worried about memory loss/confusion

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Thanks for the explanation nakamova, I guess the only way I could find that out would be to have a longish EEG. My neurologist doesn't seem to want to offer one since my first 45min EEG already showed I have epilepsy. Looks like it will probably be near the end of the year before I get another appointment with the neuro.

Thanks for your post Bill, and welcome to the site! Well, I know that 3000 mg Keppra is as high as I can go, and I only started Tegretol pretty recently.

My nurse called back earlier after she spoke to my neuro and they suggested I give the Tegretol a bit longer. I explained to my boss today a little of what was going on, not quite sure what she thought.
 
talk about memory loss. I set here typing in a reply, Looking through that dictionary so that I make sense.
I thought I hit the SEND REPLY. Only to find out I must have hit something wrong. My reply is nowhere to be seen.

Lou, I so sorry for what ALL you are going through, I pray that your boss will understand. I know she sees you trying and in jobs I've in the past, there are some who don't want to work.
 
Memory Loss

Hi Lou,

I have the same memory loss problems on tegretol. I also have a trouble with information processing (slower than normal) for example if I had to write a sentence that someone was verbalizing I would catch the first bit, then be two slow to process the second and then by the time I went to write it all down I would have forgotten the whole thing hahaha. Not good. Directions are the worst for me. It can get quite embarrasing.

I also have a lot of issues with retrieval of memory (i.e. it is there but I can't get to it ) examples include events in the past; like what I did last weekend, words during conversation, jobs I have to do.

My neurologist is moving me over to Keppra now so hopefully that will make a difference.
 
Well I just accidentally took my evening dose of meds twice. I have no idea how. I hope I don't do myself damage. I currently have 3000mg Keppra and 800 Tegretol floating around in my stomach. I must have taken Tuesdays dose when I got in from work and then a couple of hours later took weds dose too. I realised pretty much straight after I took them, but not much I can do now.

Mind u I did have a bit of a bump to the head earlier. Today has really not been a good day lol.

Hi foxy! Nice to meet you. Yeah I think I can sympathize with pretty much everything you said there. Today has been a particularly bad day though. I hope the Keppra works out for you, beware of the kepprage :P

Anyhoo I'm gonna go to sleep now and hopefully be better tomorrow. I wonder how long it will take for this side effect to wear off, I'm certainly living up to my screen name haha! Neuro reckons it could be a few months. On the bright side I'm re-reading a book and some bits are still surprising me!
 
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Hi Loopy, I forget to put on earings , put on my make-up, where I set my keys down, on and on. Some of it is because of all the meds, and some is the coma I was in, but somebody who had a stroke told me when I feel like that (which is every day of my life) just take a deep breath and focus on something small. Then move on. Don't try to fix it. If its super important it will come back. The more stress you put on yourself the more you will forget. My longterm is there short term none. And if it helps try to keep a sense of humor about it. pm me if you want to talk love Teresa
 
Hi Lou,
Im on Tegratol as well as Epilim,annd my memory is shot as well.I can be told something and five minutes later its gone,swirling of into the distance.As Foxy says its there but i just cant download it,its a real bummer.Some people just think im naturally thick and quite frankly i dont really have the energy to correct them any more.Hopefully your memory will improve.
 
I what you all mean about the memory (I couldn't) find the word I wanted to use in the dictionary.
I too am embarr. when with others who JUST told me something (like what they want to drink in wendy's-then when I get to drink station, I have forgotten already. I would hate to have to pull out a note pad in the midddle of wendy's (while holding onto my walking stick, heavy purse w/medi.) just to write down COKE. (FOR GOODNESS SAKE)
I really don't think my friend understands, again she thinks I'm chosing to not remember. NOW who would chose that.
The more I type in now these LITTLE issues are, the more I think WE with E. know than the average person....

But the about are little things.

You all with jobs, I have such respect for you.

