Hi, almost embarrassed to say what I'm studying..

[Labrat]

There is so much on the recommended reading threads about alternative treatments and therapies.

Hi I'm a mature student studying Pharmacology. I hope to go on to do a PhD in the realms of neuropharmacology, relating to the epilepsies; but I guess that depends on what is available when I graduate as I'm too poor to fund myself.

I was diagnosed with E when I was 3. I'm pretty well controlled. I ran my own business for 10 years until I was keppra'd almost out of existence. Not a big fan of that drug now.

Most of the time I study, I get very little time to do anything else.
I dream of when I used to swim a lot and went along to the Uni's archery club.
Getting home to see my husband and our animals are my highlights.

 

[Music36]

There is no reason to be embarrassed about studying pharmacology and it would be a good idea to be educated in alternative treatments, as well. Good luck in your studies.

 

[Topcat]

Hi nice to meet you.

I know what you mean about swimming. even though I didn't get a chance to do it much I sure miss it. I used to shoot a compound bow once in awhile but that's out too now.
Oh well we adapt.

 

[Music36]

I know what it's like to be very busy and not have time to do things. I went through undergrad and grad school as a single-mother. So, there was no me time. I didn't have time to have a relationship until I finished school. But, school won't last forever and it will be worth it.

 

[Labrat]

Oh I still love to swim and occasionally go along to the archery; it is just the pressure of time.

So much of life now is taken up with sitting exams or studying for exams

 

[Music36]

Swimming is one of the best types of exercise. I swam laps when I was pregnant. I grew up on the beach and learned how to swim when I was 2 years old. I don't live near the beach anymore, which I greatly miss. The problem now is I get very dizzy when I swim b/c of my meds which is frustrating. So, I don't swim that often b/c of the dizziness. Any ideas of what may help with the dizziness issue?

 

[acshuman]

Opening Eyes

Hopefully, you will be able to show people you are studying with that having E is NOT something that makes a person UNABLE to do something! Your willingness to put out the effort needed to study pharmacology should prove to many that people w/E can achieve a goal if they really want to!
By the way: WELCOME TO CWE!:clap:

ACsHuman

 

[JJR1956]

Hi Labrat and Welcome.

What's there to be ashamed of?

 

[Frink]

Welcome to CWE.

 

[Labrat]

Hi Music36 couldn't you go swimming with a swim buddy to assist you if you became dizzy? Just a friend who was aware of the circumstances.
Can I ask how the swimming causes you to become dizzy? I appreciate that there are certain types of refractory epilepsies where water or the reflection from water can trigger seizures. Is it the action if swimming itself? All strokes? Some more than others?

The National Pool Lifeguarding Qualification here in the UK covers epilepsy and when I was a lifeguard I was quite used to people who would come up to alert us to medical conditions. I know at the pools I worked at we would far rather know.

I didn't say 'ashamed' I joked at being 'almost embarrassed' JJR1956; that there seemed to be so much alternative therapies for E in the recommended reading threads, that coming out and saying I'm studying Pharmacology seems to be at cross swords with this this.
I hope to go into drug development. For all I knew this forum could be focused on alternative therapies and I might not be welcome.

 

[acshuman]

Acceptance To Site

Labrat,
Anyone who is trying to deal with E in a positive way is welcome on this site! If you have questions about E, just ask, and the members can make the decision if they want to answer those questions or not.onder: There are also Moderators looking over the site and they can make decisions about something, to decide if it should be allowed to remain on the site or not.

ACsHuman

 

[Music36]

Labrat,

I don't need assistance when I get dizzy. It's just that I get extremely dizzy when I swim to the point where it's very unpleasant. I will get nauseous and feel like I'm going to vomit. I was always a very strong swimmer. I swam far out in the ocean last summer 2 months after my epilepsy surgery. Of course, I was not alone. My boyfriend was with me. My anti-seizure meds make me dizzy sometimes and doing something like swimming makes me very dizzy b/c of the meds. It's the motion that makes me so dizzy. Swimming does not cause me to have seizures. I did not get dizzy from swimming before going on medication.

