Newbie here: med question

[LisaBee]

Hi! Just a med question for anyone that can give me some direction or input. My 11 yr old daughter had a Grand Mal seizure in her sleep on June 9th. Tests ran, all ok, sent home. One week later on June 16th she had another one, also in her sleep. On the 20th they started her on Keppra (generic) 750mg am and 750mg pm. Since then, not much change in seizure frequency but has made the episodes milder (not full blown T-C). Last week they bumped her up to 1000mg both am and pm. My question is...1.Should it take almost a month for the meds to work? 2. Is there still hope for total seizure control on this med, maybe Im too impatient? 3. Should I ask for a different med? I guess I was just praying she would be seizure free by now. It will be a month on meds Friday. Thanks for listening!!

[rich956]

Greetings and Welcome to CWE
I take 3000mg of Keppra a day. This
is the drug of choice for alot Drs. It shouldnt
take very for it to start working.But i would watch
out for changes in mood ie deppression ,strang rashes.
talk with the Dr. start a journal to write down any info
regarding her episodes.theres a lot of helpful people here .
And hope things workout.

[LisaBee]

Hi Rich956! Thanks for your reply! Did Keppra work right away for you?

[MuayThaiFighter]

Rich956 is right. It shouldn't take to long for the meds to work. I am sorry your daughter is not seizure free yet. I also don't think your impatient, it must be a heartbreaking things for you to not see her 100 percent yet. I wouldn't give up hope on the Keppra yet. Sometimes Keppra is really good with another anti epileptic from what I was told by my neurologist. I hate the thought of more medicine but sometimes it is for the best.

[rich956]

well for me it was alot relief from the dilantin i was taking. a week or two.

[Fedup]

Hi LisaBee

Both MuayThaiFighter and rich956 make good points, Rich956 finds the Keppra good, I had to come of it because of the side effects and yes it can take a while for med's to build up in the system but a lot depends on the person, there are a lot of other drugs out there and finding one that suits is not as easy as you think, but you do need to keep a journal/diary and write down everything by the day, mood swings,seizures, appetite, everything and you should read up about epilepsy as well this will help you.Good luck with everything and its not easy and try not to stress yourself to much (this will not do you any good or those around you, its not easy but try) things will work out.

[KimHen5]

Hi Lisa! My 11 yr old has also been bumped up to 100MG twice daily. Her t-c have all but subsided and her morning twitches are slowly decreasing. It's been just over a week. Her neurologist is confident Keppra is the right drug & that we just need to find the exact dosage. I think we're close. The fact that your daughters seizures are milder is a step in the right direction, but I'd definitely let your neurologist know how well the 1000 MG is working in another week. Hang in there kiddo!!

[Nakamova]

Hi LisaBee, welcome to CWE!

Everyone responds to drugs differently. Generally speaking, as long as there aren't intolerable side effects, it's good to wait about a month after someone has been at a stable dose of med to see how well it's working. With Keppra you can get up to a "working dose" very quickly, but it still can take awhile for the brain and body to fully adjust.

That said, if she doesn't seem to be responding, it's okay to push for another drug now.Not every drug works for every person, and there can be a lot of trial-and-error in the process of finding the right one. Other drugs (such as Lamictal) can take longer to ramp up on, so it takes a bit of patience.

In the meantime, you might want to keep a record of your daughter's seizures (if you aren't already), along with information about other factors that may be playing a role in triggering them -- things like how she's sleeping, what she's eating and when, and any other physical, physiological, and emotional stresses that may be affecting her. Sometimes folks are able to isolate a trigger that way (say, a gluten allergy, or low blood sugar or flashing lights), and then can work to avoid it.

I hope you and your daughter find some answers soon, and that she will be seizure-free soon.

Best,
Nakamova

[Cint]

I agree with Nakamova as it can take a while for the brain and body to adjust. And everyone responds differently to drugs. This is the 10th or so drug I've been on to get my seizures under control. I've been taking 3000 mgs. of Keppra now for 12 years and still have an occasional complex partial seizure. At least the tonic clonic's are controlled now.

If you feel this is working for your daughter, then there are other meds. So yes, it does take a while for one's body to adjust to medication and sometimes one med may not work. Hang in there and be patient!