Was it a one-off? - Epilepsy Message Board

takeaguess18 · 07-17-2004, 05:34 AM

Hi,

Last week my best friend had a seizure while we were out shopping at about 3pm. It was the first time it'd ever happened and an ambulance took her to hospital. All her tests were normal so they let her go and she came to stay with me and my mum that night since none of her housemates were around (she's 19) and she was still kind of confused and ill. Later that night at 9 or so she had another one. This time we waited for her to come round but when she did she refused to see a doctor, even a GP. I think she's scared but I'm really afraid it's going to happen when she's on her own or driving or something and something really bad is going to happen. She insists it was just her coming off the antidepressants she's been on and that since it hasn't happened again she must be fine.

Does this sound like it could be something more serious or am I overreacting? I mean the doctors let her go, but maybe two in one day changes things...

Thanks for any help you can give me,

Lau

gagcas · 07-18-2004, 06:11 AM

lau,

hi there. i would definatly try your hardest to get your friend to see a dr. did the hospital tell her to follow up with her primary care provider at all, or to come back in if it happened again. what tests did they do? maybe you could go with her and help her to tell that another one happened that day. i have never heard of coming off anti's causing siezures. all though it varies, they consider haveing 2 or more siezures a siezure disorder. she NEEDS to be looked at by a dr. if she is driving , she needs to understand the possibilities of what could happen if she did have another one while driving. she is putting herself and others at a great risk.

what exactly happened while she was siezing and how long did it last?. did she remember, or pass out after?things like that. maybe you could write that in your next post. someone may read it be able to give you a better understanding of what happend. it was probably good that you were there. if you are able to get her to see a dr, its probably a good thing that you go, because you will be able to give the dr. a first hand view of telling him exacly what hapened. this will steer them in the right direction as to how to handle it, and what tests if any that need to be done. maybe you could get her to come to this board and read what other people are going through and how it has affectewd thier life. it might persuade her to get to the dr. let us know what happened ok. good luck

takeaguess18 · 07-18-2004, 07:08 AM

What happened... we were sitting looking at photos we'd just had developed on some steps outside the Cathedral, and all of a sudden she just dropped them and put her hands to her head. When I asked what was wrong she just collapsed, I assumed she'd fainted (she's done it before) so I bent over her and then she started seizing, hit her head on the steps. She stopped, I'm not sure... 2 minutes or something later, but she was unconscious for quite a long time. When she came round she was pretty out of it, didn't know where she was or anything, but later the last thing she could remember was her head really hurting and dropping the photos.

I've been reading these boards a bit. A few years ago while we were still in school one of her teachers commented that she sometimes spaced out for periods of time. One time the whole class got up for assembly and left the room and she didn't even notice. They sent her for an EEG to check for "petit mal", I assumed it was an illness. It came back normal and they told her parents she was just daydreaming. After reading these boards... she does that. It doesn't last long, she just... switches off. And you call her name, tap her, and get no response, and then all of a sudden she'll just sort of jerk awake and be like "what?" and carry on like normal. It's almost a standing joke amongst her family and friends that she's the worst daydreamer ever. Only now I'm wondering....

Anyway thanks for the reply, I'll try some more to get her to see her doctor, or to come and read here a bit.

Lau

tkdmom96 · 07-18-2004, 03:17 PM

Hi and Welcome!

Sounds like E to me and the advice that Jennifer gave is right on. She needs to see a doctor asap. She should ask for a longer EEG, maybe a 24-36 hour one in the hospital and have another MRI done. The MRI doesn't always show something and the shorter EEGs can come back "normal" if there is no seizure activity during that time. It can lead to a false diagnosis, which is what it sounds like to me. (happened a few years ago to her)

Our daughter just had surgery to remove her seizure area of the brain. So far things are going well. She had seizures daily, monthly, hourly, you name it.

Does your friend notice a difference around the time of her menstrual cycle? That happens to many women here. It was a factor for our daughter, who will be 16 next week.

PLEASE EXPRESS TO YOUR FRIEND the importance of being mindful while driving. All it takes is one seizure, while behind the wheel, to change a few lives forever...she needs to think of her safety and that of other innocent people. Someone's new baby, grandma, grandpa, daughter, son, mom or dad...it's just like driving drunk, you never know when that very unlucky moment could occur.

Good luck and she is lucky to have you as a watchful friend, please have her come here and read some of the posts...

Vicki

jake's-mom · 07-25-2004, 01:09 AM

I have heard that coming off of many types of medications can lower your seizure threshold. That doesn't mean she doesn't have E. That just may have been a seizure trigger. My son had his first "witnessed" Seizure when he didn't take his Adderall over the weekend. He had been having the P-mal seizures for a few years and according to his Neuro, 50% of people who have the P-mal kind of E, start having the Grand-Mal seizures too. Either way, your friend needs to see a Dr. Maybe all she needs is a sleep deprived EEG. That's how they diagnosed my son. He also has had normal CT scans and MRIs. They don't show anything on this type of E.

Good Luck!!!