Epilepsy and night terrors? Please help me...

[loz85]

I have had night terrors my whole life, not often until recently. I'm waking up and seeing people in my room (and once a spider!). 2 nights ago it was a lady with a white dress with green flowers on it on the roof above my bed and I woke up trying to brush her dress out of the way, that's usually when my partner turns the light on and I realise I'm screaming but I can't stop. It is one of the scariest things I have ever experienced.
I don't remember until my partner will bring it up the next day and then I remember it clearly.

I guess I'm stressed but no more then usual. I have had auras that led to migraines then long periods of sleep and night terrors since I was a child.
When I was 20 I had 1 grandmal and 3 complex partial seizures in one night and have had none since though I still take medication for it (I'm 26 now).

What I want to know is if the two are connected? Am I having seizures in my sleep and night terrors after? Are the night terrors warning there is a seizure coming? Or is this just a tired/stressed/symptoms of meds thing?

I'm on a waiting list to see a specialist but I'm beginning to panic that I will have a seizure, oh lets add panic attacks (only in times of heavy stress) to the list.
Is anyone going through this too?

Thanks, Lauren

 

[AnnaM]

I can't help much ...My son has nocturnal seizures. He will be having a sleep study done Feb 25th to discern what is seizure and what is dream related...I don't have epilepsy, as far as I am aware! That said, I was up till a few years ago (I am 48 Oct this year) a vivid dreamer, had ....episodes?...not thinking seizure related. I have felt a presence in my room, ex: someone sit on my bed and the covers tighten, no one there....All the shades in the room go up at once and my bedroom door open half way, no one there...but my sister actually witnessed that one and ran out of the room...left me....so, who knows what that was! Anyways, my son, 4, is to young to be able to articulate to me his dreams/hallucinations/seizures..etc....My heart breaks for him because, as a vivid dreamer myself.....I had some pretty scary dreams!! I was 8-11yrs old at the time...He is so much younger ...Hang in there,..

 

[qtowngirl]

Welcome Loz!
Some of what you're describing could be Simple Partials. My first question would be have you been medically diagnosed with night terrors or was it possibly what a doctor once figured when you were young...? If yes to the latter then I'm very happy to hear you already have an appt. and have attached the following info to help see if it feels relatable (I have had SP's for years and mine are of the psychic type-instant fear for no reason, stressed or not but definately more when highly stressed, low sleep etc.). I too have a woman in mine every time but it's it my head, not one I actually see.
Under 'sensory' in this info is hallucinations and seeing things that aren't there, which sounds like what you're experiencing. And, unfortunately, simples can and do turn into complex partials and/or grand-mals. I was told I had PTSD at 16 only to find out many many years later it was actually epilepsy and simple partials the whole time.
In my opinion the two could absolutely be related but don't stress too bad, the fact that you already have an appt. with a specialist takes care of a lot rather than not knowing where you're at date-wise. Best of luck.


Simple Partial seizures are usually put into categories depending on the type of symptoms the person experiences:

MOTOR seizures:
These cause a change in muscle activity. For example, a person may have abnormal movements such as jerking of a finger or stiffening of part of the body. These movements may spread, either staying on one side of the body (opposite the affected area of the brain) or extending to both sides. Other examples are weakness, which can even affect speech, and coordinated actions such as laughter or hand movements.

SENSORY seizures:
These cause changes in any one of the senses. People with sensory seizures may smell or taste things that aren't there; hear clicking, ringing, or a person's voice when there is no actual sound; or feel a sensation of "pins and needles" or numbness. Seizures may even be painful for some patients. They may feel as if they are floating or spinning in space. They may have visual hallucinations, seeing things that aren't there (a spot of light, a scene with people). They also may experience illusions—distortions of true sensations. For instance, they may believe that a parked car is moving farther away, or that a person's voice is muffled when it's actually clear.

AUTONOMIC seizures:
These cause changes in the part of the nervous system that automatically controls bodily functions. These common seizures may include strange or unpleasant sensations in the stomach, chest, or head; changes in the heart rate or breathing; goose bumps.

PSYCHIC seizures:
These seizures change how people think, feel, or experience things. They may have problems with memory, garbled speech, an inability to find the right word, or trouble understanding spoken or written language. They may suddenly feel emotions like fear, depression, or happiness with no outside reason. Some may feel as though they are outside their body or may have feelings of déja vu ("I've been through this before") or jamais vu ("This is new to me"— even though the setting is really familiar).

 

[qtowngirl]

As Epileric said in another recent thread about night terrors, it could possibly be 'nocturnal' seizures. That didn't dawn on me until I seen his answer but for sure, definately worth looking into.

 

[Endless]

Hi, Lauren!

Welcome to the forum!

What you are experiencing could be a night terror, could be a hypnopompic hallucination, could be a seizure. This is where the specialist will come in. There's a diagnostic process they'll take you through to figure out what's going on. It'll probably include an MRI, and EEG, a sleep study, as well as taking a thorough history.

As far as worrying about having a seizure, the not knowing and waiting for the shoe to drop can be frustrating and scary. gtowngirl gave a great list of seizure types. Are you afraid of having a tonic-clonic (generalized seizure)? Or are you afraid of the current episodes you are having and are worried about having more of them?

I wouldn't worry about having a generalized seizure if you aren't having them already. Some people's seizures escallate to that but most don't. If yours do it'll solve the diagnosis dillema, though that's a heck of a way to do it.

I understand how scary it must all be, and I'm sorry. I am hoping your new doctor will get it all figured out soon after you get in to see him.

 

[MuayThaiFighter]

Im sorry you have to deal with these kind of seizures. They think my seizures are temporal based so I have had some really bizarre night episodes. Not seeing things, but waking up feeling terrified, pouring sweat and then having a convulsion. Very possible that this could be a possible seizure/pre seizure. I have been told several times that I wake up and am far more prone to having convulsions. I am not sure if this is 100 percent related but maybe it might help. God bless and I hope the doctors can figure out how to address this.