Oh where oh where has my memory gone?

[Phredhead]

Hi all,
I am on Keppra 1,000mg a day and have gotten used to this dose. Thankfully, I am no longer sleeping 20 hours a day or dizzy or fog brained. I have now developed an inability to think quickly, react quickly or remember anything!! It's affecting my job (I'm an RN). I am also in grad school to become a Nurse Practitioner. I have ADD and take Adderall twice a day which helps, but my co-workers are getting fed up with having to continually repeat themselves in report. I used to be so fast and now I find myself staring off into space trying to remember or think of what to say. I have only told a few co-workers about my condition because I'm afraid of what might happen if my superiors knew. I'm really afraid that I might lose my job over this. I have been triple checking all my decisions and making sure my patients are well cared for. I guess I'm just scared I might make a mistake and do more harm than good.

 

[Cint]

Many of us with E also have memory problems, so unfortunately it does go with the territory. It could be from the meds or it could be from the E. There are ways to deal with this. Here are some great sites that explain it all:

http://www.epilepsy.com/learn/impact/thinking-and-memory/types-memory-problems

http://www.epilepsy.com/learn/impact/thinking-and-memory/memory-techniques

 

[Belinda5000]

I have a gto remember hardly anything when I was on that drug.When I got my neuro to take me off the Dilantin my memory improved 95%. It drives my husbands bonkers about my memory.ood memory actually.It was when I was on Dilantin that my memory was shot. I wasn't able I remember things that my neuro doesn't remember also.

 

[Nakamova]

You may have to experiment to see if there are little tricks that will help you focus and remember better. It might help to write down what people say, and/or look them directly in the eye while they're saying it. You could try eating a lozenge or chewing gum (if that's allowed) -- there's something about the conscious chewing motion that can make people more alert. And drink more water! Studies have shown that even very mild dehydration (less than 2%) can interfere with the ability to concentrate. A lot of stuff that is good for your overall health is also good for memory -- balanced diet, quality sleep, aerobic exercise, etc.

 

[Phredhead]

Thank you all for your input and suggestions.

 

[valeriedl]

I have very bad memory problems and I think mine are more seizure related than they are medicine related.

After I have a seizure I'll have problems remember things that happened days or more. Depending on how bad the seizure was the longer the memory span I have forgotten. My very first seizure was horrible and I lost about ten years of memory.

Things that I really liked or were funny I seem to remember but just things in general I usually forget.

I keep a lot of notes around of things that I need to remember. I make sure they are detailed notes too, not just a few words scribbled on a piece of paper. If I don't want to write them down in front of someone then I do it right after I talk to them so I don't forget what I need to remember. I have a pocket calendar that I use as sort of a diary and write down things that I've done that day.

I may have to ask people about things that they've already told me but luckily most of them understand why.

 

[Matthew74]

I think maybe being a NP will be better for you. I can't imagine ever being a nurse. I don't know how anyone does it. But as an NP I imagine that you would be spending more time in an office conversing with patients, which would give you more time to think, focus, use notes, etc.

I had a friend who got Dengue Fever while working in the Foreign Service. When she went back to work her brain was still not working right. She found it to be a revelation. She expressed how much better she understood what life was like for me on meds. She had some of the same problems like memory, concentration, and brain fog. Other people got frustrated with her too, and so she also understood what that was like. I can see how knowing what it is like to be on meds would be useful to you when interviewing patients.

 

[Phredhead]

Matthew74, I love being a nurse. Working 12 hour shifts doesn't bother me at all. I was on meds 5 years ago. Was on Dilantin then switched to Keppra after it was approved and I don't remember it having any of these affects on me. I'm wondering if it's because I'm on generic now. My pharmacist had to mix my script with 2 different companies and I can tell the difference when I take them. I do much better on 1 brand and not so good on the other. I think I might ask my doc to specify brand name Keppra for my next refill to see if that makes a difference. I've always had memory problems and have attributed it to my ADD, which I've had since I was 8. But it has gotten worse recently and I'm thinking it may be caused by E and not ADD. My husband and I have been together for 10 years and have recently gotten married. He constantly has to remind me of things we have done together or gone through in our relationship and I have absolutely no recollection of it. I plan to have a conversation with my doc about it at my next appointment. My dream has always been to become an NP and as long as I can keep a handle on the fog brain I will graduate in 2016. I had my first Keppra-rage last night at work after being overwhelmed because of all my patients having issues at the same time. I had to ask co-workers for help which is something I never do. Having a serious medical issue like E has definitely made me more understanding of my patients, that's for sure!

 

[MAB]

My memory has become quite bad. I am especially bad with numbers, which is really bad because I am an apartment manager. I don't want to send our maintenance techs into the wrong apartments. I also make leases up well in advance and look them over several times before anyone signs them.

I sometimes have to ad the bank deposits several times to get them to balance as I scan deposits directly to the bank from the office.

I frequently go in early and stay late the last couple days of the month through the first 5 days of the month in order to make sure I get the deposits correct.

When I send emails I read them several times before I hit send and still find errors when I re-read them later.

I don't know if it was from having uncontrolled partial seizures (many of them status)before being diagnosed in Oct. or Nov.

 

[Phredhead]

Thank you for sharing MAB. I am big into research, it's a necessity in my profession. And I have researched the subject of memory loss and E, unfortunately there isn't much definitive info out there. You would think "they" would have some answers for us. The brain is very complicated, everyone understands that, but you would think that by now we would know more about the 1 organ no one can live without!

 

[valeriedl]

I'm wondering if it's because I'm on generic now. My pharmacist had to mix my script with 2 different companies and I can tell the difference when I take them. I do much better on 1 brand and not so good on the other. I think I might ask my doc to specify brand name Keppra for my next refill to see if that makes a difference.

There are many people who have problems when they take the generic brand of the medicine. They have to tell the dr that they want the name brand of the medicine because it works better for them.

 

[MAB]

There are many people who have problems when they take the generic brand of the medicine. They have to tell the dr that they want the name brand of the medicine because it works better for them.

Sometimes it's not even the name brand over the generic. It could even be a different manufacturer of a generic. That was one of the first things my neuro asked when I went status after doing so well.

 

[Tez_20]

Hi all,
I am on Keppra 1,000mg a day and have gotten used to this dose. Thankfully, I am no longer sleeping 20 hours a day or dizzy or fog brained. I have now developed an inability to think quickly, react quickly or remember anything!! It's affecting my job (I'm an RN). I am also in grad school to become a Nurse Practitioner. I have ADD and take Adderall twice a day which helps, but my co-workers are getting fed up with having to continually repeat themselves in report. I used to be so fast and now I find myself staring off into space trying to remember or think of what to say. I have only told a few co-workers about my condition because I'm afraid of what might happen if my superiors knew. I'm really afraid that I might lose my job over this. I have been triple checking all my decisions and making sure my patients are well cared for. I guess I'm just scared I might make a mistake and do more harm than good.

Phredhead,
I totally know how you feel and with epilepsy and Lupus combined besides brain damage...concentration is through the window now.
Even though you maybe stable but still having seizures...when your brain sparks those poor cells in the brain that do get hit can also get damaged and that alone can slow a good many of we down...sometimes quicker than others according to the amount each individual goes through.