Community Forum Archive

The Epilepsy Community Forums are closed, and the information is archived. The content in this section may not be current or apply to all situations. In addition, forum questions and responses include information and content that has been generated by epilepsy community members. This content is not moderated. The information on these pages should not be substituted for medical advice from a healthcare provider. Experiences with epilepsy can vary greatly on an individual basis. Please contact your doctor or medical team if you have any questions about your situation. For more information, learn about epilepsy or visit our resources section.

new nocturnal seizures

Wed, 06/24/2020 - 02:24
please help me, I truly believe I am having seizures in my sleep. for the past year I have been having similar episodes exclusively during sleep. I usually know when an episode is going to occur because I always feel an excessive sudden wave of sleepiness take over, then, shortly after falling asleep, while "sleeping," I hear a loud buzzing wave like sound followed by twitching in my whole body. some times I feel the twitching begin in just my face, then eventually end up to feeling it in my whole body. each "seizure" lasts no longer than 1 minute, I attempt to wake myself up because I know what is happening is not right, but before I know it my eyes roll back in my head and I fall back asleep and having another "seizure" sometimes I will have up to 5 of these mini "seizures" before I am able to fully wake up. while the seizures are happening I can remember feeling scared and in my head telling myself I need to wake up so they will stop, but due to the excessive sleepiness I keep falling back asleep several times and have repeated brief seizures. Once I finally wake up, the seizures stop and I often feel fatigued that day and sometimes a headache. These only happen during sleep, especially during day time naps when I am sleepiest. They happen more often so when I am extremely fatigued from lack of sleep. I am a nurse and these began when I was working the night shift and extremely sleep deprived and stressed. do these sound like seizures? I am concerned because it has happened so many times, exactly the same every time. I am torn between this being some type of sleep paralysis or seizure.

Comments

I think it is common for

Submitted by birdman on Wed, 2020-06-24 - 10:33
I think it is common for person to have seizure activity right at the point where a person goes into sleep.  That is why during a basic wake / sleep EEG they do a period where patient is allowed to drift into sleep several times. They do sound like they could be seizures.  I am not a doctor, but a patient who has had epilepsy for over 50 years.  I'd say it would be good to have an EEG done to track this.  Also, one thing you can do is to keep track of any other patterns.  Stress and sleep deprivation reduce seizure threshold and make person more apt to have seizures.  Are there any changes in diet or medications that cause them to occur more often?  A good diary is one of the most valuable records for diagnosing and treating epilepsy.

Sign Up for Emails

Stay up to date with the latest epilepsy news, stories from the community, and more.