Swimming triggering seizures???

[eemcn529]

I am interested to see if any one has found swimming to be a trigger for seizures. My daughter has had 4 seizures (partial onset)that we know of. They all happen within 5 to 15 minutes of her waking in the morning and they are a stomach aura with 15 seconds approx of unconciousness. 3 of the 4 she had had a heavy day of swimming the day before. Her abnormal EEG was after an evening of swimming (Per request of her DR). The last episode, there was no swimming the prior day but I am starting to wonder if the breath holding in swimming and sleep apnea (which I "think" she might have) could be causing the same type of reaction. The Dr. wasn't certain that swimming has anything to do with it, so I am curious to see what others might think.

[TeeTees]

If I had to place a bet on this, I would say the two ARE linked. There are two issues that I have here :

1) Over-exertion
2) Short, Sharp, Shallow-breaths whilst swimming

The first would simply be in relation to doing TOO much swimming, and over-spending her energy levels on a single occasion.

The second would be dependant on the swimming stroke/s your daughter is doing, ie. if it's a fast stroke such as front crawl, this could cause fast breathing by using short/sharp breaths (which is what they use when testing for Epilepsy in EEG's), as this kind of breathing is more likely to bring on a seizure.

If your daughter does do strokes such as front-crawl, listed above, I would recommend trying a slower stroke such as breast-stroke and aiming for longer distances (endurance), with a more long controlled breathing pattern during and between the strokes to ensure plenty of oxygen is reaching both the lungs and brain.

If your daugter is already implementing slower strokes, and not a 'fast' swimmer, then I would look at the overall length of time as which she is swimming.....maybe it's just too long a length of time ?

These are obviously just a few of my thoughts if there was to be any link between swimming and epilepsy. It may be a load of garbage, and could simply be another factor such as diet. But it could be a couple of things you may wanna try first - they're free after all

[forward2007]

I have had epilepsy since I was 5 and I have never had a seizure while I was swimming. And I swam in Lake Michigan as a kid and I currently do ocean swimming here in San Diego.

[skillefer]

I agree with TeeTee. I think that it's not necessarily swimming that's triggering the seizures, but perhaps overexertion, and breathing. I would suggest though, that you always make sure that there's adult supervision when she swims. (Oh gosh...now I sound like my mother...)

[RobinN]

Okay I am going to come in here and suggest something off the wall.
This subject comes up all the time in the Yahoo Autism site that I watch. They say it is the reaction to the clorine that is effecting their kids. They suggest epsom salt baths after a day in the water.

For many autistic kids, the chlorine and other chemicals added to swimming pools, can cause problems. Because this is a subject that is discussed frequently on many message boards, I have compiled here, in no particular order, the ideas posted by parents which have been found to be helpful for their children. You may need to experiment to find which idea/s work for YOUR specific child.

* Some kids are sensitive to chemicals, including chlorine.
* Chlorine is added to pool water to keep the bacteria levels down, and especially if your child drinks it, it can cause yeast to increase.
* Epsom salt baths after swimming [helps with detox].
* Give taurine.
* DermaShield
http://www.dermashieldusa.com/pages/709905/index.htm
* Use Baquacil instead of chlorine in the pool.
http://www.baquacil.com/why_use/why_use.asp
* Algaecides, that usually come along with the chlorine, are full of copper.
[Note: you can't use copper-based algaecides with Baquacil, only non-copper algaecides.]

http://www.danasview.net/chlorine.htm

Yeast has been linked to seizures.

[Bernard]

My first reaction to reading the OP was that it might be a chlorine sensitivity.

From most of the reports I've read in forums, when seizures are triggered from over exertion, they happen during (or shortly after) the exercise - not 12 hours later.

[Davids_Dad]

RobinN,
This is very interesting... I have been meaning to do a hair sample test on David to rule out lead, tin, etc. We just had a pool put in this summer... he is a great swimmer but drinks as much as he splashes I wonder if there is any connection, Neouro & Specialist could give us no clue as to where his partial seizers are coming from.

[Davids_Dad]

New at this. I will be doing my own research on pools, chemicals, etc... I will let you know anything I find... I just had a pool put in this summer. Dec 6th my 6yr old started to have partial seizers. All the responses so far seem very helpful.

[RobinN]

Please bring the infomation that you find here and let us know too. I think other children that are chemically sensitive will be helped knowing this information. Adults too.
Most of us just would never think of this, as we are doing our kids a favor by getting them to exercise. Good clean fun. I was a swimmer and never thought of the consequences of the chemical until I started reading the Autism list.

