Epilepsy Talk
A BIG Mistake | October 21, 2021
I know it’s happened to many of you, but this is the first time for me.
I forgot to take my nighttime meds.
At 4:00 AM, Arthur said: “Are you sure you took your meds?” (They’re right by my toothbrush, as clear as day.)
Sure enough, I had forgotten and at 4:00 AM, I diligently took them.
Well, at 9:00, it was time to get up and take my day-time meds.
Boy was I sick. (A conflict of interests?) Nauseous, dizzy, the works.
Went back to sleep for 6 hours, but no relief.
After a late dinner, because I was feeling so ill, I took my nighttime meds again.
This time I wasn’t going to forget.
It was a slow haul going back to sleep. But with the help of 10 MG of Melatonin, I finally drifted away.
Oh happy day. A whole nights sleep.
Funny (not so funny), how drugs have such a hold on us.
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Tags: day-time meds, dizzy, forgot, melatonin, nauseous, nighttime meds, no relief, sleep
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Epilepsy Talk 
In a sense, it’s an accident waiting to happen. I remember times it happened to me and it didn’t stop there. You don’t just forget taking your med. Sometimes you forget to eat something after taking it and start feeeling dizzy and seeing double. Try looking at reports at work or trying to write when the paper keeps moving.
This is an indication of how thankful I am I don’t have to take meds anymore.
I hope you’re OK now and this doesn’t happen again!
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Comment by Ed Lugge — October 21, 2021 @ 12:46 PM
I don’t know why, but it usually happens at night. Maybe because I’m so tired, I’m remiss.
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Comment by Phylis Feiner Johnson — October 21, 2021 @ 1:06 PM
I have an alarm on my Smartphone to remind me of pill time. last week I turned off the alarm and still forgot to take my meds. It wasn’t a good night. I woke with a bruised black toenail and a bruise on the opposite knee. I’m pretty sure it was a Focal Unaware, my usual type, and I must have walked into something. Anyway after all that. Even if you set an alarm keep your pills close and don’t forget to take them right away.
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Comment by Donna Jones — October 21, 2021 @ 12:46 PM
Oooohhhh Donna! What a tough way to “learn a lesson”. But your advice is well taken. Thanks for the tip.
Question: if you take your meds several different times of day, do you set your alarms separately? Do you have to use different tunes? I’m pretty dense in this matter!
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Comment by Phylis Feiner Johnson — October 21, 2021 @ 1:11 PM
I do set my times differently,3 times a day, a different sound from other notifications. but even after I turn off the alarm I sometimes get distracted and forget to take them. I only remember that I forgot when it’s time for my next dose. If possible have your pills Blister Packed at the pharmacy. Then I don’t have to deal with counting them which I’m also bad at.
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Comment by Donna Jones — October 21, 2021 @ 1:27 PM
Oh no, i hate that feeling did i or did i not take meds. 🙂 I have a week container so if my pill is still in there then i know i did not take. Since i cut my pills in half, i have one half pill in my pill box that i don’t know what to do with other than wait for another occurrence of my not remembering. It happens, but wow u got hit violently because of it. My miss didn’t do anything, i just went to take the other pills like it never happened and all was well. I used to program my cell to give me an alarm when to take my meds. Now i don’t even use that i’m so trained in taking. Missing one dose should not cause such violent behavior, what meds caused it if u don’t mind me asking?
Cheers, be well Phylis!!!
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Comment by Zolt — October 21, 2021 @ 12:55 PM
Well the worst was Xanax and Klonopin. Happily, I was ok with the Effexor.
And of course, I discovered it after the fact, when the mistake had already gone into action.
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Comment by Phylis Feiner Johnson — October 21, 2021 @ 1:18 PM
I developed a little trick over 30 years ago – as soon as you take your medication flip over the bottle so it’s upside down – you don’t want to double dose! If your meds are in a plastic 7 day container – get those little adhesive dots and put them on the box when you take them.
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Comment by Leon Chavarria — October 26, 2021 @ 2:13 PM
BRILLIANT Leon! You and Gerrie have the problem licked…
And I even have a 7-day container. So, all I have to do is get some of those magic dots at the pharmacy (where I seem to live) and I’ll be set.
I think I’ll try out both methods…an embarrassment of riches! 😉
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Comment by Phylis Feiner Johnson — October 26, 2021 @ 4:29 PM
I use two day of the week boxes, which are different colored for am and pm, plus alarms. I had to do this after I went to the hospital for taking a double dose of lamotrigine because I forgot I took it.
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Comment by Hetty Eliot — October 21, 2021 @ 7:06 PM
Good plan. Although I guess you learned the hard way. 😔
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Comment by Phylis Feiner Johnson — October 21, 2021 @ 8:45 PM
We all do when it comes to meds.
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Comment by Hetty Eliot — October 21, 2021 @ 9:16 PM
Thank you for writing about very important incidents to seizure control medications.
