So what started your seizures ?...

[Bemused Oddity]

I was all the way up to 3000 mg Keppra
daily, and I've seen people's sig lines who
are on Keppra at that level, and that would
be 1500 x 2 daily, which was what I was
taking.

Should I expect any weird side effects?

[Bemused Oddity]

I had lots of ear infections as a kid. I didn't start having seizures until I was 5. I wonder if the ear infections had anything to do with it.

I did too! I had them so bad, that I had to be taken to the hospital.....

[angel]

In other forums regarding neuro issues, there is a lot of evidence pointing to the fact that many with a variety of disorders have intestinal problems. Antibiotics tend to run with this theory, as the "gut" has an unhealthy balance of bacteria. Add to this the overload of viruses, the body is unable to flush them out, they lay dormant, and voila you have a petri dish of problems. Many are being healed and recovered from disorders by cleaning up the gut, eliminating all viruses, and giving rich nutritional choices.

Robin how or what can we use to clean up the gut? Ive noticed the more antibiotics they've had me on the weaker i am and have noticed that i cant drink milk nor can i eat cheese now eat eggs flower tortillas bread making me sick foods that really didnt use to bother me are now making me sick starting to not digest stuff like that...

I right now just want to stay in bed all day..... my cervical dystonia is starting to bug me again and my immune system is getting bad.... the more they put me on the sicker im getting...... my doctors had me go to disability office and they are in the prosses of putting me on ssi and disability was in the office for two hours... until i can get my kidney fixed i guess im sol when it comes to taking the antibiotics...

[RobinN]

Angel - Number one I am told is to clean up your diet. Here are a few sites that you might read about.

http://pecanbread.com/new/success1.html
http://www.childrenscornerschool.com/diet.htm

Then there are some vitamins that are helpful, as well as probiotics. I would suggest from your background that you talk with someone that is knowledgeable in this area. Most GP's won't be. Watch some of the short videos at the bottom of this page for an idea of how nutrition plays such a huge role in illnesses.

http://www.childrenscornerschool.com...eries_new.html

I hope this helps you begin a journey of heath.

[angel]

thank you

love angel

[RobinN]

Your welcome Angel..

JFYI - it takes two weeks to get casein out of your system and 8 months to get gluten.
Parents are seeing incredible progress in their children (speech and language, motor ability, eye contact, cognitive funcitoning ) with just beginning the nutritional changes.

Probiotics are an OTC supplement that should be suggested each and every time you use an antibiotic. The antibiotic is not only killing the bad bugs, but the good ones too.

[angel]

Probiotics i just started taking them again today... stopped for like a week.... was kinda getting sick of taking pills..... as for diet im applying for food Assistance Programs .... lately we've had to eat whatever.....

i think i might just stick to organic veggies for a while....as they are not that expensive here... until we can get some help....

thanks again for the advice and links
love angel

[jkj1995]

I asked my grandparents (they raised me )when my seizures started and they said when I was about 2, my Mama was brushing my hair for church and I had a Grand Mal seizure and then they took me to the ER and I had another one at the hospital. They put me on Dilantin and took me to Emory for tests. When I was about 6 I remember having a bad one at my moms house and falling down the back porch steps, 2 stories high, and getting a concussion. I outgrew them, or so I thought, when I was about 10.

[RobinN]

Were vitamin and mineral levels checked back then?
We have another member that started having seizures at the same age, and it was due to a lack of Vit B6. Surely not saying that your case is similar, only there are many reasons for seizures, and covering up the cause worked for a while but I guess now you are seeing them back again?

[Yves]

I take 2*1000mg/day ...

[brain]

I was all the way up to 3000 mg Keppra
daily, and I've seen people's sig lines who
are on Keppra at that level, and that would
be 1500 x 2 daily, which was what I was
taking.

Should I expect any weird side effects?

Hope this link below helps:
(PS: It is also recommended that you
are to take B vitamins and multi-vitamins
when you're on Keppra. You need to discuss
this with your neurologist / epileptologist)

Partial Side Effects of Keppra

Possible side effects of Keppra :

All medicines may cause side effects, but many people have no, or minor, side effects. Check with your doctor if any of these most COMMON side effects persist or become bothersome:

Dizziness; drowsiness; loss of appetite; runny nose; tiredness; vomiting; weakness.

