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.

Future Absance Seizures

Thu, 04/19/2018 - 19:20
Hello. I am 12, and I have absence seizures. I have had these for two years. I was wondering if someone older than me would tell me some stuff about what it's like to live with these when you have more responsibilities. Like driving for example. If I could have some information about what might happen when I am older, that would be greatly appreciated. :)

Comments

I would say that the two

Submitted by Aaron_ on Mon, 2018-05-21 - 08:15
I would say that the two parts of my life that are impacted most are jobs and driving. My friends at work have been able to help me manage the ones I've had there on the job, and because I had already told them what to do & not do if they witnessed one it was less of a panic for them. I suggest letting someone there know, even if it jeopardizes your employment, because in a panic a co-worker could make a naive but bad decision of how to deal with it if you have one out of your control like sticking a pencil in your mouth. With driving, it was a slightly more difficult decision to come to, but as I get older I've been having fewer absence seizures and more grand mals or complex partial seizures I have had to accept that it is too irresponsible to take those chances while driving; I used to 'feel' it coming on but not anymore. I've already had one accident about 11 years ago and I can't describe the level of panic & fear of a postictal state combined with having a car cut apart around me, (I can't believe nobody was more injured, I don't know how I could deal with it if I had permanently disabled or killed my brother) and when I had been seizure free for 2 years I started driving again. This last year it has been breaking through the lamotrigine and I have to accept that it is too irresponsible for me to be on the road. Fortunately I have a very supportive group of friends that have been helping me when I need to go somewhere outside of reasonable pedaling distance or when a bus isn't running, and were glad to hear I had made that decision. You will have to make that decision on your own, since only you know how intense or out of your control your seizures may or may not be. I used to have very mild seizures, not much more than odd sensations like smelling burnt electricity and a loss of balance and those were easy to deal with because I would always have a minute or two to pull over as it got more intense. I can't do that anymore. Be honest with yourself and don't put yourself in a situation where you have to live with being responsible for a tragedy.You will also start dating soon and that will can be an awkward subject to bring up but you might be surprised at how many potential dates will take it with a grain of salt and/or simply listen and learn what to do when witnessing one. I have yet to meet a girlfriend that wasn't understanding or lost interest because of it so don't let that get in your way; if anyone loses interest because you are honest then they weren't worth your time anyway.I hope that helps a little, mine didn't develop until my late 20s so I missed dealing with it during puberty or high school. I can tell you that you'll do just fine.

I agree with Aaron on the

Submitted by ALISALAZAREV on Tue, 2018-07-10 - 07:28
I agree with Aaron on the driving part. I am about to turn 18 and was diagnosed with epilepsy when I was around 15 or 14. My first was a grand mal seizure but I have absence seizures and partial complex seizures. The hardest part for me was trying to concentrate in school on all these medications. My family, who, at the time didn't understand/believe my condition, expected me to basically be perfect and when the side affects of a new medication rolled in they changed medications soon after, causing a lot of concentration and memory problems for me in school. With driving, I chose to get my license when I was on medication that truly helped and my neurologist gave me an eeg to make sure that the amount of seizures I was having was reduced under this medication. I had a permit for 2 years and definetly DO NOT get your license if you feel that you could be a risk to others. It is not worth it. I wouldn't go back and change how I did that in any way. Third thing, with jobs it is really hard to find the right type of job, at least for me. Currently I have two because I want to save for college. One is that I work as a tutor at Kumon and my employer and a few employees know that I have epilepsy but I believe my employer simply forgets that I have absence seizures and constantly asks "what is wrong with you?" When I space off. At my other job, Dairy Queen, you have to be really fast and remember all the blizzard toppings and I find that hard because with epilepsy I have memory problems and I just forget what  I am doing in the middle of things. Honestly if I could I wouldnt work a fast food job. Try a slow paced job or something that is not stressful, like the movie theatre. 

Also if you ever have any

Submitted by ALISALAZAREV on Tue, 2018-07-10 - 07:30
Also if you ever have any questions do not hesitate to message me on instagram or you can text me (@heyimalisa + 636 275 6335)

Sign Up for Emails

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