Don't count on the neurologist to know this information. Some of the doctors that are specific to Autism Spectrum disorders and Chronic Illness are learning it, but they tend to be specialists, called DAN doctors.

[PurpleAngel]

We have a 12x4 foot pool in our backyard (well, it's in the garage now as I don't like to ice skate ) I was warned not to allow Kater to swim in it alone (duh) and to watch her afterwards. She did well for most of the summer, but scared me once. I turned to grab something off the deck, about 20 feet away and heard her go under like a brick. By the time I got to her she had come back up, and had no clue what had happened. I thought maybe she slipped, since the bottom was a bit slippery.

[brain]

I used to be a RABID swimmer and diver,
then went on to be a certified scuba diver
until I seized in front of my instructor that
had just certified me when we went out to
the waters.



Bye Bye certification; my neurologist wasn't a
happy camper about me heading off to scuba
diving without letting him know about it. But
the general rule whether you have seizures
or not, is never swim alone anyway.

It was a gradual process - but throughout
the years until I was labeled Intractable years
ago; I can no longer swim or go underwater,
not even in small crafts. I can wade in very
shallow water providing there are at least 2
people with me, but that is it.

Even when I fish - wade or from sea walls,
I need at least 2-3 people with me. It's very
hard for me .. especially when I love to fish
and I'm a WATER BABY!

I'm a Floridian - I know the dangers of water;
pool, rivers, creeks, lakes, gulf, oceans ...


===============================

PLEASE HEED your neurologist or epileptologist if He/She
says do not Swim or go out Boating. It's
too risky and dangerous. Even an Expert
Scuba Instructor / ARC Life Guard or
Coast Guard Rescue can inform you how
difficult it is to rescue a 'normal' healthy
person!

[eemcn529]

What an interesting idea. I always thought that she was "allergic" to one of the chemicals in the pools. She always starts sneezing as soon as she gets in the pool. And is always very congested afterword. Maybe that is an indicator to the sensitivity..... hmmm. She did have 1 seizure though with no pool activity.

[eemcn529]

In response to the kind of swimming she does... It is just 9 year old playing in grandma's pool swimming. Lots of yelling....holding breaths...swimming to the bottom of the pool....jumping off the diving board. She probably can and does spend too much time in the pool at one time.

[RobinN]

It is a healthy form of exercise. Don't start second guessing yourself. I looked like a prune from being in the water from 9 am - 5 pm all summer long.
You just might consider popping her into an epsom salt bath, or whatever others might suggest, to detox the body. Or keep her away for a while and see if there are any changes in the seizure pattern.
You said that she had one not while swimming... is there a chance that there might have been similar chemicals within the area? One that comes to mind is bleach.. You might need to do a search for products that produce chemicals similar to what she might be sensitive to. Or consult an allergist about this.

[alivenwell]

I used to get a lot of sinus infections when I did swimming. I was trying to really lose weight and also drank bottled water. That was a bad combination. My aura saved my life. When I recovered, I was on my back outside the pool and wondering if I was alive. BTW, this happened in an indoor pool with strong chlorine.

I am totally for the plan of not swimming alone.

My aura also prevents me from speaking. So, even if I wanted to call for assistance, I would not be able to do it.
I haven't gone swimming for over 10 years.

[RobinN]

http://www.stankurtz.com/biomedical/...er-review.html

there are some suggestions here

[Mr. Pibb]

I spent my entire youth in a swimming pool one of the best things that I could have done. Was a good work out for me and kept my body running like a well tuned machine. The activity that you chose whether it be swimming running biking etc. cleans out the body and keeps your levels at a more constant rate imo. More than likely if you participate in an activity you will be eating foods that are good for you as well. Many of the pools that are in public places use a combination of chlorine and Copper as a way to keep the pool up and running copper while a good way to aid is cleaning a pool can be absorbed thru the skin in verrry small amounts bromine is also used in pools so you might want to consider those as well. Check with the maintenance dept of the school or place that the pool is located and get a schedule of when then add their chemicals see if this has any effect

[BuckeyeFan]

I'm a Floridian - I know the dangers of water;
pool, rivers, creeks, lakes, gulf, oceans ...

Gators would be enough to keep me out of the fresh waters ... cluck, cluck, cluck