How does stress affect your seizure activity?

[wants2know]

I've been reading so much lately on epilepsy since I'm newly diagnosed. I'm very curious about your thoughts on stress and it's impact on seizure activity. I ask because I know that I'm highly prone to stress. I also have a high stress job, I'm the family breadwinner, three kids, not a lot of supports etc... How much do I need to consider stress as a critical factor in this illness? My first seizure occurred during high stress, and my second occurred the week I went back to work full time. So I'm thinking it deserves some consideration.

 

[Tez_20]

Hi want2know,

I've had epilepsy a good many years and in my opinion stress is fatal where seizures are concerned.
For instance if my mom argued with me it wouldn't last as my temper raised and the next thing fitting, i'm a constant worrier which kicks of stress and I get more seizures plus I have OCD bad and if things aren't right then stress levels kick in again.

The link below covers issues on stress and epilepsy.

http://www.cornellepilepsy.com/epi_inf/str_epi.html?name1=Stress+and+Epilepsy&type1=2Active

 

[SlimBlue]

It's certainly my number one trigger, and I'd say judging by how many times it's talked about on here it affects a lot of people. Stress/sleeplessness/being 'run down' through illness seem to be the most common generic seizure triggers.

First time I had a seizure, I was cramming for my end of first term exams at uni.

I've always had a cycle of a long, pretty heavy tonic-clonic every 1-2 months, but I now also have groups of 3 partials over 3 days per week- sometimes more- which I don't get if I'm not stressed..

 

[Tez_20]

It's certainly my number one trigger, and I'd say judging by how many times it's talked about on here it affects a lot of people. Stress/sleeplessness/being 'run down' through illness seem to be the most common generic seizure triggers.

First time I had a seizure, I was cramming for my end of first term exams at uni.

I've always had a cycle of a long, pretty heavy tonic-clonic every 1-2 months, but I now also have groups of 3 partials over 3 days per week- sometimes more- which I don't get if I'm not stressed..

Hello SlimBlue

I totally agree with what you've stated :clap:

It's certainly my number one trigger, and I'd say judging by how many times it's talked about on here it affects a lot of people. Stress/sleeplessness/being 'run down' through illness seem to be the most common generic seizure triggers.

 

[arnie]

I am a little bit different, I guess. I have never really found any causes for my seizure activity. I have been in fairly high stress jobs and situations, and times of greater or lesser stress didn't have any effect at all on my seizure frequency, one way or the other.

 

[SlimBlue]

Well that's just the Sod's Law of E isn't it- completely shows how different our conditions can be to each other, even though they're all lumped under the same name

I don't seem to have a trigger for my t-cs - I just know around every 6 weeks I'll be having one. They don't seem to be caused by stress either, but the partials definitely do, and they've only really started happening with the troubles at work and my finances over the last few years..

 

[wants2know]

My husband and I were discussing the idea of seizures cycling to some degree. I said to him it seems like some people feel like they cycle or are triggered, and where I've only had two tcs, and maybe one atonic it's too soon to tell if that might be the case with me. I did have a series of headaches for about a month in between that were bad enough for me to see my pcp about. They have ceased since the last seizure. But I wonder if they were stress related. So how do you all cope with managing stress? We are discussing me cutting back hours of my business. It all feels so Damn complicated!

 

[Tez_20]

My husband and I were discussing the idea of seizures cycling to some degree. I said to him it seems like some people feel like they cycle or are triggered, and where I've only had two tcs, and maybe one atonic it's too soon to tell if that might be the case with me. I did have a series of headaches for about a month in between that were bad enough for me to see my pcp about. They have ceased since the last seizure. But I wonder if they were stress related. So how do you all cope with managing stress? We are discussing me cutting back hours of my business. It all feels so Damn complicated!

Well you've just stated what my mom used to say to me and specialists and now my hubby for the last 13yrs...besides my seizures and other issues I deal with that it's like a cycling process I go through.

This is for the ladies only lol

Take notice around when your monthly's are due....I had to have an operation to stop mine completely because of my anemia but two weeks previous you could always guarantee i'd spend more time going down into seizures than standing.

 

[valeriedl]

I think stress is my number one trigger, lack of sleep is probably number two.

Anytime something stressful is going on we can almost guarantee that there is a seizure on it's way.

On average I have around 7 seizures a month. When my grandma passed away, who I was very close to, I had twice that many in just a week. I pretty sure I even had one at her funeral. When I went to my neuro for my visit and he saw how many seizures I'd had that month he got very worried because I think I'd had over 20. I told him what happened he said that's something that can usually bring on seizures and wasn't worried about it any more.

If I am going through stress I try to calm down and not worry too much about what's going on. That's a whole lot easier said than done I know.

