Staving off seizures.

[Punctilious]

Do you believe there is a way to prevent seizures after experiencing an aura?

Why do I ask? I just had a baby in September and during the pregnancy they lowered my dose of Lamictal. I was only on 100mg a day. Fortunately it was low enough to spare my son of any birth defects and keep me from having seizures at the same time. After he was born, I decided to try and stay on the low dose instead of immediately going back up. At that point I had not had a seizure in almost a year (in November of 2010; it's also worth mentioning that it had also been a year before the seizure in November so I basically had one in a two year period) and wanted to reach a point where I could take less medication.

Everything was going fine. I was able to breastfeed (another reason to stay on a low dose) and did not experience any symptoms for the first few months.

Unfortunately that changed today. I started feeling the way I feel about 30 minutes to an hour before having a grand mal seizure this morning. I had yet to take my medicine so I did that but chewed it up instead to make it hit faster (it's a 24 hour pill--I know it's probably not advisable to chew it up but I didn't have any regular Lamictal and needed it to get in my bloodstream quickly). I then told my husband and went into our bedroom and laid down.

I experienced the feeling of staring into space and hearing things in the background but not being able to easily respond to them, my vision slowing any time I turned my head (as if it took my eyes time to catch up with my head), various limbs and even my stomach began jerking here and there, etc. I know this is usually a sign of smaller partial seizures that turn into grand mals (at least for me) so I thought I was screwed...

Fortunately I didn't end up having one. I got into bed and laid there trying to relax and slow my heart rate. I also tried to not stare at any screens (although I do not have any issues with strobes or TVs or anything like that I try to not look at them if I am experiencing any signs of a seizure) and closed my eyes to try and take a nap.

I woke up a few hours later (my husband let me sleep... yay) and had not had a seizure. I wasn't sore, I hadn't bitten my tongue (something I do almost every time), my face wasn't scratched up from my nails, etc. It was obvious I hadn't had one. I think the medication + relaxation and sleep are the entire reason I didn't have a seizure today.

Sorry that got long. It was very scary, especially now that I have a baby. What if I was home alone? Would I just put him in his crib and let him cry it out as I retreat to my room to protect him (which would KILL me...)? Do I call my husband at work and make him come home? A friend?

I obviously need to increase the Lamictal now that my body has gotten out of pregnancy-mode so I'll schedule an appointment with my neurologist tomorrow. In the mean time... PHEW.

[epileric]

My personal opinion would be to put your child somewhere safe like in their crib. I only have partial seizures & used to think that I remembered everything that happened during them but realized that certain pieces of time are sometimes cut out and because I don't know what I do during those times I think it's safest to put them somewhere safe.

As far as staving off seizures I do one of a few things. If it's the very beginning I start to count backwards by 2's starting at 99. I never get far but just the mental action of trying to do that helps (learned that from a neurologist).

If the seizure has progressed I've trained myself to try & breath deeply & slowly since it is common to hyperventilate during a seizure. Sometimes my seizure won't let me but if I catch my breath on the inhale then I can hold it for while (can't tell how long during a seizure) and that tends to stop the seizures momentum.

It was hard for me to get in the habit of doing these things. At first I'd remember just as the seizure ended but after a while I got myself in the habit that I usually do one of those things.

[Nakamova]

You might ask your doc about getting a prescription for Ativan (Lorazepam). I have a prescription for it just in case I am traveling and have seizure while nowhere near a doctor or hospital.

You can take an Ativan pill if you are having a seizure, or feel that you are about to have one, and it should help. It won't knock you out (at least hasn't done that to me), but it will last for about 10 to 12 hours.

[Cint]

It was very scary, especially now that I have a baby. What if I was home alone? Would I just put him in his crib and let him cry it out as I retreat to my room to protect him (which would KILL me...)? Do I call my husband at work and make him come home? A friend?

I have suffered seizures since before my two now grown children were born. Plus, my husband back then (we're now separated) was a pilot, so he was often out of the country. There was no way he could come home if I experienced a bad seizure. We also lived far away from family, so I couldn't just pick up the phone and ask my mom to come and help either. So I had to ask friends and neighbors to help if/when I went into a tonic clonic seizure. I had to tell them when to call/not call 911 and what to do while witnessing a bad seizure. When my kids were infants, I would put them in their cribs if I felt a seizure (aura), call a neighbor and go sit on the floor.

As my children grew, I told them what to do/not not to do if/when they witnessed a seizure. Unfortunately, they did witness quite a few tonic clonic seizures as they were growing up, and several times had to call 911.

Since you will be seeing your neurologist soon, sounds like you will need to increase the dosage of your med(s). And like Nakamova suggested, ask for the Ativan.

[Belinda1961]

I've shaken off seizures before after having an aura.

I'd literally start shaking my head and thinking about something else.

This has worked with me before on quite a few ocassions.

Belinda