I'm worried about my girlfriend

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Mygirlhasepilepsy

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My girlfriend has epilepsy and she seems to be tires all the time! She works at supermarket on shift work that changes daily. She is on two types of meds which I currently don't know the name of but she seems spacey and fatigued most of the time. In addition to this she does not sleep well and drinks a lot of coffee to counter act the effects of the meds please give me some feed back on the symptoms and effects of the drugs/epilepsy as I am new to this and don't want to smother her with questions and ideas to help her. Your feed back would be appreciated I am eager to learn more about this illness before I get to involved with trying to help her it is a touchy subject in conversation
 
fatigue is a side effect from medications she takes.
drowsiness,dizziness,double vision are all common side effects of epilepsy meds.
Be there for her and be supportive if she wants to talk about it.

You can look up on line about epilepsy just write epilepsy medications and side effects.
You'll be able to find out things for yourself and why she acts the way she does.
 
welcome :)
what type of seizures does she have and what type of meds is she on?
 
Some of the meds that I'm on make me tired. If I have a seizure I'll be very tired after it and fall asleep. I'll usually be tired the day after it too and sleep much of it.

Too much caffeine can cause seizures. It does for me. I don't know how many seizures she has or how often but this might be the cause of it if she's having a lot. Another thing that can cause seizures is not getting enough sleep.

It's great that you want to find out as much as you can to help her! Hope you can get your questions answered on here.

Good to meet you!
 
Thanks for the help I just want to understand more about! I get a bit annoyed at times because she doesn't want to do stuff like going for a walk or going for a drive to get some ice cream and sit at the beach she always wants to stay home and watch tv which I don't think is healthy plus it can get quite boring but I love and her and am willing to persevere with it!! Is exercise a good idea like to start off easy then build fitness over time I thought this would benefit her in the long run. I know everyone gets tired from work and life etc.. But it seems she is always tired and it worries me. She hasn't had a seizure since October then the doc put her on a new pill which seems to be helping a lot. I'm staying at her house tonight and will try to find out what she's taking ( I'll be subtle about it of course) just a worried bf that she is letting it control her life and think if we were to go for a holiday overseas or something that we would not be able to do a lot of activities!! Thank you all for your advice and knowledge much appreciated to say the least!!
 
Not sure about what type it's a fairly new relationship at the moment I will ask her! Just don't want to smother her with questions.
 
Well, my bf and I talk about it. He has actually helped me identify some of the seizures I have since for the most part I don't remember them. I would tell her that you love her very much and that you are a bit concerned about her epilepsy and ask her if there is anything she wants you to know. Also if you are around her and she does have a seizure just stay calm. I don't know if you havee ever witnessed them, but it is not helpful to freak out. Maybe she hasn't said anything because she is afraid you won't want to be with her? Its a possibility. Also ask her what kinds she has that is important for you to know if she was to have one around you. That way you can look up the information on the specific types she has and then you would be able to figure out what to do first aid wise and when you should call 911. Just make sure she knows you are a bit concerned and would like to know more. My boyfriend is pretty quiet about it, but he gets scared when I do have them. He always checks on me and if I'm particularly grumpy after one I do get annoyed, but I know it is because he cares about me and I am very greatful for it. So I would guess she would be greatful that you are concerned.
 
Welcome! My girlfriend and i are in love and I am the one with E. So i sympathize for you both. In my case, exercise helps a lot, with mood and metabolizing meds and getting blood flowing. sometimes the meds make people extra tired and that may fade and also it can help a lot to research what the med may do (besides stopping seizures) For example; keppra depleted my zinc and taking fish oil and minerals (quality ones) has made a big, big difference for me. And i recommend extra water.
 
Mygirlhasepilepsy said:
My girlfriend has epilepsy and she seems to be tires all the time! She works at supermarket on shift work that changes daily. She is on two types of meds which I currently don't know the name of but she seems spacey and fatigued most of the time. In addition to this she does not sleep well and drinks a lot of coffee to counter act the effects of the meds please give me some feed back on the symptoms and effects of the drugs/epilepsy as I am new to this and don't want to smother her with questions and ideas to help her. Your feed back would be appreciated I am eager to learn more about this illness before I get to involved with trying to help her it is a touchy subject in conversation
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hi there,
i was always an active person.
when i was diagnosed at 16 i was playing all kinds of sports. after about 6 months on epilim i started to get really tired, lazy and always felt fatigued. unfortunately this has carried on with me. i sleep at least 10 hours every night and i even nap on the weekends, my boyfriend understands and leaves me to nap in the afternoons, sometimes i nap up to 3 hours on the weekend. i know it is not really normal for a person of my age (26) to feel tired, but the meds make me feel like this. my mood also changes. but my boyfriend and i live happily and he helps me with everything :)
it never hurts to ask questions, it is one of those disorders that is misunderstood. i didn't even know what it was when i was diagnosed!
good luck
kind regards
Candice
 
Hi again. I have heard that some people with epilepsy must nap every day because of tiredness but also that it helps. Over tired can be a trigger for seizures so if tired i just nap or at least take it easy and rest. No guilt about it either! its better than being at risk.
 
As asked have you seen her have a seizure yet? Does she have tonic colonics, the kind that you shake during, or partials when she would just stare or maybe do goofy things?

If you haven't seen her have one yet she might be afraid that you are going to run away scared, especially if she has one in public. She may have had ones in public before, they aren't fun, and doesn't want that to happen again which is why she doesn't like to do things.

As said be as calm as you can during it. If you feel like you need to call 911 because the seizure is bad and she doesn't come out of it for over a good while then do it.

The first seizure I had with my husband (boyfriend then) was about 3 weeks into the relationship. He called my parents when it happened and they told him to call back when I was out of it. I was still having the seizure over 10 minutes later so they said they'd be over to take me to the ER.

The only think that he was really scared about was that I didn't have any clothes on (sorry if that's too much info). Somehow he managed to get me dressed, because I was fighting like crazy trying not to let him, before my parents got there.

Around a year into the relationship he started coming to my neuro visits so he could lean as much as he could and I think he knows more than anyone in the family. But now 10 years and I can't even begin to count how many seizures later he's still here.
 
I have no intention of leaving here because of the epilepsy

We have talked about it a bit but I don't like to push the matter co it can be a bit of a mood killer at times. I haven't expire necks one yet but have a few friends with epilepsy and know how to Handle one. Mostly trying to learn more about it without bombarding her with questions because we both work we don't get to see each other a lot so I try and make our time together pleasant.

I will find out what tablets she's on so I can research them a bit but all in all I just want to be there for her and help in any way I can!!

Thanks for caring
 
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