Well, I've been out of college for a while, but I thought I'd chime in.
I attended the University of Nebraska- Lincoln. I earned a bachelors as well as a master's degree there. So it is possible to go to college.
As a high school special ed. teacher, who has a student that will be graduating this year with E and going on to college, I would suggest doing the following.
1. If you or your child has E, go see the people in the Disabled Student Services office. If you can, go and do an actual visit and talk to someone there. Face to face always beats e-mail. Ask your questions, and don't leave if the answers are weak or hard to understand.
2. If you/your child has an IEP or 504 plan, make sure that the case carrier fills out a Disability Verification Form. (that's what it's called here in California...) It's basically a form notifying the school that you want to enroll in what services would best help you be academically successful. Services like note taking, books on tape, assistance with writing assignments, extra time for assignments, etc.
3. If you/your student does NOT have a 504 plan or IEP, you might want to consider asking the DSS office if you/your student can get one in college/university. It can definitely be a help.
4. Be sensible about expectations. The first year is usually the hardest because the student is trying to figure out exactly where they fit and what to do...kinda like freshman year of high school without the comfort of consistency from mom and dad back home. This is also when you might find more breakthrough seizures as students try to cram for tests , experiment with alcohol and pot, and usually have horrible diets.
5. Don't be afraid to ask for help. My professors, even though I went to a large state university, were actually quite understanding if I had to tell them that the reason I had missed a class was due to a seizure. Most of the time, they won't ask, but there are certain days, like the first day of classes, where if you miss, you're dropped from the roster.
6. Make use of the med center , the rec center, and religious center/chapel. As a student, you'll have access to the med. center on campus. Have a copy of your medical records with you and take them into the med center so that they can have a copy. That way, if you do end up seeing a doc there, they'll have your history as well as the meds you are on. They get a COPY, not the originals. (Same for if you move after graduation to a new town. Take your med records with you. )
As for the rec center. Make good use of it. This will help stop the freshman pounds from packing on. the more you weigh, the higher the dosage is going to have to be for many E meds. Also, it's an excellent way to take care of stress.
Also, if you are religious, get involved with a group on campus that shares the same beliefs. It can help by acting as a support group and giving you yet another group of people that you can talk to when you're feeling stressed or homesick.
7. For those thinking of rushing frats/sororities. Cool! the greek system is fantastic for providing a supportive environment. Just make sure that the health aide for the house knows your medical condition and the meds your on. If they have to contact EMS because you are seizing or post ictal, they can inform the medics as to what meds you are on and the fact that your epileptic. Also, just because the rest of the brothers or sisters are getting tanked does NOT mean you have to drink. I was a little sister for triangle fraternity, and they, like most greek houses had non-alcoholic beverages available at their get togethers.
8. If you're staying in the dorms, make sure that the health tech/health aide for your floor or building knows your medical condition and what meds you take, as well as what one of your seizures looks like. I was a health aide for my dorm floor, and kept a list of student medical conditions as well as medications just in case of emergencies. And, as a health aide, I was pretty much on call 24 hours. So if kids got sick with a cold or needed a band aid, I had it for them. This also meant giving first aid or CPR if I was out and about on campus too. So when I visited my boyfriend in his dorm, I was still on call. This actually did end up happening too....A friend of my then boyfriend went to use the mens room. Another person came in a few minutes later and told us that the friend was passed out on the floor and shaking. My bf knew his friend wore a medic alert bracelet. The health aid for the floor was at class, which pretty much left just me to respond. I went in to the mens room, crawled under the stall and flipped the bracelet...sure enough, epilepsy. It was a grand mal. Had the guys call 911 since there were no instructions NOT to call, and styed with him till the EMT's showed up. Told one of the other guys to wait outside the dorm till the EMT's came.
9. For pete's sake, wear medical jewelry of some kind, and make sure that your buddies on the floor know about it. Also, if you don't want 911 called, make sure your roomie/best friends on the floor/health aide know that. Ambulances are expensive.
Hope this helped!
