Which Seizure Trigger Is Your Hardest Battle?

Posted by Chris Gautier, Volunteer Mentor @santosha, Nov 3, 2025

For two years after my epilepsy diagnosis, I had no idea seizure triggers even existed. The doctors I saw never mentioned them. When I finally stumbled upon the concept of seizure precipitants, it felt like discovering a missing piece of my own puzzle.
That's when I turned into a detective of my own body. Armed with a daily journal, I started connecting the dots between my seizures and what came before them. Slowly, but surely, the culprits revealed themselves: gluten, low sodium, poor sleep, my menstrual cycle, stress, and anxiety. Each one a potential match that could light the fuse.
The physical triggers: poor sleep, gluten, menstrual cycle and low sodium? I've learned how to manage them better. Eliminating gluten alone slashed my seizures by 60%.
Anxiety and stress— They remain my most relentless opponents in this battle, despite my yoga practice and exercising.
Now I'm wondering: What's YOUR toughest trigger to tame?
Have you found strategies that actually work? Whether it's something you've mastered or something that still defeats you, I want to hear your story. Your experience might be exactly what someone else needs to hear today.
Share your trigger battles below—let's learn from each other!

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

gregd1956 | @gregd1956 | Jul 20 1:02pm

In reply to @santosha "@gregd1956 Hi Greg, Reading back through this discussion, I wondered if you'd had the chance to..." + (show)

@santosha
Dear Chris,
I all ways have anti-seizure - 3 times a day. I’ve done the last 14 years, until the last 6 years, the antis works.

During this, the ‘Mayo’ computer-system worker changed to a different one like this.

Thank-you and read of your stuff is great. Thanks again.
Greg D. @greg1956

belinda5000 | @belinda5000 | Jul 20 7:21pm

my hardest seizure battle is crowds

Belinda

royanthony | @royanthony | Jul 21 2:33pm

In reply to @santosha "@royanthony Hi Roy, Thank you for the update. I'm sorry to hear that three companies gave..." + (show)

@santosha Yes. It is good but not dark enough for me. I need the leaded decaf !

Chris Gautier, Volunteer Mentor | @santosha | Jul 21 4:55pm

In reply to @royanthony "@santosha Yes. It is good but not dark enough for me. I need the leaded decaf..." + (show)

@royanthony
Hi Roy,
Ha — "leaded decaf," If I could, I'd ship you some good & dark decaf coffee from Brazil right now.
I hope in the near future you find a source for a properly dark decaf!
Chris

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Chris Gautier, Volunteer Mentor | @santosha | Jul 21 5:02pm

In reply to @belinda5000 "my hardest seizure battle is crowds Belinda" + (show)

@belinda5000
Hi Belinda,
Thank you for sharing that!
Have you found ways to cope with this trigger? Are there certain situations or places where it's worse — like concerts, malls, or public transport?
Chris

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Chris Gautier, Volunteer Mentor | @santosha | Jul 21 5:12pm

In reply to @gregd1956 "@santosha Dear Chris, I all ways have anti-seizure - 3 times a day. I’ve done the..." + (show)

@gregd1956
Hi Greg,
Thank you for sharing this, and for your kind words — I really appreciate it!
I want to make sure I understand you correctly — when you say "antis," do you mean your anti-seizure medications? And could you tell me a bit more about what changed in the last 6 years — did your anti-seizure medications stop working as well as they did before?
I'm also not quite sure I follow how the change in Mayo's online system fits in — could you tell me a bit more about what you meant there?
Chris

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Chris Gautier, Volunteer Mentor | @santosha | Jul 21 5:35pm

In reply to @kb2014 "@santosha yes this is a tough one. I have had trauma recovery domestic violence treatment. Yes..." + (show)

@kb2014a
I'm so sorry to hear that. Have you considered support from a neuropsychologist or therapist experienced in both seizure management and family relationship patterns? Sometimes having a professional third party can help a lot!
Crossing my fingers for you!
Chris

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belinda5000 | @belinda5000 | Jul 22 4:04am

In reply to @santosha "@belinda5000 Hi Belinda, Thank you for sharing that! Have you found ways to cope with this..." + (show)

@santosha
Where I have problems is when I'm with my congregation, I have to sit up front
because if I sit in the back the motion of everything seeing everyone's head will cause me have a seizure , so I have to be at least 3 rows up front. My congregation is very large.
I could never live in a large city it's bad enough were I live.

kb2014 | @kb2014 | 6 days ago

In reply to @santosha "@kb2014a I'm so sorry to hear that. Have you considered support from a neuropsychologist or therapist..." + (show)

@santosha yes I got psychotherapy trauma recovery domestic violence treatment. I have to change my responses. People like this are not allowed to be in my life. I set boundaries. The word is NO. In between stimulus and response is pause. My agency as well as theirs.

louissc | @louissc | 5 days ago

In reply to @santosha "@louissc Hi Louis, Nice to hear from you again! Thank you for sharing your hardest triggers..." + (show)

@santosha

Hi Chris,

Apologies for missing your message!

Sometimes it’s the thought or belief I’ll experience an aura somewhere out there which gives me this sense of paranoia. And that in turn is also a trigger. It’s really hard to explain.

As for music, I’m actually listening to more now so that my mind will have more tunes to hum to. That sort of lowers my chance of experiencing an aura.

My sister just introduced me to listening to a classical piece by Mozart (v.448). It’s sort of been proven to decrease frequency of seizures. You can find a rendition of that piece by pianists on YouTube. I’m still seeing if it works! The power of classical music.

Cheers,
Louis