 

[Labrat]

Thats such a shame Music. I taught a lady who got dizzy when she swam. She could only do one stroke and that was a nice smooth backstroke. A friend in another E forum has Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo-I did wonder if she had it too for a while but no, she had been checked out for it, she was a nurse. What med/meds is it you are on if you dont mind me asking?

 

[Music36]

Labrat,

I'm on Tegretol XR (700 mg) and Keppra XR (3,000 mg). I used to take Lamictal along with these two, but went off it over a year ago. I also used to be on a higher dose of Tegretol. I've had to deal with a lot of side effects.

I also get less dizzy when I do backstroke b/c I'm not turning my head. Turning my head can make me really dizzy.

 

[N Sperlo]

I don't see what there is to be embarrassed about.

I work in a pharmacy and am always amazed at what little people know about drugs. Then again, we are a specialty pharmacy.

The highlight of your day is pets? Better post some pictures in your albums....

 

[Labrat]

It was just all the stuff in the advised posts about alternative therapies. I was a bit worried I might be on a forum that was for alternative therapies. I'm new I didn't know.

My mum drives me up the wall. Doctors tell her to take things and she just follows along blindly. Every time I go along to see her I take an age appropriate copy of the BNF.

I started looking everything up after I had an awful neuro. My husband and I decided to try for a baby and (oh this was after she told me I didn't have E, due to one normal EEG; I asked her if I could stop taking the drugs or would she like me to go out, so she could actually review my notes) she gave me a drug change over from Epilim to Lamotragine. Only thing was there are separate instructions for taking lamotragine as a monotherapy or with other drugs especially valproate. You'll know that.

I had no idea of this at the time, though on reflection before I was married to my husband I was moving in to his place, I messed up my dosage, thus had 300mg of lamotragine inside me with 500+mg valproate. My then boyfriend managed to get a completely dizzy and disorientated me to casualty. Doctor assumed I was a junkie, wouldnt listen to my man but kept saying 'what has she taken and how much and how long ago'. Thankfully I vomited all over Dr. Attentive and Empathy.
Husband says the junkie belief was confounded by many scratches on arms and legs - at the time we had two cats (I have a picture of Fred, don't think I have one of Jess here)

The exact same dizzy/vomiting happened on drug changeover I was given for the Epilim/Lamotragine switch around 300mg mark. Thrice. Creepy neuro decided to hospitalise me because I obviously couldnt manage her drug algorithm.

I was also referred to a very nice psychiatrist. But she asked me psychy things. I studied psychology for 2 years before I decided it wasn't for me. Hadn't the foggiest why I was there but I answered the stuff about my E, acceptance cant remember much else she asked.
Next thing I knew my discharge sheet said 'Epilepsy' and in other conditions box it said 'NEAD'.
The neuro had never witnessed any of the dizzy/vomiting episodes and as far as I am aware none of that has anything to do with NEAD, but the trip to the psych became clear. I tend to think it was a bit of medical bum covering, as I found the correct drug algorithm in an academic paper and you have to lower the levels of valproate before increasing lamotragine to 300mg otherwise - bleugh.

The NEAD seemingly drifted from my medical records as I was passed from neuro to neuro, there being no basis for it. I asked my Doctor at the uni and he seemed a bit surprised, had a check and said that I was being treated for Epilepsy. One neuro had made mention of NEAD the next had updated with that mention and then it .....drifted off.

Not the only ADR I've had; Keppra was a goodie, I have a fab paper on the genetics of that if you are interested. But it is a bit old so you likely have it anyway.

Sorry this is a bit TL;DR - long awaited animals coming up - This is Libby
Oh sorry no can do, will find out what albums are and load animal pics.

 

[Porkette]

Hi Labrat,

I think it's great that you are studying Pharmacology there's a lot to study in that field and a person has to know all the detail of chemicals along with the interactions of meds. You should be very proud of yourself. I always wanted to get into the medical field but back in my days they wouldn't let people with epilepsy work in the med field for fear they might do something wrong during a seizure. I know that if my math was a lot better I would love to be working in Forensic Science I find that amazing.
You keep up the good work. I wish you the best of luck and May God Bless You!

Sue