 

[SlimBlue]

I threw in the towel at my massively stressful IT job, and moved to the coast- where I can see the sea from my window, and the beach is a minute's walk away.

Although I love loads of different types of music, I spend a great deal of each day chilling out to psychedelic/ambient internet radio stations. It sounds trite, but I really think it's helping me, and my stress induced seizures have reduced massively for a while.

They're starting to come back again atm, but I'm currently going the long difficult process of applying for disability benefit- so I'm obviously worrying about finances and the future.

I'm hoping when it all gets sorted out, I'll be a beach bum with a lot less seizures..

 

[Tez_20]

I threw in the towel at my massively stressful IT job, and moved to the coast- where I can see the sea from my window, and the beach is a minute's walk away.

Although I love loads of different types of music, I spend a great deal of each day chilling out to psychedelic/ambient internet radio stations. It sounds trite, but I really think it's helping me, and my stress induced seizures have reduced massively for a while.

They're starting to come back again atm, but I'm currently going the long difficult process of applying for disability benefit- so I'm obviously worrying about finances and the future.

I'm hoping when it all gets sorted out, I'll be a beach bum with a lot less seizures..

I hope it all works out for you regarding your DLA as you should get it with seizures plus free prescriptions...if you don't already.

If your being a beach bum and it keeps you carmer all the better...there's only me and my hubby plus my staffy and I still get stressed through stupid things plus having a fuse of a temper doesn't help one bit but my neuro said with everything I have combined that's why i'm like I am. OH WELL LIFE GOES ON lol

 

[Nakamova]

I'm not sure that "stress" all by itself is a trigger for me. I've had seizures when I'm feeling happy and relaxed. I think it's more likely to be something physiological -- e.g., lack of sleep, low blood sugar -- so to the extent that stress might cause those, then it could be considered a trigger. But for the majority of my seizures I don't think I can identify any particular trigger, not even a physiological one.

 

[SlimBlue]

Aww Tez.

It can be so so hard to just stay calm, when life, our conditions, and the meds seem all stacked up to making us nervous wrecks

I had to completely change my life, move 100s of miles- and I still don't even know if it will help in the long run. I'm just trying to do what I can.

In the end, that's just what any of us can do. We do what we can, and soldier on..

 

[George__]

I think Sleep then stress

 

[Tez_20]

Aww Tez.

It can be so so hard to just stay calm, when life, our conditions, and the meds seem all stacked up to making us nervous wrecks

I had to completely change my life, move 100s of miles- and I still don't even know if it will help in the long run. I'm just trying to do what I can.

In the end, that's just what any of us can do. We do what we can, and soldier on..

Your right in what your saying about conditions stacked against we because I know I've gone further down ill since being diagnosed with Lupus etc as you know and it's alot for anyones brain to work with plus being the main CNS where main issues trigger from.

I really :adore: how you've moved to help your suffering and see if it helps and soldering on is right and theres people out there in worse states than myself that's how I look at life also :hugs:

 

[Tez_20]

I think Sleep then stress

Hi George,

Sorry to hear yours is sleep is it through to many seizures or through not being able to sleep :?: as epilepsy can cause insomnia also.

With me it's stress 150%...never sleep because once I take my pills and later valium i'm gone, unless a seizure occurs and wakes me and then i'm up

 

[Tez_20]

Hello wants2know,

How you been feeling today in yourself :?: :hugs:

 

[Zolt]

Stress and Anxiety and Lack of sleep are the 3 major ones for me.

When my bosses were coming to see the remote site i work at, when they came i had a seizures, right before they had got there. Doh!@#$ Then 2yrs later when the new boss came to look over the site, i had a seizure right in front of him. It started by me not being able to say what i wanted, my mouth seemed to be filled with glue it seemed like. Luckily it was a small one, where i sat down and rode it through.

iano: op:

 

[wants2know]

That scares the hell out of me! I'm a therapist and I'm terrified of having a seizure during a session with someone. I would never recover from that guilt especially if it was a child. My anxiety about this comes in waves. Ahhhhhhhhh!!!

 

[Tez_20]

Stress and Anxiety and Lack of sleep are the 3 major ones for me.

When my bosses were coming to see the remote site i work at, when they came i had a seizures, right before they had got there. Doh!@#$ Then 2yrs later when the new boss came to look over the site, i had a seizure right in front of him. It started by me not being able to say what i wanted, my mouth seemed to be filled with glue it seemed like. Luckily it was a small one, where i sat down and rode it through.

iano: op:

Oh bless ya mate,

Now that is total stress and anxiety attacks together and it seems like you had a fare bit of pressure on both occasions.
When my mind goes how you explained yours just....it's like you've gone dorment on the spot.

Sometimes I don't need to have a seizure I just struggle to get words out and the flustration builds up terrible with me.