Pain and 'breath-holding' with seizures?

[elizzza811]

Sorry for the long post, but could these 'attacks' I've been having be seizures/seizure-related? Possibly 'auras' that precede a seizure? I have these episodes probably twice a month or so? I haven't really been paying attention to their frequency, but they happen often enough that I'm getting worried that Lamictal might not be enough.

Okay, so yesterday I didn't feel well all day long, but I pushed myself to get some work done. By evening I felt like death, meaning I had this same 'cluster' of symptoms that always seem to accompany these 'attacks'. Severe burning pain in my spine, burning pain in the center of my chest, just below my breasts in the center (I actually worried I might be having a heart attack...that's how painful it was). I was sweating on and off all day long...actually turned the AC on for a little, and it wasn't even that warm out. A thick white coating on my tongue and my 24/7 clenching increased exponentially by evening.

Then I saw the video below and realized that during these 'attacks', I breathe just like this guy does, only much more mildly, and obviously I was conscious throughout. I find myself holding my breath and then exhaling with effort, only to find myself holding my breath all over again.



So I guess my questions are...

Can seizures be painful? Or can pain precede a seizure? Could pain be an aura?

And can breath-holding be a seizure symptom, or an aura preceding one?

I actually decided to take my Lamictal about 2 hours early yesterday evening because of this 'attack', and within about 5 minutes or so, all of these symptoms subsided. I took a Benadryl at the same time. And someone else posted in another thread that vitamin D seems to trigger their seizures, so I guess I should also mention that earlier that day I'd taken a calcium/D supplement.

I guess I'm worried because, prior to a seizure, I'd always suffer this same cluster of symptoms. Actually, during at least one of my seizures I was breathing just like this and was clenching my fists (so I'm told).

 

[C0urt]

I had one,
I thought i had a heart attack at first, it was enough for me to go the er, he just called it a pain seizure, and gave me ativan and sent me home.

i have only ever had the one. it was agrevating, because my left shoulder is broken and taking the brace on and off to take test in the er and stuff. and the doc wanting to come in and put their hand on your shoulder trying to be comforting not paying attention, to huge brace and the broken shoulder

 

[elizzza811]

Thanks! That's interesting. So were conscious during the seizure to be aware of the pain?

Sometimes I actually think I had my hysterectomy because of these seizures...because of the pain. They never found any endometriosis, which is what I thought they'd find again, what caused me to make the decision for them to cut my organs out in the first place...these pain episodes. I also had an excruciating pain episode a couple of days after the surgery, yet they could find no reason for it. Hmmm?

 

[Nakamova]

And can breath-holding be a seizure symptom, or an aura preceding one?

Breath holding might actually trigger a seizure. One way to potentially defer or stop a seizure is by increasing carbon dioxide. (See http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3152150/) So it would seem logical that holding one's breath would increase CO2 and help derail a seizure. BUT holding one's breath can increase respiration, so it's actually much better to increase CO2 by exhaling, rather than by holding one's breath, and by breathing small regular breaths from the diaphragm (rather than the chest). The idea isn't to lower oxygen, but to increase CO2. More info here: http://www.selfgrowth.com/articles/...breathing-exercise-simple-or-partial-seizures

 

[C0urt]

I was awake the entire time, which made me have trouble believing it was a seizure a first.

I was hold my breath during it, and had to force myself to breath the whole time. if some one didnt catch me and tell me breath it wuld have been much worse.