Mayhem
01-26-2005, 12:16 AM
Im worried about my 8 year old son. I really dont know how to explain what he is doing very well, but im gonna give it a try. Basically you can carry on a conversation with him, and sometimes in the middle of it he will just get this blank stare off into the distance and start trembling. Once this happens you can call his name, and he will not respond. His eyes will look really droopy, and almost like there is nothing there. Tonight we were going over some flash cards, and he did it again, and it really freaks me out. I have researched add, and it really doesnt sound like the problem, because he makes a's in school and isnt hyper active. Ann suggestions ?
Thanks!
Thanks!
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pcantona
01-26-2005, 09:40 AM
Yeah I know exactly what it is. It is epilepsy!
My older sister has this, she did exactly the same thing when she was a kid and still does the same thing 20 years later if she doesn't take her med's.
You need to take your son to a doctor and have scans done on his brain and get him on medications for epilepsy. My sister does/did exactly the same thing, you can carry a conversation and she can just fade out with eyes all glassy and droopy and not respond to what you are saying and then 10-20 seconds later be back to normal and she is not aware of it herself, you can tell her, hey you faded out and she can be "I did not, what are you talking about??". The person itself is never aware of this. It is called "petit mal".
But when she got in her teenage years she also she got worse episodes than that(grand mal), when she gets the trembles too, screaming of pain, arms popping out of its sockets, stop breathing, biting on the tongue etc. It is extremely dangerous if it is untreated, so you need to go to a doctor ASAP.
In itself it is not lethal, but it can have serious consequences, your son can cross the street and "fade out" and get into an accident etc. There are 2 versions of epilepsy. Mental and from brain damage. From brain damage is the most common. It is usually from child birth, when if your baby does not start breathing right away after child birth or suffered from oxygen loss while in your womb, you get brain damage. My sister has no brain damage at all, she has emotional/mental epilepsy. It is from the brain neurons being over-sensitive. Best thing right now for you, is to NOT make him upset, make him sleep a minimum of 8 hours a day, make him go to bed early and keep him calm.
My older sister has this, she did exactly the same thing when she was a kid and still does the same thing 20 years later if she doesn't take her med's.
You need to take your son to a doctor and have scans done on his brain and get him on medications for epilepsy. My sister does/did exactly the same thing, you can carry a conversation and she can just fade out with eyes all glassy and droopy and not respond to what you are saying and then 10-20 seconds later be back to normal and she is not aware of it herself, you can tell her, hey you faded out and she can be "I did not, what are you talking about??". The person itself is never aware of this. It is called "petit mal".
But when she got in her teenage years she also she got worse episodes than that(grand mal), when she gets the trembles too, screaming of pain, arms popping out of its sockets, stop breathing, biting on the tongue etc. It is extremely dangerous if it is untreated, so you need to go to a doctor ASAP.
In itself it is not lethal, but it can have serious consequences, your son can cross the street and "fade out" and get into an accident etc. There are 2 versions of epilepsy. Mental and from brain damage. From brain damage is the most common. It is usually from child birth, when if your baby does not start breathing right away after child birth or suffered from oxygen loss while in your womb, you get brain damage. My sister has no brain damage at all, she has emotional/mental epilepsy. It is from the brain neurons being over-sensitive. Best thing right now for you, is to NOT make him upset, make him sleep a minimum of 8 hours a day, make him go to bed early and keep him calm.
Rani*
01-26-2005, 11:04 AM
Mayhem
I agree with Pcantona, that your son is experiencing an epileptic seizure.
I have a friend that epileptic, plus Ive had epileptic seizures from meds.
Suisures can be as simple as a blank stare for 10-30 seconds or as severe
as full grandma seizure. Definately get him to his doctor. Rani
I agree with Pcantona, that your son is experiencing an epileptic seizure.
I have a friend that epileptic, plus Ive had epileptic seizures from meds.
Suisures can be as simple as a blank stare for 10-30 seconds or as severe
as full grandma seizure. Definately get him to his doctor. Rani
Mayhem
01-26-2005, 11:27 AM
Come to think about my wife's sister has epilepsy! Thanks for the replys i will make an appointment imediately!
Mayhem
Mayhem
pcantona
01-26-2005, 11:49 AM
It is very good thing that you decided to the doctors with him. Things like this do go in the families and parents sometimes pass it on. My father has had seizures from traumatic experiences, never in an epilepsy way though.
I have it myself, but same way as my dad. I have passed out and stopped breathing for a couple of minutes a couple times in the past. So both me and my dad carry the "gene" for it. Basically what it is, is that the brain gets overloaded and shuts off. Neither me or my dad has it as severely that we need medications though and we never "zoom out". But I keep myself aware of it.
I have it myself, but same way as my dad. I have passed out and stopped breathing for a couple of minutes a couple times in the past. So both me and my dad carry the "gene" for it. Basically what it is, is that the brain gets overloaded and shuts off. Neither me or my dad has it as severely that we need medications though and we never "zoom out". But I keep myself aware of it.
Mayhem
01-26-2005, 10:41 PM
Well we have an appointment friday to see the doctor. Im scared as hell. He had 2 spells within 3 minutes today that i noticed, then had some more this evening. Ill keep ya informed.
pcantona
01-27-2005, 10:59 AM
I know it is natural to be scared, but don't be too scared. My older sister has lived without much complications at all for over 20 years. Once your son gets his medications, he will be back to completely normal, like everyone else. For her it got really bad in her puberty, when your brain grows and changes etc. But once she got the right medication, she hasn't had any complications at all. I think it is best to give you the whole truth about this so you will know what to expect in the future etc.
There are some side effects to this medications, but it is minimal and very easy to live with. Some complications is dry mouth, my sister got some problems with her teeth from this(easy to live with, just go to the dentist and drink alot of liquids). Also another thing is that she is a little passive from these medications. Hard to explain, but basically the medications are "calming" for the brain. So sometimes my older sister can seem a little emotionless, far from a zombie though. Like she got fired from her job and she was like "thats ok, I find another" she didn't get upset at all. Little things like that.
There are some side effects to this medications, but it is minimal and very easy to live with. Some complications is dry mouth, my sister got some problems with her teeth from this(easy to live with, just go to the dentist and drink alot of liquids). Also another thing is that she is a little passive from these medications. Hard to explain, but basically the medications are "calming" for the brain. So sometimes my older sister can seem a little emotionless, far from a zombie though. Like she got fired from her job and she was like "thats ok, I find another" she didn't get upset at all. Little things like that.
Mayhem
02-01-2005, 07:41 PM
Just thought i would keep you guys informed. He has an appointment on Feb 8th for the eeg ( if thats the correct term) and has an appointment with a neuroligist on the 10th. Hopefully it will go well.
pcantona
02-02-2005, 04:42 PM
Yeah they will do eeg and maybe ekg/catscan to check and see if he has a physical defect on his brain etc. My sister was even taken into hospital for observation for about 3 weeks. They needed to check her brain activity under a long period of time with electrodes to her head and her sleep patterns and mental health.
kerry1
02-02-2005, 09:18 PM
Don't be surprised if they don't find anything in his brain. Sometimes they don't - even if the person has Grand Mal seizures (and those are horrible). They should be able to decide on some kind of treatment, anyway, based on what they find or what they don't find.
In addition to medication, there may be precautions you can take if this happens to him when he's alone. A Medic-Alert pager or something similar, maybe. Or a medical bracelet?
In addition to medication, there may be precautions you can take if this happens to him when he's alone. A Medic-Alert pager or something similar, maybe. Or a medical bracelet?