Does anyone here ride a bike?

Welcome to the Coping With Epilepsy Forums

Welcome to the Coping With Epilepsy forums - a peer support community for folks dealing (directly or indirectly) with seizure disorders. You can visit the forum page to see the list of forum nodes (categories/rooms) for topics.

Please have a look around and if you like what you see, please consider registering an account and joining the discussions. When you register an account and log in, you may enjoy additional benefits including no ads, access to members only (ie. private) forum nodes and more. Registering an account is free - you have nothing to lose!

N

notime

Stalwart
Messages
287
Reaction score
7
Points
63
Does anyone here with epilepsy ride a bike? I'm considering it because I'm tired of being stuck in my room with no access to transportation, and my father gets upset when he has take off to just take me to a neurologist.

I am still on Keppra XR and on Lamictal, but my doctor is considering taking me off of keppra because it didn't stop my seizures. So far, I've been seizure free since September after taking lamictal and I'm at 200mg at the moment.

Anyway, I am still obese, losing weight is harder than I thought only lost few pounds with diet and exercise. Either way, I'm tired of being stuck up in a house all day long with no access to public transportation so I thought about getting a bike, I mean I live in a small town with only with 3000 people. So, do you think it would be safe if I rode a bike? It might not be ideal when my neurologist is taking me off of keppra xr, but I am so tired of not having a life... I haven't went anywhere other than to the doctor for the past year until now.

I would use safety, but I know it's risky, but to be honest if I must risk my life so be it at least I can enjoy life some by getting out. What do you think?
 
I would say that it depends on how often you have seizures, (seizure free since September is a good thing!) how bad they are, and if you have any warning beforehand. I have no restrictions on driving or riding bicycles or motorcycles or anything, but my simple partials are mild enough that I have actually had some when on my bicycle and I can keep right on going with no problem. Also, if you wear a helmet and maybe a set of pads and wrist guards like rollerbladers use, and stay in large parking lots where you won't get hit by a car if you fall, I would say it would be worth the risk. At least you know you wouldn't hurt anyone else if you lost control, and we can't just wrap ourselves in cotton wool. There is always some danger in life, even if you don't have epilepsy, so I think being smart and minimizing the risk is all any of us can do.
 
wear full finger gloves because your hands are your best friends in life and when you are unconscious you will not be able to keep them out of moving car tires or bike bike parts.

I honestly have hurt myself more and worse riding a bike with epilepsy, than I ever did riding a motorcycle. Of course I am part of a group of several of us on this site that will do it again in a heart beat. Even after telling you it may be a poor choice. It is one you are going to have to try first. I have ripped off an ear. put my teeth through a lip. I probably have upwards 50 stitches in my face alone. I have a friction burn in my thumb that keeps it from going straight. But every day I pull out a bike, and ride somewhere, and that tend to be the best part of my day.

If not just for the look on someone's face when you ride by and yell WEEEEE!!!!


but, if you are willing the risk, go for it, you will get it. you will get hurt, but you will enjoy yourself, but you will meet hot emt's in the process.
 
As Rich said, walking is great exercise also and I did that when I couldn't drive. And like Court, I also rode my bike and still do in the spring, summer, fall. There have been times years ago where I've had bad TC seizures while out walking and folks have called 911. Fortunately, they didn't rush me to the hospital.

The way I see it, we all need to get out of the house and we all need exercise, so go for it. Plus walking, bike riding releases the body's "happy drug"- the endorphins. You will feel much better emotionally, too.

Make sure you wear some form of medic-alert ID, just in case. And always wear a helmet when bike riding. And enjoy yourself!
 
rich956 said:
Walking every day for excersize is good also...
Click to expand...


