Nocturnal Seizures

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jcook1976

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Hello,
I am a 37 yr old male, who has nocturnal seizures. I have been having them every once in a while for 2 or 3 years. I am waiting to get in touch with a neurologist but it is taking a while.
I did some research and read that things like stress(I am stressed a lot), sleep deprivation (I don't always sleep that great), and alchohol can increase the chances of seizures. I was wanting to get an opinion from people with epilepsy, or experience with it.

When these first started I did have all sorts of tests done, stress test, CT scan, etc. My wife tends to think maybe it is sleep apnea related.

The last two have been 40 days apart about. they use to be further than that but I have also been a lot more stressed, and have had more beer than I should several times.

Any thoughts/opinions would be appreciated.
 
This could be a blood sugar issue: hypoglycemia. Alcohol can amplify insulin secretion, lowering blood sugar. You may be prone to this due to insulin resistance caused by a gut flora imbalance where toxins and free fatty acids of microbial origin wreak havoc. Please consider revamping your diet such as lowering carbs, sugar and alcohol. There are supplements which may help shift flora in the right direction such as OptiMSM (sulfur), bee propolis, probiotics, zinc picolinate and niacinamide.
 
Welcome! Lots of us have nocturnal seizures. I have complex partial with secondary generalized and all of my tonic clonics have been in my sleep. Regarding the complex partials, I would do all sorts of goofy things such as wander the house, rearrange the kitchen, hide things that my brain found valuable (once I found a lovely stash of chap stick, the remote, a camera, and some forks behind the couch) and walk around aimlessly. Sometimes my daughter would tell me I'd get angry or in a fight-or-flight state of behavior and punch the walls and flail about. She told me once I attempted to get dressed and leave, but she steered me back to bed. I woke up half dressed. I never had any memory of my wanderings and often woke up with bruises and cuts.
I'm now somewhat controlled on meds and only have simple partials so I don't believe I've wandered for awhile (I now live alone as my daughter just got her first apartment in Los Angeles). Once I found $400 that I stashed....that was pretty cool since I was broke at the time. :)
 
Keith said:
This could be a blood sugar issue: hypoglycemia. Alcohol can amplify insulin secretion, lowering blood sugar. You may be prone to this due to insulin resistance caused by a gut flora imbalance where toxins and free fatty acids of microbial origin wreak havoc. Please consider revamping your diet such as lowering carbs, sugar and alcohol. There are supplements which may help shift flora in the right direction such as OptiMSM (sulfur), bee propolis, probiotics, zinc picolinate and niacinamide.
Click to expand...

As much as hypoglycemia can trigger seizures it is not a cause of epilepsy & from what jcook1976 said there is no reason to assume blood sugar levels have anything to do with the seizures at hand.

Also welcome to the site jcook1976
 
Thanks for the welcome and the responses.
I did decide to cut down on the drinking, its usually on the weekends that I over do it. I have always gotten mixed answers on blood suga . Doing researchdoes nnot help anxiety when reading about sudep, etc. Trying not to think too much.
 
Hi, jcook and welcome to CWE
Are you aware of the seizures when they happen; ie. do they wake you up, or do you remain asleep? Any after-effects the next day?
What you might want to consider doing is having your wife video tape a couple of typical seizures so you can show this to the neurologist. Also, if once you see the neurologist there is any suspicion that they might be epileptic seizures, or if the neurologist doesn't seem to know, I would suggest requesting a referral to an epileptologist, a neurologist who specializes in epilepsy.
 
I guess I should have said thatiI also bite my tongue, and dont really remember anything about it after it happens.

Let me ask you this, is it normal to feel really tired, sore, and just overall miserable the day after the seizures.

I had two last night, feeling like that today.
 
jcook1976 said:
I did some research and read that things like stress(I am stressed a lot), sleep deprivation (I don't always sleep that great), and alchohol can increase the chances of seizures.
Click to expand...

All of these things can cause seizures for me. In general I don't drink but I know that alcohol is a big seizure trigger for people though.

jcook1976 said:
Let me ask you this, is it normal to feel really tired, sore, and just overall miserable the day after the seizures.
Click to expand...

The day after a seizure generally all I want to do is sleep, and that's what I usually end up doing. I just don't want to get off the couch and do anything.

I'm not sure if I have nocturnal seizures but a few months ago I sent 3 text messages in the middle of the night to someone. I keep my phone by my bed so I know that I didn't get out of bed to get it. I told my neuro and he said it was a good possibility that it was a seizure.
 
Usually mine happen an hour or so after going to sleep, then later on in the night. They do scare me because of not knowing what is going on and stuff. After a seizure my wife usually can't sleep because she is worried about me.