Buy the way can anyone tell me how to get to those icons on the right of screen. I have tried and tried, they just wont move. (ha ha)
 
Wow, I thought I was alone in this. I'm having similar issues, only I think my memory problems aren't caused by my meds (Lamictal), but rather damage caused to my brain from having uncontrolled seizures for so many years. I even forgot to pay my lot rent one month, didn't even realize this until I went into my checkbook to pay the following month's lot rent. Now, like you, I write things down now. I write 'Lot Rent Due' on the first of the month on my calendar, but also a couple of days before.

I've been to my boyfriend's house on a couple of occasions within the last 2 years, but I can't remember one single thing about what it looked like - a room, the entrance, a tree, nothing...nor the people I met while I was there. He talks about them and I can't even remember their hair color, let alone their faces.

I even forgot what had happened to my Pontiac Sunbird maybe 10 years ago (if that), and even my daughter seemed concerned that she had to remind me that I'd been was rear-ended...something traumatic enough that I would think I would remember.

I've problems with my long term memory as well. I seem to remember childhood events quite vividly and many that occurred into my 20's, but I've lost huge chunks of my life in there...my 30's and 40's are pretty much gone, with the exception of the most traumatic and emotional life events, such as my struggle to get a diagnosis.

Some of my biggest memory-problem worries though involve math and spelling. I used to be able to spell virtually any word, though now I often find myself googling spellings because I'm uncertain. Also, math...I've actually forgotten how to add, subtract, multiply, and divide, and often find myself running to my calculator for what used to be a relatively simple math equation for me.

Anybody else here? This math problem especially really has me worried, as I used to be an A-student, even in calculus.
 
Like you it is not just my memory.
I don't what you call this.
example in check out line at grocery store. they tell me the amt. I owe. (I know was a 7 is, or 5) But I can not write that, or log in the name of store and date. I get so embarrrassed, I can hear the people behind when they take a deep breath, but let it out, loud so I can hear them.

I try to hurry so I can get out of there, but it seems the hurry I try, I mess up even more.

I write as best I can and try to figure it out when I get home.
I have had to ask my husband "what do you think this is"

I think he gets a headace everytime my bank statement comes.

I didn't think the bad writing, unable to form letters on paper had anything to do with E.
 
I cant even help my 1st and 3rdgrader with simple arithmetic-sometimes it seems easy until I find out I did it wrong-like a block in my head and the more I stare I have no idea even how to begin.Soc sec told me I could get a job with no math or recollection needed and away from too many people and indoors.Like cleaning an office bldg with another person.
 
I am an assistant and work with Special Ed. children in a Middle school. I am SO worried I will not be able to help them properly this year since my diagnosis of Epilepsy and being put on Topamax. I am taking some time off of work and planning on going back after Thanksgiving break. I figure that way, my body will be used to the medicine hopefully (?). Right now, I have been building up to the 200mg. dose and trying to deal with this dizziness, sleepiness, and memory problems. I honestly don' tthink I can handle the 61/2 day at school with those children yet! I am hoping I don' tlose my job over this...but I can't deal with the dizziness and possibly walk through the halls with kids running into me and screaming! Not to mention the need for naps every couple of hours, and all of the sudden, I can't remember how to spell things! Great for helping students, right? Has anyone else had to take time off of work when they were first put on meds?
 
I'm so glad that there are people who know exactly how I feel. I was feeling very isolated just before I posted this thread. It's a shame that any of us have to feel this way but I'm glad I'm not alone.

I finally asked at work if I could reduce my hours to 16 a week. It means losing some money but I really can't keep it up anymore. I'm also going to see the disability employment advisor at the social security place and see if he can help me find something more suitable/less stressful.
 
I am sorry you had to do this Lou, but I am happy that I am not alone because I did the very same thing! Not that I reduced the amount of hours, but decided to wait until Thanksgiving break until I go back to work. You see, in school, I can't cut back on my hours...it's either all or nothing...so I have to wait until there is a break and come back when I feel I can handle the full time hours...does that make sense? In other words, I HAVE to work the FULL day...all 6.5 hours...Mon.-Fri. I'm hoping the dizziness is more tolerated by then, and I'm no sleeping all the time either. Who knows...if I'm no better, I may have to stop working all together. We'll see how it goes.
 
People use to tell me that I should draw disability. I always said NO I could work and I did for 20 something years.

