Do I Have Epilepsy? Many Symptoms.

Posted by ambien1711 @ambien1711, Sep 15, 2017

Hello! I am really scared I may have epilepsy. I am almost 32 and had a horrible head trauma when I was 6. I have had hallucinations, hypnagogic hallucinations, 1 seizure, sleep talking and psychic symptoms such as dreams that come true and phenomena. I just started seeing a new Nurse Practitioner and told her about what I believe was a seizure and she agreed it may have been but just said it was "really weird." She did not refer me but I have physical coming up with her (she was on a short 15-min time schedule when I saw her) and think that she is about to refer me and I will again mention the seizure. There is nothing else that describes the "episode" or what it could have been other than a seizure. My head felt weird and I started dropping, lost control of my muscles and made it, walking half-up, to where my husband was and collapsed on the bed and had auditory hallucinations that kept growing louder and louder. I told him he may need to call 911. But he is SO used to me acting strange that he didn't give it much thought and plus he wanted to avoid a big hospital bill because we cannot afford it. I drive and need to know if this may have been a seizure. I'm surprised that the doc (or NP) cannot tell me. Can anyone here help me? Thank you so much to whoever replies!

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Epilepsy & Seizures Support Group.

Welcome to Connect, @ambien1711
Getting a diagnosis can be challenging. Bringing @dawn_giacabazi so she can share her experience of getting answers and a diagnosis. You may also be interested in reading this discussion in the Epilepsy group on Connect:
- Released from the hospital for "episodes". All tests clear. Confused https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/i-was-recently-released-from-the-hospital-for-episodes-all-testing-came/

I'm glad you have another appointment with your nurse practitioner. Here is some information about how to prepare for the appointment and questions you might consider asking if you suspect you are having seizures: http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/epilepsy/diagnosis-treatment/preparing-for-appointment/ptc-20118392

Keep us posted on what you find out.

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Ambien,im not a doctor but would like to get a little history of problems..I started when i was around 5 with grand mals,back then had a lot of small test done,back then lots of wives tales about what was going on.Luckily i guess they gave me a eeg and had a grand mal while taking ttest,woke all tangled up with vicious migrane,mind almost ablank bite on tongue and pants allwet ,always felt so uncomfortable in public after a seizure..This was always my senario,1.no warning ,seizure starts,doesnt matter time of day or night .2,go into convutions,3 to 5 minutes ,thats what ive been told.Depending where i am and what i hit can get hurt pretty bad.,luckily most seizures happenwithpeople around..Didnt do much in water if alone,Didnt do much work on cars if alone and as a kid i had 5 brothers and sisters so always somone around.fter the convultions wakingup was next..3 Waking up was next,strange feeling at first no memory,as i got older,30s,40s and was living in different state ,nowmarried , its so strange tobe onthe floor and have someone asking whereyou are,and not evenbe able to know .usually its hours of piecing things together and this is all happenig while a migrane headache is going on.At yhe same time realize my mouth ackes from biting tongue ,and clothes wetfrom pee..One episode frontstart to finish maylast quite awhile.and take a few days to be ableto get going againat a slow pace.inmy situation im usually down close to a week.luckily had a job that was understnding.had togo through a lot of jobs to get this one.The unusual thing is had a lot of seizures in my life now 63 still get them.funny thing is my memory about the seizures is gone.Can hardly remember much ofmy childhood,and even when i first got married and had 3 children.Somuch of my life is missing, like my mind wants to forget certain things.eachgrand mal is a 3 day empty gap:In august i had to get a new medicine,the dilantin ihad usedfor 30 plus years was causinga toxicreaction,now on keppra,had 4 grand mals in august ,hope theyraised level high enough gets harder and harder gettingover a seizure,especially as youget older and other med ptoblems pop up for me its copd and ostioperosis.and the seizures last month getting harder to rember them .Right after youhave a grand mal youll know somethings not right,somethingin youre head just doesnt feal right for days..Been going through this for 58 years and still dread the fact another could happen before i punch the dot.as a kid there was always the hope id outgrow it ,im 63 and still waiting to outgrow it.guess ima patient person.lol

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Ive had one seizure before and I was out, grand mal I found out later in the hospital. I dont remember much, even the day after. Sounds like it could be connected to a movement disorder, such as Parkinson's. I also have sleep talking, thrashing, nightmares and Hypnagogic hallucinations. Had 2 sleep studies done in the past, no abnormalities.
I did have to start antiseizure meds and couldnt drive for a awhile. But i eventually got off the meds, never had anything else.
Our bodies are funny how our wires can get crossed. For you, it may be nothing serious, but for everyones safety, would be good just to get checked out, especially if you drive.

