Helping husband understand the seriousness of a seizure

[Nakamova]

One rule of thumb with the brain is that "neurons that fire together, wire together". (See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebbian_theory). This means that with any repeated activity hat engages the same neurons over time, those neurons are more likely to become hard-wired, and trigger together in the future.

It applies to epilepsy in this way: The first time you seize, your brain takes a rare detour through the woods, where's there's barely any neuronal path. The next time you seize, that path starts to get broken in. And the next time after that, the path gets a bit wider, and a bit easier for the brain to find. Eventually the path becomes big enough to be a road or highway instead of a path, and instead of being a "detour", it becomes the route of choice for your brain to take.

This process is also called "kindling" (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kindling_model). It doesn't happen to every person in every seizure disorder. For instance, some kids grow out of childhood epilepsy, and there may be neuroprotective factors that can prevent or minimize the kindling process. But it's considered a risk for anyone with a seizure disorder, and is one of many reasons why we try and get seizures under control sooner rather than later.

 

[Rae1889]

Most seizures do not cause brain damage, but ongoing uncontrolled seizures may cause brain damage in young children.

As eric said, this is what I mean by simple partial seizures not being all that dangerous

 

[no.guru]

The page doesn't mention tonic-clonic or grand mal seizures at all. It mentions only partial seizures, and even then only in the section on related publications. It discusses epilepsy and seizures in general.

"Ongoing uncontrolled seizures" can be either tonic-clonics or partials.

Maybe you have another source?

 

[epileric]

NG, Check the link Nakamova posted http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebbian_theory

 

[no.guru]

epileric, in what way does that page address rae's claim?

It's not advisable for ilovetorun to treat her son's condition as no more serious than a hang nail or as no big deal, but she knows that despite some of the statements made here. I expect she has gotten the validation she was most likely seeking in this thread, but there's a little cleanup still to be done.

I can't speak for her or her husband, but when he mentioned her freaking out he was probably looking at it statistically and she was looking at possibilities. She was trying to convince him it is a serious condition.

She mentioned the child with a brain tumor, a natural reaction. It seems she's approaching this top-down: from the worst case / less likely to less severe / more likely possibilities. It's statistically unnecessary to consider these possibilities for this one case but she isn't dealing with a statistic; it's her son.


Sudden Unexplained Death in Epilepsy
Abstract
Sudden unexplained death in epilepsy (SUDEP) accounts for 7–17% of deaths among people with epilepsy. Both cardiac and pulmonary derangement have been postulated as proximate causes. Patients with uncontrolled seizures are at greatest risk for SUDEP, and experiencing tonic-clonic seizures, taking multiple antiepileptic drugs and having coexisting neurologic disease further increase the risk.

 

[epileric]

Sorry no.guru. I was referring to my posts regarding seizures getting worse over time, not Raes remarks.

 

[SassySarah]

As far as I am concerned, a simple partial seizure is no more dangerous than a hang nail. A simple partial seizure is an annoyance, just like a hang nail. If its bad enough, it can put a damper on your daily task, just like a hang nail. But if left without proper treatment and it goes for too long, it can have dire consequences (medication daily for SP seizures, and antibiotics for a hang nail infection.)

I have been told by many different doctors that in addition to the mentioned heart issues which I have experienced, another issue of concern if it continues over 10-15 minutes is damage to brain and thinking. After a rash of them day after day undiagnosed- testing was done and I was losing cognitive abilities in various areas. That is much more serious than a hang nail- and much scarier to experience.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

 

[Nakamova]

I think Rae was referring to the variety of simple partial that manifests like a migraine aura -- a persistent phantom smell, or a temporary visual field disturbance. As a single seizure, it can unpleasant, scary, and disconcerting -- but tolerable. Over time, or in clusters, such seizures can be dangerous. I know Rae takes multiple and/or cluster seizures very seriously and didn't intend to mislead or insult any one.

We all experience our seizures differently -- under a range of circumstances, and with an idiosyncratic sense of what is inconvenient, or painful, or difficult. No CWE members (with the exception of one or two) are doctors or neurologists, so I encourage everyone to familiarize themselves with all the research out there, and to become keen observers of your own brain and body as well.

 

[no.guru]

Thankfully, there are many reputable sources of information available to us all.

 

[Rae1889]

Nakamova, That is exactly what I was trying to say with the hang nail analogy. It just seemed nobody read the last part of that.

If left untreated and they both stick around frequently, they can be dangerous. But a single simple partial (or even a few in a day) that are short, are annoying but yes, tolerable.

 

[PFunk]

Didn't realized the thread continued, thus my comment is no longer relevant. Now move along