Firefighter with new part/complex seizures

[behlen]

Hello all, I am a 37 m fire fighter. Started having seizures couple of years ago but had no clue what they were. The only seizures I was familiar with were grand mal seizures and seing patients that were actively seizing. So when I started having theses "spells" as I called them i had no idea what it was. First felt like my bp dropped quickly but new that wasn't it. family dr. sent me to see cardiologists who decided my heart rate was too low therefore causing these spells. He said a pacemaker would def. fix the problem. One pacemake and $50,000 later still having the spells. Finally found Nuero doc and cardiologists that knew what they were doing and now trying out meds to fix me. Keppra did not work so now on lamictal.. Seemed to work for a while then just stopped, increased dosage and worked for a while then stopped. Seing dr. again tomorrow for suggestion. Problem I am having right now is I am a firefighter that cannot drive. Dept is being pretty good about it right now but keep asking when I will be released to drive emergency vehicles. Pretty sure Dr. not going to give a release for that. She says it is up to the dept. I do have long term dissability but that is last resort. Has anyone had to result to that and does it cover seizures for full dissability. Just want to keep my job but not sure I will ever be completly seizure free. Sorry so long but very frustrated right now. Every time I feel I am about to have the seizure a sick feeling comes over and i get very anxious. Thanks for responding,

bart

 

[Nakamova]

Hey Bart, welcome to CWE!

A pacemaker! Wow you've had a rocky road to diagnosis. Did they leave the pacemaker in after deciding that your seizures were neurological?

There are a few more meds to try, so hang in there. Unfortunately, it can take a while to find the right med or combo of meds at the right dosage. In the meantime, it's a good idea to keep a seizure diary to track your "spells" along with such things as diet/metabolism, fatigue, stress that might be triggers for them.

As a precaution you should ask your boss who to talk to if you end up needing to file a disability claim. They should be able to give you a sense of what the requirements would be.

Best,
Nakamova

 

[TempusFugit]

Hey there bart - and firstly, welcome to CWE

I do feel for you and can understand how frustrated you must be - especially as you went down the 'long road' to get your diagnosis - a sad and quite common thing actually (and many mis-diagnosis too!).

With respect to driving - depending on where you live (I am assuming you are from the US?) then I understand it varies from state to state. In the UK, if you have seizures then you are not allowed to be active in your line of work (in some cases, permanently depending on seizure control).

I hope that your employers continue to be supportive of you - it is always a worry that you could end up losing your livlihood. It's not as if we bring this upon ourselves, is it?

My post probably isn't much help to you - but what I would like to add is that the anxiety alone will in all likliehood, make you feel worse and bring on seizures. Rock and hard place spring to mind.

Just want you to know that there are some awesome members here who will support you (my humble self included)

*hugs*

 

[Rae1889]

Welcome!
A firefighter. wow. my dad used to be a volunteer firefighter. Takes alot of guts for that job.
They have never stated a guess cause for these experiances? I know that inhaling smoke and carbon monoxide can deprive the brain of oxygen, and some brain cells can die. sometimes, if its severe enough, it can lead to seizures.

Feel free to roam around. check out the lounge for some inside joke fun. or the lemonade stand if you ever need some cheering up. or the padded room if you ever feel like you just need to sound off.

There is the kitchen for asking some general questions about Epilepsy and seizures, as well as the library where you can check out and post any research, news or suggestions about E.

Bernard (our host) made this site in dedication to his wife stacey who suffers from E. He decided that others will also need helpign in coping, thus this family was born. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to PM him or any other moderators.

 

[Kansas Educator]

Bart, worst case scenario........... can you take family leave/short term disability to buy time to figure it all out if necessary? I'm hoping it won't be necessary but, just in case, I'd do some checking around and get my ducks in a row. Many people are this site can testify to the fact that it can be controlled even though it may take some time.

 

[valeriedl]

I can understand what you are going through. My situation is similar to yours.

I had to quit my job and go on to disibility which I've been on for about 7 years now. I don't know if I'll ever be able to go back to work. I live in PA and here you have to be sez free for 6 months (I think thats how long) before you are able to drive. Since I'm not able to drive I have to rely on family and friends to get me around and they have been great about this.