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@januaryjane

Ive had one seizure before and I was out, grand mal I found out later in the hospital. I dont remember much, even the day after. Sounds like it could be connected to a movement disorder, such as Parkinson's. I also have sleep talking, thrashing, nightmares and Hypnagogic hallucinations. Had 2 sleep studies done in the past, no abnormalities.
I did have to start antiseizure meds and couldnt drive for a awhile. But i eventually got off the meds, never had anything else.
Our bodies are funny how our wires can get crossed. For you, it may be nothing serious, but for everyones safety, would be good just to get checked out, especially if you drive.

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@januaryjane
It definitely sounds as though you experienced a Generalized seizure. Did you only have the one seizure? To be diagnosed with Epilepsy you have to have 2 or more unprovoked seizures.
Did you experience hallucinations prior to having the seizure? I ask because seizures can cause hallucinations afterwards, even a week later. Some people have hallucination auras prior to the seizure, did that happen to you?
I’m curious if perhaps your sleep issues may have caused or contributed to the seizure. I would not think your sleep quality is top notch due to the talking, thrashing, nightmares and hallucinations. They may have caused an abnormal disruption in the neuronal communication done by electrical and chemical methods and caused the seizure. Poor sleep quality is a major trigger of seizures in people with Epilepsy.
You mentioned “Sounds like it could be connected to a movement disorder, such as Parkinson's.” Do your doctors suspect Parkinson’s? It is rare for someone to have both Parkinson’s and Epilepsy.
Do you know what time of day your seizure struck? Nocturnal seizures are quite common. They usually happen during the transition between wakefulness and REM sleep or stages 1 and 2 of sleep which are times of lighter sleep within a couple hours of nodding off. Seizures also frequently happen just prior to a person wakening. Current belief is seizures don’t develop during REM sleep although I’m skeptical
Anything that disrupts these communication pathways can lead to a seizure. The most common cause of seizures is epilepsy.
I hope you’ve experienced your last seizure..
Take care,
Jake

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@jakedduck1

@januaryjane
It definitely sounds as though you experienced a Generalized seizure. Did you only have the one seizure? To be diagnosed with Epilepsy you have to have 2 or more unprovoked seizures.
Did you experience hallucinations prior to having the seizure? I ask because seizures can cause hallucinations afterwards, even a week later. Some people have hallucination auras prior to the seizure, did that happen to you?
I’m curious if perhaps your sleep issues may have caused or contributed to the seizure. I would not think your sleep quality is top notch due to the talking, thrashing, nightmares and hallucinations. They may have caused an abnormal disruption in the neuronal communication done by electrical and chemical methods and caused the seizure. Poor sleep quality is a major trigger of seizures in people with Epilepsy.
You mentioned “Sounds like it could be connected to a movement disorder, such as Parkinson's.” Do your doctors suspect Parkinson’s? It is rare for someone to have both Parkinson’s and Epilepsy.
Do you know what time of day your seizure struck? Nocturnal seizures are quite common. They usually happen during the transition between wakefulness and REM sleep or stages 1 and 2 of sleep which are times of lighter sleep within a couple hours of nodding off. Seizures also frequently happen just prior to a person wakening. Current belief is seizures don’t develop during REM sleep although I’m skeptical
Anything that disrupts these communication pathways can lead to a seizure. The most common cause of seizures is epilepsy.
I hope you’ve experienced your last seizure..
Take care,
Jake

Jump to this post

Yes, they told me grand mal. I did not have any auras or hallucinations before or after. I only had the one seizure, put on meds for awhile, thats it. Dont think i was ever diagnosed as epileptic. I totally agree my sleep issues could have messed with my brains communications.
It happened in the afternoon, I was cooking with my mom. I just remember I had sat down for a break, and had an awful fatigue. Stood up, fell backwards and started to seize. My mom caught me somewhat, and knew what to do, shes a nurse. I turned purple and was foaming at the mouth, she thought i might be having a heart attack. Dont rememeber much, just that i scared the crap out of her. It was quite the scene i guess. But just a harmless seizure.

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