Having hard time remembering if I took my medications or not, to the point of missing a dose & ending up having a grand mal seizure, I finally came up with the idea of setting up my Iphone alarm to reminding me when I must take my medications (twice a day) & moving my medications from one side (right) of the drawer to the other side (left) corner of my drawer each time I take my medications, for confirmation that I took my morning or night medications by simply tracking the location of my medications in the drawer.
Persistently sticking to this mechanism, I eliminated the possibility of missing or double taking my medications in error.
It’s relieving to know that I’ve reduced or eliminated of making the same mistake again.
Gerrie
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Comment by Gerrie — October 22, 2021 @ 12:14 AM
I love the drawer idea. I think I’m going to start that. It’s much better than just keeping day and night meds on the same place on the sink next to my toothpaste. (What if I forget to brush my teeth?)
But how do you remember to go into the drawer? iPhone alarm?
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Comment by Phylis Feiner Johnson — October 22, 2021 @ 9:44 AM
Phylis,
Setting up the Iphone alarm is NOT as complicated as it sounds.
By selecting “essentials” button from your IPhone menu, you will notice one of the options to pick from many of the options available is “Calendar” button.
Once you opened up the “Calendar” settings, you will see each day is broken into hours.
Therefore, you can pick the exact time you take your medications, enter & save a reminder to take you medications on your calendar.
Once you set the time to take your medications & saved it in your calendar, the Iphone alarm will go off every time you made it to the exact time you got to take your medications.
The same reminder can be repeated as to how many times a day you take your medications.
The reminder can be repeated everyday by selecting the “repeat” option.
I hope this note helps to whoever needs to set up the Iphone alarm.
Gerrie
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Comment by Gerrie — October 22, 2021 @ 10:42 PM
I have frequent seizures, so I also get them when I’m taking meds,I live on my own so I don’t have anyone to say you’ve had your meds, so I just leave them until the next time so I don’t overdose
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Comment by Gail Barry — October 22, 2021 @ 3:29 AM
Sounds like it would be a good idea to adopt Gerrie’s plan. I’m going to.
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Comment by Phylis Feiner Johnson — October 22, 2021 @ 9:46 AM
Thanks so much for sharing your “BIG Mistake” with us. Perfect timing. It was one of the factors I was thinking about as I hit a landmark – coming off of the stuff (Clonazepam)! Last night was my final dose. You think I wasn’t scared and excited?
I’m looking over my pill dispenser right after the alarm went off at 8 last night while making absolutely sure that I do NOT take it. All of the methods from those who responded of how they remember to take their meds can also be copied, to a certain degree, when it comes to taking the right combination of meds.
Well, after taking Clonazepam for at least five years I was weaned off of it over this month. While I am not naïve, I just had to share that I had no seizures in my sleep. And I thought of all of you while not taking that little yellow pill last night. Thanks!
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Comment by George Choyce — October 22, 2021 @ 12:53 PM
George, you rock!!!
CONGRATULATIONS!
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Comment by Phylis Feiner Johnson — October 22, 2021 @ 3:11 PM
You keep all of us rockin’. That’s quite a vocation you have.
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Comment by George Choyce — October 22, 2021 @ 4:01 PM
Up until 2018 we had a severely damaged awakening my fur baby (feline) was the one who woke me up when it was time for me to take my AEDs no matter how tired we were from the trauma we were going through!
My favorite alarm clock:)
He was able to teach himself or keep himself in tune for when we were in the kitchen and I was going to have a seizure. He did his thing to get me to warn me to back away from the sink even the microwave when I could still use before we were sabotaged especially with no air conditioning!
He was stolen from me by those who used identity thieves to rough me up again for a rumor that had nothing to do with me!
Now these people are still playing their game and I just got out of the hospital again for Epileptic reasons for seems like the millionth time and they don’t know me or about Epilepsy but it’s like the old tootsie roll commercial “how many licks does it take to get to the middle” the Owl asked.
These people have been doing this to me since 2011 and I have been to police and they still want what I don’t have whole dramatic thing, that is scary if you’re living it!
I’ve lost too much blood that I really need to sleep and heal but it all laughable to themselves.
The drama is too much for me… They .. I live with Epilepsy and I was diagnosed with PTSI as its called now because of traumatization and I have to go back in their time to be them, when I was getting help for the trauma that I went through and getting heaps of self care information and tips from them in the different city then I am now! I brought those self care hints to help my fur baby and my veterinarian liked them! Reading as much as I had so many people who people wouldn’t expect to love Cats did!
I have to remember that woman who was forced to sit at the back of the bus and she stood up for herself. She also lived with Epilepsy!
Most of the people who don’t know about that support violence… Pulling the community back decades.
It’s not right for the future of the tomorrow if people don’t want to Learn.
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Comment by Tabitha — October 24, 2021 @ 9:37 AM
Keep your friends close and your enemies even closer.
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Comment by Phylis Feiner Johnson — October 24, 2021 @ 10:44 AM