Hi Cathy and Phillip! You said that the med changes make your childs emotions go flying..was this before or after the keppra? If it's more noticeable after being on Keppra, your child might have what's called Kepprage. If that's the case, you might want to try a vitamin B-6 supplement. That's worked for adults on keppra...don't know if it will help your child...so ask the neuro first...and tell him why. Let him know it's because the child is more irritable..
As for the 5 year old being scared...well, I'm going to tell you how I reacted to my seizures. My mom freaked out and got panicky looking and worried every time I had a seizure. It made me feel guilty for having the seizures...and my brothers learned to fear them. My dad responded to a my seizures in a relaxed, laid back way. When he came to get me at school or at the hospital, he'd smile at me gently and would ask how I was feeling...and then if he knew I had a test at school that day or something, he'd crack a joke...something like, "so you must really not want to take that test today..."..something that would make me smile. For the longest time as an adult, after a seizure I would feel so guilty for having it...and then, after a while, I realized that constantly apologizing and feeling ashamed of myself for having them was ridiculous. Try to make sure that your children dont see you panicked and worried looking. I know it's hard..but even at that young an age, they an pick up how you're feeling, and it can effect how they react emotionally. Your 5 yr. old is prollyl fearful because he doesn't know exactly what is wrong with the 3 yr. old...but it looks scary and definitely makes you and your hubby worried..so he gets his reaction from watching you. Try educating the 5 yr. old. In as simple a terms as possible. And do it when the younger one isn't having a seizure. Just take the 5 yr. old aside and say something like this..."do you get scared when X gets sick?" "Mommy and daddy do to. But you need to know that X has seizures. Epilepsy is kinda like having everything in your brain trying to do stuff at the same time...kinda like lightning trying to flash all at one time. You can't catch what he has, and even though it can look scary, he doesn't hurt when his brain does this. He loves you just as much. And so do we. We don't want you to be scared. The epilepsy is not a bad thing...just a different thing. do you have any questions?" Then answer his questions. Also, try telling him what he can do to help his baby brother if he sees him having one. Knowing what to do and what is happening will do alot to get rid of his fear. Trust me, I'm a teacher and have this talk to my kids at the beginnning of every semester. And yes, I've had them in front of my students. They all responded great.