![]() ![]() Sometimes epilepsy can be traced to genetics or a brain injury, but in many cases, there’s no known cause. “But when someone has two seizures with no known cause, then it may be diagnosed as epilepsy.” “There are many other things that can cause seizures, including alcohol, drugs, an infection, or electrolyte imbalances,” explains Pooja Patel, M.D., a neurologist at Marcus Neuroscience Institute, part of Baptist Health in Boca Raton, FL. Seizures are caused by asynchronous activity in the brain which results in physical manifestations including involuntary movements, “spacing out,” or full-body convulsions. have epilepsy, a chronic condition that is diagnosed after a person has had two or more unprovoked seizures. What is epilepsy?Ībout 3.4 million adults and children in the U.S. It took me years to find the answers, but I’m so glad I never gave up, because I would have missed out on the blessed life I have today. We talk about my health at the beginning of the year and have a plan of what to do if I have a seizure. I teach fourth grade, and my students are fantastic. ![]() I’m married to a great guy now and we have two active boys. I started a blog, Migraine Road to help others with migraine. For my migraine attacks, there are some triggers I can’t control, like hormones and the weather, but there are other factors that I can control, like making sure I get enough sleep and not skipping meals. I have only had one seizure in the last 16 years, on a day I missed my medicine. I was officially diagnosed with migraine, and I now take one antiseizure medicine and two pills plus a monthly injection of Aimovig and Botox to reduce migraine attacks. The neurologist at Barnes-Jewish encouraged me to meet with a headache specialist because I had been having terrible headaches since I was a teenager. We could make a plan and I could start living better. The peace of having a diagnosis was truly life-changing. The doctors confirmed that I had epilepsy. They tried to bring on a seizure by adjusting my meals, keeping me sleep-deprived, and even using flashing lights. Louis, where I stayed for a week under observation. My biggest fear was that I would have a seizure in front of my students, but thankfully that never happened.įinally, I went to Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. ![]() I was being sent from specialist to specialist, and I felt like no one was sharing notes. I was exhausted all the time and I felt like I was not who I wanted to be. I was still having seizures, and my doctors were trying to figure out what was causing them and what medicines would be right for me. I kept hearing, “Your test results are normal,” and I kept saying “But this is not normal!” I was terrified because I had no control of my body and no answers. They checked if I had a brain tumor or heart problems, diabetes, or hypoglycemia. I was referred to a neurologist and started getting tested for everything you could think of. I hadn’t felt sick before this seizure, so they knew it had to be something other than a virus, but they didn’t know what. Play icon The triangle icon that indicates to play ![]()
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