Epilepsy Talk
Sodium and Seizures
11 Comments
You may think that sodium is a “bad guy” to be avoided or reduced at all cost, because too much is linked to high blood pressure.
But sodium is actually an essential electrolyte, and a deficiency can trigger seizures.
Seizures from low sodium levels are most likely to occur from a serious disease, acute infection or because you tried to run a marathon on a hot day.
One-time or isolated seizures from these causes don’t warrant a diagnosis of epilepsy.
However, epilepsy is sometimes misdiagnosed and you may have an underlying health condition that’s causing an electrolyte problem.
Tags: balance, blood panel, coma, death, high sodium, low sodium, monitoring, seizures, sodium
Drug Resistant Epilepsy News
34 Comments
News of this groundbreaking scientific discovery comes from “zarabia” a member of the epilepsy support board at WebMD.com. It’s very exciting and offers real hope.
Epilepsy and Electrolytes
28 Comments
It’s a situation often mentioned but rarely understood – the effects electrolytes have on seizures.
But a simple blood test can detect the danger of unbalanced electrolytes.
Taking extra doses of certain minerals can help to prevent side-effects that may follow the long-term use of some seizure medicines.
And taking supplements can help protect the brain (as can a B-Vitamin complex), but it’s no guarantee of seizure control, since there are a lot of different factors at play that can trigger a seizure.
But, making sure you have the right nutrients is just as important as having the right balance between all of them, so that proper electrical connections are maintained.
Tags: balance, blood sugar, Calcium, electrolytes, Epilepsy, magnesium, minerals, oxygen, potassium, seizure control, side effects, sodium, Vitamin-B
Suicide and Epilepsy
27 Comments
The statistics are depressing. (Which is one of the chief factors in suicide.) But studies say that suicide can happen to anyone at any age.
Statistics
Studies show that newly diagnosed epilepsy patients are five times more likely to commit suicide than patients who had been diagnosed more than six months previously.
And a 29-fold increase in suicide risk was seen in newly diagnosed patients with a history of psychiatric illness.
“Newly diagnosed patients often have many misconceptions about the disease,” researcher Per Sidenius, MD, of Aarhus University says. “They often don’t understand that there are good treatments with few side effects.”
How Music Soothes Your Seizures…
2 Comments
Music is food for the soul, the mind and the body.
Great music, when carefully selected, can change our moods, energize us, calm us, improve our mental focus, lift us up spiritually, and help us become more healthy.
Not surprisingly, music has also been found to have a profoundly positive effect on people with epilepsy.
In fact, one research study even found that when patients are treated with music therapy as well as conventional anti-seizure meds, as many as eighty percent of seizures were reduced by seventy-five percent!
Tags: balance, brain health, emotional and physical well-being, energy, Epilepsy, healer, mental focus, mood, Mozart, music, New Age, relax, seizures reduced
Epilepsy, Anxiety and Depression
10 Comments
One study stated that 80% of the patients with epilepsy were also diagnosed as having a depressive disorder.
Upwards of 60% of these individuals had a history of significant episodes of depression.
And 10-32% experience symptoms of anxiety.
Not too reassuring, is it?
Truth is Stranger than Fiction
35 Comments
I call epilepsy a “stealth disease”, because it’s difficult to imagine how so few people know about a “silent” condition that affects so many.
For example, few people know:
Anti-Epilepsy Medication Side-Effects
21 Comments
They’re necessary but not necessarily nice.
And every med has its own side-effects.
Just as different people experience different difficulties.
But here‘s the low-down on the possible side-effects.
I hope you don’t have to suffer any of them. (Or as few as possible.)
Tags: AEDS, different, Epilepsy, medication, possible, side effects
About the author