I do walk for exercise, but I live like 6 miles from town, but with a bike it would be faster... Oh well, despite the risks I accept there is a possibility that something may happen and it'll be my fault at least I would be able to do things I would like to do. So, if I do injure myself or teeth or whatever then so be it. :/

Cint

Yes, I even wear a helmet when I walk on a treadmill. I walk outside, but it has been raining and some snow here so I haven't really been going outside much. I'll just wear a helmet and other protection, that's pretty much all I can do. It's better than driving even if I do remain seizure free and end up injuring a person by having a seizure... Even if it's legal at least a bicycle won't be as bad.
 
Last edited:
I have used a bike as my primary means of transportation since I was 17. I rode my bike 4 miles one way to school when I was in college and I continue to use my bike to get to and from my work place. It can bring great freedom if you are careful.
 
You sound a lot like me notime. I live out in the middle of no were with no public transportation and any type of store is about 10 miles away.

I would ride a bike to get places but I have a lot of seizures a month. I generally get no warning before them or if I do by the time I realize that I'm going to have the seizure it's too late and I've already gone into it. I do walk on a tread mill and have never had any trouble with it. The tread mill has a 'key' that you can attach to yourself so if you would fall off it stops moving, luckily never had to use it.

This doesn't sound like you, so like COurt said go ahead and ride. I'd wear a helmet (I think here in PA it's the law) just incase something happens. You don't want to fall off and crack your head.

If you're worried about anything that might change with going off of the keppra then maybe give it a week or two to see what happens.
 
I ride a bike as my primary mobility. Well here i bus a lot too. I must say that biking makes me feel so good that i will not give it up, ever. I have yet to have seizure related problems with biking and i do not know if that is pure luck or what? PLease wear a GOOD helmet! I have the kind that look like a batting helmet (they really cover your ears and have a hard plastic shell. I see others with them too, its a sort of 'sport helmet.' the plain 'biking helmet' is not much protection. I know its better than not but I urge you to try a more secure helmet and have fun. It is so good for your heart (in more ways than one "heart")
 
Hey, notime wanted to respond to your question about riding a bike.

Yes!! I ride a bike a lot. Have ridden 12,000 miles a year each of the last 12 years. Ride for joy, to train, to commute, to run errands; it is my primary means of transportation. I have lived in Tucson the last 2 years, a city of about 1 million people. Before that I lved in Chicago for 40 years.

Had my first seizure the end of August, 2013 and have not driven since. I have complex and simple partials and have had one clonic in which I did not lose consciousness. I'm on Keppra 1,500 mg/day. Since having seizures I have continued to ride my bike between 1,100 and 1,300 miles a month.

Once I has 50 miles into a 90 mile ride and had a simple seizure. One of the effects of my simple seizures if I feel a disconnect between my brain and my motor activities. My only route home at that point was on a busy 2-lane road with 50 mph traffic and only a 3' shoulder. I have ridden that road often, but on that day I didn't feel in control my my head, legs, and steering. So, I called my husband for a pick-up. We decided that until my seizures were better controlled I would not ride any further than 50 miles round trip so that at the most he'd only have to come 25 miles to pick me up.

I had another simple seizure on the bike last week; same deal, not feeling fully in control of my head/arms/legs, but my route was a safe one, only 20 miles to home. Took it easy and made it home without incident.

Hope you can get out on your bike. It's a wonderful way to enjoy your freedom.

p.s. I have known several other cyclists who have epilepsy and ride like the wind and do serious endurance racing, as in Race Across America type serious endurance racing.
 
several of them are on bikeforums.net
I post on there from time to time.

I rode across ireland, and from oralando, fl to birmingham al.
since these days I mostly ride single speed, and only recently got my geared bike rebuilt,
I havent got myself back into shape physically or mentally to ride really long. but i do enjoy riding all over my city. debating getting out today once the lunch rush is over.
 
Very cool! I did a solo, self-contained tour from Chicago to Columbus, GA and Chicago to NH, and a couple of transcons with PAC Tour.
 
Hard to ride no handed on a recumbent. Definitely a set up to hit your head and that could lead to more seizures and that could lead to time off the bike...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom