still having success with Tegretol XR until I had two blackouts back-to-back about a week ago. The second one occurred while I was shaving my face, and required a visit to the emergency room and seven stitches! I bring up here the subject of 'doctorspeak' because I have read how convulsions can originate from a whole host of things- from glucose-related conditions (such as diabetes), one source claimed that drinking too much water can lead to a condition of convulsing! If the doctor is only treating with the aim of CONTROLLING the convulsions, i.e., to prevent them from occurring via anti-seizure meds, INSTEAD of doing a true procedure of RULING OUT any possible CAUSE, then is it medical CARE that I am recieving, or 'band-aid' therapy? Does one go through eight years seizure-free without the aid of medicine and one fine day it just simply 'comes back', or are there outside influences (diet, etc.) at play here, and not being considered? I'm sorry, an emergency room style blood test CAN NOT rule out ALL other possibilities! A doctor, in my view, is giving professional care when they use DEDUCTIVE examination (well, we know for sure it's not this, because we tested for this, we now now it's not that, we've tested for that', etc), not a doctor using INDUCTIVE logic ('well, I think it's THAT! See, I blindfolded myself and threw a dart at the board, it hit that one! Now shut up and take your medicine, after all, you're not having seizures now, right?) In the mean time, the meds place new problems (lethargy, constipation, etc.), and we never truly know if the notion of 'cure' ever exists. Don't let your doctor just look at his role as to only 'stop the seizures'!

update: I recently discovered that I cannot reply to messages on this board. I can only assume that someone found one of my posts to go counter to the commercial interests of the board's sponsors. please give me back my right to dissent, and 'unspank' me, administrator!

[This message has been edited by guineapig (edited 09-30-2003).]