Does Anyone....

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i dont know why you miss doses on purpose, but i used to do the same

sub-consciously though, i think i was trying to prove my mind and body was better, that i could beat epilepsy without drugs and those sort of thoughts.

thing is though once your on meds and you stop taking them even one or two you increase the chance of seizures etc

ive had epilepsy 10 years and ive made lots of lifestyle changes. im still not happy about it probally never will be.
 
I never have missed them. I had a hard time picking the time of day that I would be able to not forget. I didn't like going through the transition periods that the medication had. I just figured it was better than the seizures and having little kids motivated me a little. (I have only had Epilepsy for 4yrs). For me the end result was an improvement in life so I just found a way to make it work. The day I took switched my doses around with the 2 meds was great fun.

What makes it so hard to take?
 
Oh I am not happy aboout meds either. Never have been. I think some people may be more conscious about meds than others - which is good. But when one has no choice, then there's not much one can say about it. Just take it! :P I understand totally what you're feeling. Hugs Malla
 
I know my daughter did, and on one particular med she ate more than was prescribed to her. I found out later there is a high suicidal tendency on the top 11 meds. No doctor warned me of this. My daughter decided she wanted to try alternative therapies, and now she has been med free for 3.5 yrs, and seizure free for the last 10 months.
 
I do miss it purposely. But only because my reaction to it is so awful. I know i'm not supposed to miss a dose at all but when i throw up nearly every time i take it, the drowsiness i feel after, the weakness, the just all around crappy-ness is horrible. Medicine shouldn't make a person feel this bad. I've been on so many different meds, at a ton of different doses and none have worked. I've been seizure free lately and i think it could possibly be because i'm not taking medicine at all...
 
It took me 6 months to adjust to the first medication then I had a breakthrough seizure and added another medication. It to 5 months to adjust to that combination. I have been tonic-clonic free for over 2yrs but I have to balance sleep and stress to be seizure free completely. It has taken hard work and patience to get here.

I made my choices and they are working out. I would recommend a journal for keeping track of everything from seizures(type and what was going on prior to) to side effects. Only through maintaining a journal can you see the big picture and not just today's picture.
 
It takes a LONG time for a body to adjust to meds. I've been on 8 in the past 16 years, and every time it messes me up something awful.
I've skipped doses purposely for lots of reasons. Cost of the drug, the way it messes me up. But mostly I think it's just denial. I don't WANT to believe that I have a condition that will keep me dependent on drugs for the rest of my life. I'm too young to be that sick! I hate having to take it. So many people say, why fight the inevitable? Because I can! I can't fight much, and I can't control much, but if I miss one dose, and nothing happens, then I can thumb my nose at the disease that seems to be taking over my life.
Childish? Oh yeah. I think that some of us never want to give in to something that can control us, even if it already does.
I get you. I really do. I decided to use that energy to fight for what deserves to be fought for: time with my family, energy to keep up with those I love, the right to be engaged in my children's lives when I can, the smell of a cold and sunny autumn day, peace and quiet (believe me, i fight for it!). Find out what's worth your energy, and spend it on that. This battle can't be won, so find another. And take a real victory somewhere else.
 
I've been on, i think, 8 different types of meds in the last 3 1/2 yrs. all on medium to high doses.. my body is flip flopping all over the place-and not just from seizures!
Thank you so much for all your responses but THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to LittleMrsSmitch. Thats how i feel.. I'm only 21, im not supposed to have seizures. i'm supposed to be studying at school and working and having a ton of friends and not worrying about did i miss a dose? am i going to have a seizure? and also hearing family and the friends i do have ask if im ok all the time and how im feeling..

I dont want them.
I dont accept them.
I wouldn't ever wish seizures on someone else, but
God can take them back.
 
I'm sorry Kristol, I wish I could help you! 21 is young - I'm older than you so I think it's easier for me to accept meds and their side effects, but it's still hard! We'll all be praising the day when a med is developed with more tolerable side effects.

I'll tell you a secret - I stopped taking meds for over a year. I convinced myself that I just had anxiety (I have partial seizures - like going away for awhile, confusion afterward). I lied to my doctor and told her I had no more symptoms. At that time, they were toying with the idea that I had epilepsy, but hadn't caught a seizure on an EEG, so basically they had to go by my symptoms. The following year I had to have a DMV form filled out by my neurologist and they did a follow-up EEG just to be sure - this time they caught a seizure and gave me a bonafied diagnosis. Not only that, but that my epilepsy was worsening - she could tell because the type I have is only supposed to be on the right side of the brain, but the left side of my brain was actually copying the seizure activity. So I was actually harming myself without knowing it by not getting the seizures under control.

Even so, I still occasionally skip doses because I hate the meds. But it only makes me irritable and mean. I hope over time you can find the right formula that makes this tolerable for you. I've only been at this for four years, so I wish I had more guidance for you, but forums like this are a good place for you to come and get some understanding. People here that know what you're going through can be a huge help :)
 
I had a heart attack in 2008 and have been on meds since then. Now with meds for my seizures to take in addition to the others, I too get fed up with the night times effects, then morning meds and those effects then the afternoon meds with yet more but different effects. I spend lots of time in bed or on the sofa and when I do go out I don't feel too good. I never miss a dose but sometimes I take more because I just want to sleep. This is very wrong of me so no one should do this. I guess I get support from this forum knowing that I'm not alone and that we are all somehow linked. Our stories may be different but we all have meds to take and we should do as the GP's instruct us to do. I'm about to take my night meds now and I will make a hot milk drink to make it special time for me rather than a chore. Good luck Kristloe and to us all :)
 
Dont mean to scare you guys... but i havent taken a dose in over three weeks. I was taking 50-100mg of Tegretol daily [or whenever i remembered] but im really low on my meds..and ive only got enough for a few weeks, if that.. so im rationing them and only taking them when i get ringing in my ears and that slight 'twinge' of deja vu...thats the warning signs for me..and when i start feeling those feelings, i listen to my body..and get on my meds again ~ *do not try this at home* :pop:
 
Blueskies you must be a thrillseeker risktaker, I know I used to be one too. I understand what you mean when you say that you use early warning signs to get back on your meds. I felt better like this taking as little meds as possible. I think we all know constant use of these meds must have harmful effects. Occasionally I got it wrong though, I recognized the cues just didn't act and get back on the meds. On these occasions I have biggish seizures.
So I'm back on the meds fulltime, mainly to be fair on my girlfriend. She's the one who has to witness and then care for me. If it was just up to me I think I'd be following a path simmilar to yours. I feel as if I've got a closer feeling for what's happening with my brain and body when I play it like you. Travel steady
 
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