Hi Jake (@jakedduck1)
Just back from my appointment with my epileptologist.
I have asked him about Phenobarbital. He still prescribes it, but it is not his first choice as it leaves people doped and slowed down. He has told me that Phenobarbital has initially been developed in the early 1910s to help people with sleep. A doctor in a home in Germany has given this medication to all patients so that they could sleep and let him also sleep. This doctor has then observed that seizures in one patient with epilepsy have stopped with this medication. This was the way Phenobarbital was discovered as an anti-convulsant. Moreover, he also told me that Phenobarbital is less efficient than other drugs.
I have also asked about people with epilepsy who do wander, if it is frequent. He has told me that wander is something quite rare in people with epilepsy, but it can happen. He told me he had a patient who crossed the underground line once. People are not aware of the dangers they put themselves in, unfortunately.
Santosha