcohol (mostly beer): amounts of 1-2 litres (sometimes even 2-3 litres) per night, I had another seizure, also in the morning. Previous night I was fresh (slept afternoon), but I drank cca. 3 litres of beer until 3a.m. In the morning I had coffee and breakfast, ate 4 boiled eggs, and walked to pay some bills, immediately before the seizure I was feeling good. Neurologist, 7 days after the seizure, made EEG which performed some epileptogenic activities, and prescribed lamictal therapy for 2 months (starting with 25mg, increasing to 100mg). Excluded alcohol, smoking and cofee...On my own, I made blood tests, and had AST (aspartate aminotransferase) higher, and HDL (high-density lipoprotein) lower, everything other was good (tests were made 20 days after the seizure). Thought the liver was the cause for seizures, while it had probably problems to work all the beer in the morning, so I started drinking 0.3-0.4 litres of whey per day, with some meds for liver regeneration, with food therapy also. After 15 days of that regime, ultrasonography showed the liver was good, maybe little bit bigger than usual for the male of my size.

My opinion is that alcohol causes some state of liver that can cause seizure, and if man drinks more frequently in some period, than the liver is more sensitive to that kind of state. I was more drank many times in my life than those two times I had seizure, but what was characteristic was the ongoing accumulation of unhealthy behaviour, beer consumption, etc. If the alcohol is the cause for seizure only in neurological way, the seizure would occur during the drinking or while asleep, and there would be, in my case, clear treshold amount of drink consumed per night causing seizure. But if it occurs in the morning, obviously the metabolic disorders following hypoglycemia are the cause for the seizure.

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