I just wish there was a more complete treatment for it. The first time I was referred to a neuro Dr. I messed up and missed the appointment because I thought it was a different day. Now I am trying to get back in. Do meds seem to help with the seizures? I've read that they cause a lot of different side effects, and at first I didn't want to be on them. Now I am reconsidering.
 
HelloJcook and welcome to cwe.
Your right sleep deprivation and stress do play a role and alcohol can also icause seizures.

Seizures can also come out of the blue for know apparent reason also.

You can also have problems with your heart that can cause seiuzres also.

The mad(modifiedatkins diet) diet can also increase seizures to I know this because it did it with me.
 
Thank you all for your helpful answers. I am glad I found this site. You are right, Epilepsy can come out of nowhere. That is what happened to me. Went to bed one night feeling fine, woke up and my wife was calling an ambulance for me, it was the first time I had one. My tongue was bit pretty bad, she said I was awake but had no idea what was going on.
Since then I have them every so often, mainly when I go through high stress times or just after high stress times. I am making it a goal to kick anxiety's butt and eliminate most coffee, and on the weekends cut the junk that I sometimes drink below half.
I am a little overweight too, so losing weight would be good anyway. Before I had convulsive seizures I use to get those deja vu things every so often so I wonder if I have had this for a long time and they just turned into these kinds of seizures.
I am doing my best not to let it get me down. Depression is strong after an episode, so I am also trying not to let it scare me or get me down. I just hate that my wife has to watch, but I guess I am also thankful she is there.
Thanks again for all the answers, I will check back later.
 
Keith said:
Since you seem to have noticed a correlation between drinking alcohol and seizure activity, this article about how alcohol causes hypoglycemia may be of interest:
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/93141.php

Here's the study the article is about:
http://press.endocrine.org/doi/full/10.1210/en.2007-0632

Alcohol is also a product of gut flora, meaning some people don't have to drink to be drunk, called auto-brewery syndrome.
Click to expand...

Okay, Keith, I read both articles you posted and they both stated that the correlation between alcohol and seizure activity causing hypogycemia is in diabetic patients. I do have both Epilepsy and Type 1 Diabetes and on occasion, like holidays, I may have alcohol and that hasn't caused a seizure or low blood sugar. Alcohol can lower the glucose level in a person if taken to the extreme. But once I did have a seizure (CP) because my glucose level was way below 40 and ended up in the hospital because of it. They pumped me full of glucagon IV. There wasn't any alcohol involved.

And like jcook has said, he gets those deja vu feelings, so it sounds like epilepsy to me. When my glucose drops and I am going hypoglycemic, I've never had any time for deju vu. It comes on suddenly. I feel more like I'm passing out, so I need some glucose NOW!
 
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Cint, thanks so much for reading. Please note the study doesn't mention seizure and is in context of type 2 diabetes, more a matter of insulin resistance where alcohol amplifies insulin secretion leading to hypoglycemia.

My understanding of type 1 diabetes is more about hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) due to lack of insulin production. But hypoglycemia can also take place in type 1 diabetes and that's something I'd like to understand better . . . I also don't understand why they would have given you insulin when you were hypoglycemic.
 
Keith said:
My understanding of type 1 diabetes is more about hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) due to lack of insulin production. But hypoglycemia can also take place in type 1 diabetes and that's something I'd like to understand better . . . I also don't understand why they would have given you insulin when you were hypoglycemic.
Click to expand...

When I was first diagnosed, yes, I was hyperglycemic. My glucose level was way over 400. I had very blurred vision and it was my optometrist who made the diagnosis and sent me to the endocrinologist. But hypoglycemia definitely happens, too. I gave myself an extra insulin injection and then forgot to eat lunch. I had so much to do that day. I know, sounds stupid.:paperbag:

I'm sorry, I didn't mean they gave me insulin, but an IV with glucagon until my glucose was within a good range.
 
Its been since July 28th or 29th since I posted here, and that was the last time I have had a seizure up until last night. Normally they are 2-4 weeks apart but after the last one I cut back majorly on caffeine, beer, and have been in general more active. There is a lot going on in my life right now that I am anxious and possibly depressed about so I don't do actual exercises, etc.
I was curious if anyone else here has these seizures in sleep every few weeks, to a month apart, almost like clock work? It was almost 2 months for me this last time, do you think my changes in diet could have something to do with that?
Thanks
 
Not like clock work, but I have had them.
Usually when I am stressed out about something, or I push myself.

No alcohol or caffeine, nor cigarettes or junk food.
 
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