New here. Epilepsy reared its ugly head again...

[barbararamp]

Hello,

I had my first seizure at age 12 in front of a flickering tv. Then again at age 17 after not taking my Dilantin faithfully. I got weaned off Dilantin at at 26. Thursday, at age 46, I had yet another grand mal at Disneyland. I am a post gastric bypass patient who recently has had some issues with diarrhea in the last few weeks. From what I have read that could have contributed to this most recent seizure. I got a terrible concussion from the fall and have been in bed for a couple of days.
I do not want to have to be put on meds again, but of course will take that into consideration, depending on what the doctors say tomorrow. I have no insurance so this is even more worrisome.

[horsehead]

I'm so sorry that happened. There are some very informative kind people here. I know I've seen some threads on help if you dont have insurance someone should point you in the right direction.

[epileric]

Sorry to hear about you having a seizure after being seizure-free for so long. I've been on Dilantin myself & you are so lucky to no longer be on it.

As far as diarrhea being related to your seizure is concerned, I know it can dehydrate you (diarrhea, not the seizure lol). Have you been re-hydrating or is it possible that it was the dehydration that triggered the seizure?

[barbararamp]

It very well may be the dehydration question that could have triggered the seizure. I am trying to rehydrate today as much as possible. I will have my doctor take some blood tests to see what could have been the cause.

I am glad to find this site. It certainly did not exist in my 20s! I feel woefully under educated about seizures and epilepsy at this late age. I just forgot I ever experienced this before.

Thanks for the kind welcome.

[epileric]

I am glad to find this site. It certainly did not exist in my 20s!

Oh trust me...... there's a lot of us that could have used this site in our 20's (me included). You might want to check out the library-it's an excellent reference tool. Also check out what alternatives to pills might help with seizures http://www.coping-with-epilepsy.com/...ive-treatments

P.S.-You're welcome for the kind welcome

[Meetz1064]

and how do you do?

It's nice to meet you!

Sorry to hear about your difficulty there, Barbara. E is just not a fun thing. I can't stand it myself.

Be careful not to re-hydrate yourself too quickly. That can cause problems as well.

Feel free to check out all of the nooks and crannies here at CWE. I'm sure that you will find that is all sorts of good information to be had here. The Kitchen and the Library are full of it, and the Padded Room is great for venting when you need to.

Because you haven't had a seizure in so long, you may not have to go back on meds--but given your past history, be prepared to do so. Do keep an eye on your nutrition though, it can be the cause of seizures (I'm one example of that, and there are many like me here in this forum).

You've found a wonderful place here.....Mr B has built us an AWESOME home here.

Welcome to CWE!

Meetz

[Nakamova]

Hey Barbara, welcome!

Make sure you're getting a good balance vitamins/nutrients while rehydrating. It's a good chance that your balky stomach played a role in the new seizure. Go easy on yourself as you recover. I hope you get good news from your docs.

Best,
Nakamova