Hoping to find some answers

[Trina]

Hello everyone I am a 45 yr old female and about 4 years ago I was diagnosed with 'mood swings' and put on lithium and prozac which seems to have helped me alot. This year in 2011 I had a 'mini stroke'. Since then within the past month I have had two episodes where I will go kind of blank and stare into nothingness only to have the paramedics called at which time I would be shaking my hands and feels like my eyes are rapidly moving under the lids. Afterwards I become nautious. When this happens I get totally tingley in my hands and feet and the last time in my lips and they felt numb.
I'm due to have a EER done in Sept and have yet to get an appt with a neurologist but its in the works. Anyone have anything similar to this and does the sound like seizures? Each time from the hospital it was mini stroke...........then TIA (this did not resemble the mini) and the last time I was told I was having fainting spells. I have fainted before and its not like that. Would love to hear your thoughts.

[travel bug]

Hi Trina,

Glad you found us; hope we can help answer your questions.

From what I’ve gathered from my doctors and what I’ve read, a mini-stroke, also called trans ischemic attack (TIA) can resemble a seizure. Also, if you have had a mini-stroke, the resulting edema or swelling in your brain can, in turn, cause seizures until the swelling goes down.

Going blank and staring into space sound like an absence seizure, I don’t know about the tingling, that could also be part of the seizure. You say you are going to have an EER - do you mean EEG which is what is usually given to diagnose epilepsy or learn more about the source of seizure activity? Were you ever given a CT scan or MRI to confirm whether or not you had had a mini-stroke?

After my first seizure, doctors found a “lesion” which they said was either edema –swelling- from a mini-stroke, or a tumor. In my case, it turned out to be a tumor, but while they thought it could be swelling from a stroke, they expected seizure activity to go away with the swelling. So, if your episodes are seizures and started because of a mini-stroke, maybe you won’t have them for long.

I really hope you are able to see a neurologist soon so that you can be put on anti-seizure meds if needed. And also so you can find out if you would need to be on them long term or short term.

Take care and keep in touch!

[Nakamova]

Hi Trina, welcome to CWE!

I agree with travel bug, it's possible your symptoms are seizures, and that they are related to the TIA.

I would also ask your docs to take a closer look at the Prozac-Lithium combination, and your dosages. Both those meds are very powerful, and can occasionally have neurological side effects. When taken together, Prozac boosts the blood serum levels of the Lithium and magnifies its side effects. One side effect of Lithium is nystagmus -- which is when your eyes move rapidly back and forth or up and down. Other side effects can include nausea, twitching, hand tremors, and stupor (which is like having an absence seizure). You may very well be having a reaction to too much lithium in your system, and it's important that your doctors are aware of this possibility.

[Trina]

Yes I was referring to an EEG lol. I was given a Cat scan and nothing showed up then the MRI which did show the mini stroke. It just seems alot different from the mini stroke for sure. And its like I am mostly aware of what is going on but not there 100%. And afterwards I am sooooo tired and feel I could sleep forever. The only time I experience the rapid eye movement is during these episodes. I have been on the lithium and prozac for almost 5 years and I Feel so much better than I use to feel. I have had a headache off and on since before the mini stroke and after