What is epilepsy yahoo

She recalls, "As soon as my parents and I met him, we had a good feeling. He did not doubt the seizures were real and he felt they needed to be looked at very closely—and that there was a cause.

It was clear that he was going to help me. Similar to a pacemaker, the device monitors and responds to brain activity. The device has given Borghard the ability to live life on her terms once again.

She says, "If you had asked anyone who knew me after I began having seizures, if they thought I would be where I am today, they would have laughed. I was barely functional. Since the surgery, I spent three years in France teaching English at inner city schools. I returned to America and graduated from Fordham University with my masters in clinical social work. She explains, "I'm living on my own and I know that I can do that without any fear. I am practically seizure-free.

There are some seizures here and there, but they last seconds. My neurologists were able to program the device to make my right eye twitch when my brain activity reaches a certain level, meaning there is a cluster of activity, and then I know I have to take extra medication. It takes patience to figure out the right combination of drugs, and to program the device specifically to meet individual needs," she says.

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With 1, colorful pieces, it will delight and inspire the kids in your life. Walking into my CrossFit class and having a grand mal seizure just before the beginning of class, my head just barely missing the weight rack. If I begin stuttering or slurring my words. I always keep my medical ID card in my wallet created by The Epilepsy Network and available for download on the website www.

I take along my medications and extra medication should we be traveling for an extended amount of time or in case of emergency.

It would make life with epilepsy so much easier if I knew when a seizure was going to waltz in but for now, what I can do is be prepared and prepare those around me.

We have come a long way in delivery services and transportation solutions. I am so thankful for companies such as Aldi Grocery Delivery and Lyft to bring me the things I need and get me where I need to go. Since my diagnosis, I made the decision to stop driving for the safety of myself and others. I was blessed to have survived the grand mal seizure while driving that led to my diagnosis. Some people have many concepts of what a person with a chronic illness should look like or behave like.

This is why I do what I do: advocacy and blogging. Some believe I should look sickly — frail and bedridden. My smile completely gone.

Yes, sometimes my seizures do give me a break and when they do, I like to enjoy life a bit extra, minding my safety all the while of course. When people see me, they see someone always wearing a smile. As if all of my troubles were nonexistent. In truth, it takes work to stay optimistic. When I was first diagnosed with epilepsy , I wrestled with toxic emotions: anger, frustration, depression , even anxiety — but I overcame this with the loving guidance of God, my spouse and family.

I grew to be courageous and brave, stare my condition in the eyes and grin in confidence. However, I am human and I am not invulnerable. If I reflect on my own condition, my own circumstances for too long, I begin to feel toxicity creep in. I am afraid of waking up from a seizure and being alone. I am afraid of forgetting my medication. With my epilepsy comes depression. For me, epilepsy has always brought along depression for company.

With each anti-seizure medication, the depression waxes and wanes, but it always lingers like a permanent resident in my brain. When I am honest about my suicidal thoughts, doctors prescribe an antidepressant.

We both hope the depression will fade, but I am usually met with a new set of side effects. Together, both conditions appear invincible, but I always fight back. Depression tells me to die instead of taking the pills from the container. Depression tells me the darkness is here to stay. Depression steals my energy and my smiles. When I am always outnumbered, and the fight is unfair, I wonder how much of who I have become is due to the medication and how much is truly me.

Too often, with epilepsy comes shame. All through grade school, I heard kids at school make fun of seizures and even pretend to have seizures. I listened and watched. As one of the quietest students in class, my lips felt zippered shut, but my face turned red. Face-to-face in-depth interviews were conducted and data were analysed using the content analysis approach.

Results: The themes that emerged from the data were beliefs about signs and symptoms, causes, consequences and beliefs about cure and control of epilepsy. Participants believed epilepsy was a disgraceful illness.