Can this cause myclonic seizures?

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Ok last night was ridiculous. I spent almost all night jerking around involuntarily, the hardest and longest i've jerked around ever so far. I've been diagnosed with temporal lobe epilepsy, simple partials and complex partials that can generalize, and now these lower body jerks are new in the past 3 months and my doctor has not definitively diagnosed them. Namakova (spelling? sorry if I got that wrong) suggested they were mycolonic seizures, which really seems to fit. Brain MRI was normal, but I had an MRI months ago of lower spine which showed four vertebrae knocked backwards out of position from a rear hit car accident. Can that cause spinal myclonus? I'm about to search for another doctor for a second opinion, if I don't start sleeping I'm going to do myself in. Not only am I not sleeping all night it's like I'm doing aerobics all night. That's my story, any help appreciated.
 
Sorry to hear that Lindsay. If it is causing that much problems I would keep trying to talk to your neurologist. Because as we all know lack of sleep causes more problems with our seizures. Your neurologist really should be listening to your concerns.
 
I had an MRI months ago of lower spine which showed four vertebrae knocked backwards out of position from a rear hit car accident. Can that cause spinal myclonus? I'm about to search for another doctor for a second opinion, if I don't start sleeping I'm going to do myself in. Not only am I not sleeping all night it's like I'm doing aerobics all night. That's my story, any help appreciated.

I think it is time to seek a 2nd opinion if you are not getting any relief and this dr. isn't listening to you. There are several different types of myoclonus, or myoclonic jerking. This could have been caused by the car accident and spinal injury.

There is a form called Reticular Reflex Myoclonus:

http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/myoclonus/detail_myoclonus.htm
Reticular reflex myoclonus is thought to be a type of generalized epilepsy that originates in the brain stem, the part of the brain that connects to the spinal cord and controls vital functions such as breathing and heartbeat. Myoclonic jerks usually affect the whole body, with muscles on both sides of the body affected simultaneously. In some people, myoclonic jerks occur in only a part of the body, such as the legs, with all the muscles in that part being involved in each jerk. Reticular reflex myoclonus can be triggered by either a voluntary movement or an external stimulus.
 
Hi Lindsay,

I have something similar, I call it floppy foot. I don't know if it's actual seizure activity or not, but it can drive me crazy sometimes. My neuro said it may be seizures but he was just going to add more meds and I didn't want to do that. Mine are worse when it's "that time", when I've made the mistake of drinking diet soda with aspertame, when i'm really tired, etc. Avoiding those things helps but doesn't solve the problem completely. The one thing that has helped the most was something I discovered accidentally. I noticed that the flopping lessened dramatically when I started taking calcium with vitamin D. I thought at first it was the calcium, but later figured out it was the D. When I mentioned here some time last year Nakamova (or maybe Endless, I forget for sure) posted links to studies that suggest that low vitamin D can increase seizure activitiy. Im doing this on my phone so I can't find those links for you but if you search for vitamin D on this site you should find something. I take 2000 international units a day and it helps if I avoid the things listed above. I think D is safe as long as you don't over-do it, but maybe talk to your doctor or pharmacist first if you try it. I also think a bit of protein(llike nuts) helps before bedtime.

Good luck! I know how horrible it is when you can't sleep.
 
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