I haven't been able to how down a job since 1996.

Each year i think OK, this medic. or my paying more attention to my sleep, eating, etc. - I will be able to get a job. One that has insurance.
WELLL that has not happened.

So I asked my neur. about disability, he said that the Law in GA. I would have to have worked in the last 10 years.

I didn't know that.

I thought I would share with you, so if the case for you is that you can not work. I know none of us want to go there, but as life has taught us, we don't always get what we want.
But like you guys said IT IS nice to know we are not alone, don't why but there is comfort in that.
 
Just want to throw this out there, and have mentioned this in other threads: Have any of you with memory problems had mri's to determine if you have lost brain matter?

I'd already lost brain matter before my E was known, and was a suspected (damn, I can never think of the word when I need it...) DEMENTIA(!!!) patient, months before I was diagnosed with epilepsy. We're still toying with that one. I can't blame the meds for my memory loss, I can possibly blame the E (although a couple of epilepsy nurses recently said my issues sounded more like dementia than E).

If you have memory issues, and an MRI is possible (via your insurance, or however it works in your world), I recommend one, so you know - if you want to - what you are really dealing with. If your medication is working for you, other than "memory problems", why change it, if the "memory problems" aren't going to go away no matter what medication you use?

I have temporal lobe ATROPHY showing on my MRIs and CTs; if you google it, the prognosis is not pretty. No change in my E medication is going to change my memory problems. I'm not trying to be a downer here; I just hate seeing people chase their tails for nothing.

I recently refused to switch from Topamax on the basis that it "may" improve my memory a little, because it controls my blinding migraines (which I had 90% of the time - highly unusual). Sometimes we have to choose which is the lesser of two evils.

I hope that makes sense. Sometimes I ramble, y'know? (Just lucky this is the internet, and we're not speaking in person, coz that's a whole other box of dice...)
 
No, I understand where you're coming from there chel. I'm supposed to be having a 3 tesla MRI whatever that is, but this being the NHS its so far taken 5 months to organize.

I think the idea is that they want to see if this machine will pick up something my last MRI missed. Must be stronger or something. I really wish this wasnt my "hard week" at work (where I have a whole load of hours)
 
I had an mri that said normal.But I wish someone could just walk in my shoes and view the messes I make all day long for NO FLIPPING REASON! Why is there a dress cut up on the floor or milk poured on counter or piano pulled out[no that mustve been hard because I cant budge it back] or orders for movies I already have or 3 calls to same person or using whole bottle of laundry soap in one day but cant find the clothes? This was just the past couple days and it sure puts a strain on my mental instability.Im beginning to think my house is haunted!
 
Hi Lou,

Nice to meet you too. I keep reading about this Keppra rage. bit scary really. I have lots of Q's but will do a seperate post as to not stuff up this one. Please give any advice you can. Thanks

Mel
Big hugs. I am here for you babe.:wave:
 
Sorry you guys have these problems. It does help to read about them and know I am not alone. I can almost feel my hard-drive, aka brain, searching for the missing word in the middle of my sentences. And lately it has been getting worse, my not remembering if I've done something or not. Today I loaded notebooks, papers, etc. in car for my errand run and I swear I went out there 2 more times to make sure I actually put some stuff in. No, it isn't OCD, it's short term memory loss.

I also will read or hear an expression that gets stuck in my brain and I'll use it as if it's original to me. I do that a lot. I did it here once, used the expression "sucks like a hill o beans". Thought that was totally mine!! And sorry, I repeat myself a lot as I forget what I've said.
 
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I forget to put my earings on or my make up on. I know it is hard. I do the dumbest things. I walked around the whole night the other night and didn't remember a thing. I have written in my journals and skipped words in there. I get tired, pained from grand/mals. I don't even remember what meds I take anymore or all the kinds of seizures I have. But You guys it does suck. But try to remember what is good in your life. Who loves you. Who or what you love. We all have something.We are so blessed to be able to come here and talk about it. Well, I'm just trying to think of the good. I have a whole life to live. And I intend to spill those beans out like knowledge and less ignorance. Good way to make friends.
 
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