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Are these pre-seizure signs - or even actually a seizure?

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Epilepsy
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Posted 10/6/2012 5:35 PM (GMT 0)
Hello! I had an abnormal EEG three months ago. They said the left temporal region had the possibility of seizures. They put me on Keppra, but it made me so comatose, that I couldn't drive. So, I weaned off it.

Anyway, this past Wednesday, I was outside and was feeling dizzy and weird (I have Lyme disease, so this is not abnormal for me). I started having a feeling that was almost like that drop on a rollercoaster feeling. I looked down at the leaves on the grass, and they started moving in wavy, horizontal lines. All together, it lasted about 10 minutes. Afterward, I was very lightheaded for a couple hours.

Thursday, I was driving and started feeling the same way - dizzy and odd. I have a feeling that if I had looked at something close to me, I would have seen the wavy lines again. Instead, I focused up the road, at things in the distance. Lasted about 10 minutes again. Afterward, I had sudden, stabbing pain in my left temple - very, very sharp pain, pulsing. Lasted about an hour when it was gone, as suddenly as it had come.

Are those pre-seizure things? Could they mean a real seizure is in my future? Or were they actually already a seizure???

I don't know what to do. I had such a severe reaction to Keppra. I couldn't possibly drive while I was taking it. I know you eventually get used to it, but I have to drive 30 miles to get to my job, and I'm afraid I will have to quit or take a leave of absence while my body adjusts. But, of course, if I get a real seizure, that's it for driving anyway.

On the other hand, I'm pretty sure this is all related to my Lyme Disease, and perhaps treatment is actually bringing these things out. I will ask that forum for advice also.

Any comments? I mostly want to know if what happened to me is a pre-seizure thing.
Posted 10/16/2012 7:57 AM (GMT 0)
From what you describe it doesn't sound like any aura I have ever experienced in my life or ever heard of. Auras (pre-seizures) as you call them, usually consist more of the de' ja' vu feeling than a feeling of falling. Dizziness is part of the equation however. I used to call them dizzy spells as a kid when I wasn't entirely sure what an aura was.

In some cases it is possible to be alert while seizing. This is known as a simple-partial seizure. I grew up with complex-partial seizures in which would cause me to black out but not fall and shake as in a Grand-Mal seizure. The length of time in which you described in your incident would not likely be seizure related either as anything that lasts over 5 min is considered damaging to the brain. As you have described them lasting 10 min at a time I would have to put my finger more towards possible panic attacks.

This logic comes from the fact that I had brain surgery in 2001, was seizure free for nearly 4yrs and then suddenly started having what I thought was simple-partial seizures, as it was the only thing I could relate the feeling to. Turned out that I had had a panic attack in which does tend to feel more like falling along with tension in the chest, shortness of breath, visual impairment and what is described as the fight or flight effect that one may get in an intense situation.

Keppra is one medication I was never tested on and don't know much about. Lamictal aka Lamotrigine is one medication I do know about and you may want to ask your doctor about it as well. Not only is it a seizure medication but it is also used as a mood stabilizer. It works by decreasing abnormal electrical activity in the brain.

I do hope this info is helpful.
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