Seek medical attention right away if any of these SEVERE side effects occur:

Severe allergic reactions (rash; hives; itching; difficulty breathing; tightness in the chest; swelling of the mouth, face, lips, or tongue); behavioral changes (eg, aggression; agitation; anger; apathy; irritability); changes in vision; decreased coordination; depression; fever, chills, or sore throat; hallucinations; memory loss; mental or mood changes; new or worsening seizures; suicidal thoughts or attempts; unusual bruising or bleeding; yellowing of the skin or eyes.

This is not a complete list of all side effects that may occur. If you have questions or need medical advice about side effects, contact your doctor or health care provider. You may report side effects to the FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 ( 1-800-332-1088 ) or at http://www.fda.gov/medwatch.

[Bee91]

Head injury when I was 16 years old.....

Can I ask you a question? What type of head injury caused your Epilepsy?

Mine was two concussions in a row...Most docs say that isnt what caused it..others say that is what cause it...hmm..whatever...?

[Nancy]

Sometime ?? in 1989 (maybe even 1988 - maybe early 1990?? I was in my mid-40s) I started being awakened by strange "visions" from my childhood. I was wide awake, felt like 1/2 of my brain was still sound asleep and I could not move or make a sound. That went on and on. I'd have up to 3 of those a night and then none for maybe a month then they would start again.
Finally they started happening during the day too ... while I was wide awake... even driving. I could keep right on driving, stop at a stop sign, signal for a turn into a parking lot and wait until both sides of my brain were working.
I DID go to a doctor and try to ask what was happening. lol lol lol. I was politely thrown out of his office and told to "get more rest".
Nov. 1, 1990 I got into bed beside my sleeping husband (the last night I've been allowed in his bed) and had a massive, apparently too long tonic clnic.
Whew

[jkj1995]

Robin...about the vitamin and mineral levels being checked way back then, I'm not sure. I've been trying for about 8 months to get my medical records from my childhood peditrician office (he's still practicing) and they are having a hard time finding them. I've asked my grandparents and they said I was checked for "everything under the sun"

[RobinN]

jkj - here is the thread where he discusses it. I had never read about this before so I followed it. Is this not something that can be tested for now?

New Kid on the block!

You were checked for "everything" that was known to be tested at the time.
However, even my daughter in this day and age of high tech, I hear often of other tests that could have been checked for. Such as a medical article said that it would be prudent to test those having seizures for celiac disease. So back then if they didn't know that a certain mineral dificiency would be a cause of seizures then they most likely wouldn't have known to test for it.

Sorry... I didn't go back to check to see what "back then" means.

[Grneydgurl]

I had a febrile seizure when I was 11 months old from Scarlett Fever (like 106). Nothing for 16/17 years. When I was 17 I was working in the Layaway department of Kmart, I went and got a lady her bag, I climbed up two bars, grabbed her bag, got down handed it to her, screamed and dropped. Because of the history, I was diagnosed as a grand mal epileptic.

[Andrew]

The cause of my epilepsy is either a faulty Metabolism or genetic mutation. I use only B vitamins to control my seizures. I do not take any anti-epileptic drugs. anti-epileptic drugs have never had any positive effects on controlling my seizure. I have been 17 years free of all my major seizures and I have not needed to see a neurologist for over 12 years.

[Megan]

One simple sentence.

Birth defect, was born with it.

Hello,

My name is Megan and I am 20 years old. I was diagnosed with Epilepsy when I was 7 years old only because from the time I was born up to that point, no doctor could figure out what was wrong with me.

I was bron at 26 weeks (7 months) and this is the reason why I have Epilepsy. My brain never had time to really fully finish developing.

[RobinN]

Hi Megan - Welcome
I think it is safe to say that your brain is still developing even at your age.
Have you ever considered neurofeedback, to strengthen the areas that are weak?

[wonderdogs]

I guess the cause of my epilepsy is unknown at this time. Nor am I positive how long it's been present. Is this common to have so few answers about the origin and onset of your epilepsy.

I did sustain a closed head injury in an auto accident in September 2006 but it was minor, there were no abnormailies in my CT scan. My symptoms became noticable in May 2007 and I was only diagnosed this week.

I have yet to collect a personal injury settlement for that accident. If there is even a remote possibility that it caused my epilepsy, perhaps I need to add another zero to the ammount I am negotiating.

Does anyone have any insight on this?