Some things you just have to deal with and don't want get worked up over it until you know for sure that's what is going to happen. I try to keep myself calm over things, I know it's not easy some times, because when I get stressed out I am more likely to have a sez.

Hopefully things will work out for you, but it may take some time. If you do have to leave work for a while it may be worth it because you wouldn't want to have a sez while on the job. Who knows what my happen if you are in a building or even just holding onto the hose (my dad was a fire fighter and I know those things are pretty powerful). Maybe see if there is anything that you can do that does't actually going out and fighting a fire.

Take your time and hang in there.

 

[Bernard]

Hi Bart, welcome to the forum. :hello:

My wife has epilepsy and she volunteers for the local VFD. She originally started helping them by calibrating their air monitoring equipment, but she now helps out with lots of little things as she can.

Not sure if this will make you feel any better or not, but it seems that cardiac issues and epilepsy are mis-diagnosed/confused more often that you might think:

http://www.coping-with-epilepsy.com/forums/f22/heart-disorder-can-misdiagnosed-epi-1491/

I have one question for you. As a FF, did you keep a regular sleep schedule? Regular sleep is so critical to keeping the seizure threshold high. Maybe you will find something in this discussion useful:

http://www.coping-with-epilepsy.com/forums/f22/proactive-prescription-epilepsy-1254/

 

[kyrissa]

Hi! I have complex partial seizures as well. I was working as a nurse aid when I had an aura (no seizure). I was fired then. I am able to currently receive disability. At least one thing I would recommend for applying, is keeping a log of your seizures as well as what you were doing and details of situation. I hope that all goes well.

 

[AmberD86]

They can just fire you like that? Is that not illegal???

 

[skillefer]

Hi amber! Actually, it depends on where you live. If driving is a mandatory part of the job, and a person does not have control of the seizures, and there is no way to make accomodations to the job then yes, an employer can fire a person. At least that's how it works where I live. It might be different elsewhere.

 

[kyrissa]

compensation

That hospital (known nationally as the highest brain injury and parallitic care) put me on short term disability and I have to fight them to continue to give me long term disability unless they hire me again.

 

[tbcrook]

hey Bart,
I am also a FF and have a seizure disorder. Right now it is controlled with meds and I still have a job but there are some restrictions (no climbing and working from heights without a safety harness.) I am just curious what your dept said about it other than not letting you drive. Were they going to let you go if you couldn't get a release from your dr? Were they gonna make any accomadations?

 

[LisaBee]

Hi Bart! I dont have Epilepsy, but my daughter does. Welcome to CWE!

 

[Squirreljo]

Hi Bart, I am new here too. Sounds like you have had a tough road getting to this point. My partner has Epilepsy and we have definitely noticed a correlation between stress/lack of sleep and seizure frequency. As mentioned previously it does seem worthwhile keeping a diary (I see you can now get smartphone apps for that) to track anything that might trigger the onset. Unfortunately my partner experiences seizures first thing in the morning, and is not aware of the onset of seizures. If you know when you are about to experience a seizure then perhaps some relaxation techniques that you can put in place at those moments could help. Best of luck.

 

[cremington]

firefighter family

hey bart
from one firefighter to another lets share some insight. im 26 years old and recently underwent a surgery for a brain tumor. the surgery went really well and my doctor gave me full clearance to return to work, however, I was told that my last EKG reflected the "foot print" of epilepsy and was told I would have to most likely remain on medication indefinitely. My department and doctor both feel comfortable clearing me for full duties. With that said, in your situation I do believe there is hope for you and your career. However one of my biggest concerns that I am still working out is on the limits of our physically demanding job. Can you share any insight on limits?
Thanks,
Chris

 

[Nakamova]

Hi Chris, welcome!

Bart's post is relatively old, so you may or may not hear back from him.

If your doctor has cleared you for full duties, that's a good sign. However, it can't hurt, to be vigilant and proactive: Take your medication regularly, get good, quality sleep, avoid extremes of diet and behavior, and find ways to minimize physical, physiological, and emotional stress.

 

[BrandiBrat]

Hi Chris and welcome to CWE! I just wanted to thank you for what you do. I live in So. Calif. where fires are a threat so we love our firefighters.