Epilepsy awareness. March is Epilepsy awareness month and being the life long epileptic that I am I figured I should educated the blog world a little on Epilepsy.
A few basic facts:
- Epilepsy is a Physical condition that from time produces brief disturbances in the normal electrical functions of the brain. It is characterized by sudden brief seizures whose nature and intensity vary from person to person.
- Epilepsy is a disorder not a disease; it is not contagious.
- In Canada an average of 42 people a day learn they have Epilepsy.
- In approximately 50% of cases of childhood Epilepsy, seizures disappear completely.
- In 50-60% of cases the cause of Epilepsy is unknown.
- There are over 40 different kinds of seizures that are all categorized into two main types; primary generalized and partial.
My story:
I had my first seizure while still in the hospital when I was only 2 days old; over the next 7 or 8 years I continued to have less obvious seizures (as discovered in retrospect), these included absence seizures, nocturnal seizures, hallucination seizures as well as others. At some point around the age 7 or 8 I started having the more known now called tonic clonic aka grand mal seizures, the fall down unconscious and shake kind. The first time it happened my mom took me to the hospital and the doctor told her it was because I was constipated, no tests, just gave me a stool softener and sent us on our way. That obviously was not the cause because I had several more over the next couple years and after lots of doctor visits and some tests they finally at age 10 diagnosed me with Epilepsy. It took a few years to get the right meds to control my seizures but by the age 16 I had been seizure free for a year and was being weaned off my meds so that I could get my drivers license and have a chance at a "normal" teenage life. Since then I have had one confirmed seizure which was caused by my appendix swelling, and a couple "coulda been but no ones sure". I'm "seizure free" in my medical records for 11 years. There's a chance I could have them again some day; my seizures originated from both halfs of my brain, and from 3 of the 4 lobes. So technically you could say I have some major Brian damage ;) it's a wonder I'm so smart! My Epilepsy is not a secret, but I provide the information usually on a need to know basis. Simply because I do not like to draw too much attention to myself.
A few myths and fun facts:
MYTH - you can swallow your tongue during a seizure - FACT - it is Physically impossible to swallow your tongue, despite popular belief
MYTH - people with Epilepsy are disabled and can not work - FACT - altho it can be more difficult to train and find work if someone is having active uncontrolled seizures, people with Epilepsy hold jobs in all levels of business. I for example have my nursing license and work in a management position in a nursing home.
Fun Fact - a few more famous people with epilepsy include: Vincent Van Gogh, Charles Dickens, Julius Ceaser, Price, Neil Young, Lewis Carrol and many more.
Fun Fact - Vincent Van Gogh often painted his experiences with epilepsy; one of his most famous is "starry night" which is believed to be his portrayal of a visionary seizure.
Fun Fact - Lewis Carrol, author of Alice in wonderland is thought to have been describing his own temporal lobe seizures throughout the novel. Most specifically when Alice falls through the rabbit hole, Also when Alice experiences her body shrinking and growing this is another seizure phenomen experienced by some epileptics.
I personally have a sentimental attachment to the Alice in Wonderland story, I myself have experienced many of the things described in the novel including what has already been mention in addition to others.
And that is all the educating for today :) time for bed!
