Epilepsy Talk
The Trouble with AEDs…
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At the very best, finding the right anti-epilepsy drug is a crap shoot. There’s always the hope that this one will do it.
Or maybe adjunct therapy will work. Or, sigh, the side-effects derail you and you’re on to the next.
Is asking for seizure control too much to ask?
Tags: AEDS, anti-epilepsy drugs, benefits, dangers, seizures, side-effects
The night fright of nocturnal seizures
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I can remember trying to rip out my hair. The inside of my head was going at a million miles an hour.
Sure, I was lucky I didn’t pee in my bed or fall off it. And happily I didn’t bite my tongue. Or end up bruised and sore.
But I was exhausted. With a horrible headache.
Like many, it was hard to stay awake during the day. (Hey, I’d just been up all night. Afraid to go back to sleep.)
It was an endless cycle. I couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t stay awake.
The curse of nocturnal seizures.
More people are smoking marijuana than cigarettes!
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Surprised?
With the legalization of smoking cannabis both for medical and recreational use, it’s clear marijuana’s time has come.
The jury is no longer out. States have been weighing in. And the answer has been a resounding : “Yes”.
Can you get seizures after vaping?
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Reports of people who have seizures after vaping have raised serious questions about the safety of electronic cigarettes, which have grown in popularity in recent years.
Dilantin – What People Are Saying…
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When I was first diagnosed with epilepsy back in 1969, the availability of AEDs was limited.
Phenobarbital or Dilantin.
Pick your poison.
I chose Dilantin. It was not a pretty picture.
I was a walking zombie, constantly keeling over, and the final insult was when I went into a coma because of toxic blood levels. (No brain, no pain?)
But many have their own serious tales to tell. Here are some of their experiences. And some advice…
Dilantin – Hero or Horror?
28 Comments
Since it first came out, Dilantin has always had its fans and its detractors.
Who can forget Jack Nicholson’s out-of-control behavior as the “crazy” in Ken Kesey’s “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”!
Tags: Birth Defects, bone weakening, Brain Atrophy, dangers, Dilantin, FDA, Gingivitis, Neuropathy, Purple Glove Syndrome, risks, seizures, side-effects, Stevens-Johnson Syndrome
Don’t let a “distracted doctor” kill you!
5 Comments
Do you know what happens during surgery?
Cut…open…correct…sew.
Maybe some background music. Hip if the doctor likes that. Or classical.
Well, not exactly.
You might be surprised. Or horrified to learn the truth.
Tags: critical, dangers, death, distracted doctoring, electronic devices, errors, trust
Doctors Distracted by Electronic Devices…
4 Comments
Do you know what happens during surgery?
Cut…open…correct…sew.
Maybe some background music. Hip if the doctor likes that. Or classical.
Well, not exactly.
You might be surprised. Or horrified to learn the truth.
Tags: critical, dangers, death, distracted doctoring, electronic devices, errors, trust
Epilepsy and Birth Control
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Figuring out birth control with epilepsy meds can be a challenge at best.
How will your AEDs affect your birth control? Will your birth control lessen the effectiveness of your meds?
Tags: birth control, birth control pills, complications, dangers, implant, IUD, mini pills, non hormonal, safety, seizures, side effects, skin patches, vaginal ring
BEWARE! AED Safety Risks Withheld
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A study by Johns Hopkins researchers shows that a fifth of U.S. neurologists appear unaware of serious drug safety risks associated with various anti-epilepsy drugs, potentially jeopardizing the health of patients who could be just as effectively treated with safer alternative medications.
The findings suggest that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration needs a better way to communicate information to specialists about newly discovered safety risks, the researchers say, since the warnings are in many cases not getting through to doctors making important prescribing decisions.
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