can we drive with a seizure disorder if the medication works ??? - Epilepsy Message Board

vickie45 · 04-24-2008, 10:14 AM

hi everyone im confused see i have a seizure disorder and i just found out it was seizures in dec 07 i was started on depakote 1000mgs 2 times per day of 500 am 500 pm of the ex well my sister is making me upset she said which she dont know nothing about seizures said im NOT aloud to drive with a seizure disorder my dr said yesterday once i get them under control i can drive and i did before for allmost 5 mos before the seizures came back im now on 1500 mgs of the depakote xr 3 times per day why would people say this to hurt you if they know nothing about seizures ?? she had me crying she dont know and i never ask to get this disoder if i have it does this mean i was born with it???.my dr told me if the meds work i can drive .onething that triggers my seizures is people telling me i cant do this or that and also going out into public triggers them too what am i going to do if i cant drive my husband gets mad if i have to see a dr and i have noone else to take me he makes me feel as though im a burden and also my sister said if i decide to leave and divorce him he'd get my kids well our kids because of my disorder but hes a alcaholic now im all upset i never nask for this to happen to me.
vickie

Travis from MN · 04-24-2008, 11:12 AM

If seizures have not happened for 3-12 months (depends on the state) and your Neurologist agrees with you being able to drive, the state will issue a license. You MAY have to go through a review every 6 or 12 months to verify you are still seizure free, but it's worth it!

My outdated material has your state saying no SET time period and NO physician mandated reporting.

That means the Dr's are not required to report if you have a seizure (some states they are). And the other part "set time period" means some states have a mandatory minimum of months you have to go without driving, and your license is marked as suspended. According to this publication (like I said, 7 years old) it didn't exist at the time of publication in your state.

Best advice is to do a web search on driving regulations and or check your state DOT's site (Dept. of Transportation) for CURRENT laws.

--Travis

and yes, I drove legally before.

porterville · 04-25-2008, 03:53 AM

Hi Friend

I have been an epileptic for 59 years. When I was 16 years
old, I could drive. I thought about it and decided on my
own not to drive. I did not want to kill myself or someone
else in a car accident. That was strictly a personal decision.
I cannot make that decision for you.

As far as divorce goes, I had a divorce about 30 years ago.
In spite of my epilepsy and my husband being healthy I
got the children. The difference was, I could be at home
with my children full time. He worked so he could not.

If you do not work, but spend 24 hour with your childrenl,
you might be able to keep your children. He is an
alcholic and is not capable of caring for the children. What
would he do with the medicaid money for the children?
Would he spend it on alchol or the children?

Your Friend and do not worry about what other family
members say. Concentrate on your children. You do not
want them in the middle of this. I kept my children out
of the middle and they had both their father and mother
to look up to. Do not tell the children he is bad. Tell them
the good things about their father. That goes for the
family members as well. Have a heart-to-heart with them
about the welfare of the children and how they need
all of the family members.

Ruth

vickie45 · 04-25-2008, 06:40 AM

hi both of you and thanks for your replys ,i did call my dr and he told me that i CAN DRIVE once the medication starts working again see in dec i started on depakote 1000mgs took for 5 mos i done GREAT i was driving walking going to the stores all by myself .and my husband at times hes good but he gets stressed out because right now i see my neuro dr every month untill he gets my medication to the right dose im now on 1500 mgs i take 3 per day of 500 mgs .i dont know why it all came back after all these yrs when i was 2 yrs old i bite into a electrical cord and it threw me across the room i hit the wall and yes i was out cold they stopped when i was allmost 12 i would be out playing or just standing around and just fall to the floor .bt as i got into my teens they went away im now 45 they came back when i was 43why i do not know ,and my husband didnt tell me he'd get the kids my sister did and like you said she dont know number one they are 12 and 16 but when he drinks he sometimes gets mean he dont hit me or nothing but he does verbal abuse and tells me i CAN stop my seizures if i wanted too ,its not my fault right now that i cant drive and he knows it i dont drive for awhile after i have a seizure till i see that the medication starts working,and as for my children i would never put them ,myself or anyone else in danger by me driving but when i first started the depakote i was feeling so wonderfull and proud anddriving was fine my dr even said it was fine never felt funny at all till 5 mos later then they came back ,and as for the kids and there dad they see it ,i never say nothing about him to them but i did hav to call the police once or twice because his yelling was causeing me to become very upset and made me have seizures well the police got there and he tried to tell the police i needed help because of the seizures and i told them it was his fault because he was being mean and the police saw me have a seizure and y husband stood there and said oh theres nothing wrong with her the police said yes we see something is wrong andtold him that his yelling could cause my seizures so they made him go to bed he allmost got n trouble because he took the phone from me and ouldnt let me call and they told him tht he cant do that said he could go to jail for it well hes on thin ice with me either the drinking stops or i leave my family has witnessed him being this way so i have proof to get my kids and i have tried everything possible to get him to go to marriage couselin with me but he wont he says there is nothing wrong with him .and he has healthprobs too but refuses to admit ithe went to the dr hes got very high blood pressure and they said he had sugar but never went back to the dr cause he dont want to admit it and he wants to stop drinking i think but is scared of the w/d's dont get me wrong i love him with all m heart but his drinking is making it hard on me and the kids now he does go to work everyday he worries about me he makes sure i have my medications and i get to the dr but he just yells about it sometimes and makes e feel like im a burden and as for my sister im ignoring her i told my dr what he said bout driving and he said does your sister have a medical lic beside hername i said no he said then dont listen to her.
sorry so long but im just so frustrated i want my life back like i had before but i do believe im having seizures because of what happened to me back when i was 2 yrs old my neuro thinks so too and all my tests all came back normal but the depakote works see my levels he said is suppose t be like 85-100 mines 50.9 he said mines at the very low end so thats why the seizures came back.
vickie and thanks.

dogmom · 04-25-2008, 10:49 AM

Vickie, all I can say is...hang in there?

You're on Depakote and you're doing everything you're supposed to...it sounds like your levels are quite low. Perhaps your doc will adjust the med.

Treating partial seizures is trial and error, and it can take some time to find the right medication, or even a combination of meds, to treat the seizures.

I'm on my fifth medication combo. in 2 1/2 years.

Quote:

Originally Posted by vickie45

i want my life back like i had before but i do believe im having seizures because of what happened to me back when i was 2 yrs old my neuro thinks so too and all my tests all came back normal but the depakote works see my levels he said is suppose t be like 85-100 mines 50.9 he said mines at the very low end so thats why the seizures came back.
vickie and thanks.

I think I can safely say that we all empathize with you. I'd like my life back, too. But once we're diagnosed with E., we need to find a new life, I guess. Things will never be the same, not everythone understands what we go through with this disorder and drugs we take to control the seizures.

Screw 'em, I say.

And move on.

I'm sorry about your husband and his inability to deal with your medical issues when he has his own, but you need to take care of yourself and children as best as you can.