MEMORIES OF A STUDENT

      Some kids we remember well and some kids it's hard to remember them at all. 

     One kid who's memory quite often pops into my head is Norm.

     Norm had severe epilepsy. He had grand mal seizures at any time. His seizures knocked him out and he was so exhausted that he did very little for the remainder of the day. Sometimes his parents came to school and took him home. Kids who had gone through elementary school with Norm were used to Norm and his seizures. They sat or stood quietly with him until the seizure was over. They seemed to know exactly what to do. The teacher could carry on with the class. I had other students with epilepsy and fellow students supported them as well. It's embarrassing for a teenager to have a seizure. The kids handled it well. They didn't make an issue of it. 

    Norm went to high school and did well. 

   Norm was not able to get a driver's license. We had a few talks about the driver's license. 

   At the back of Norm's epilepsy was brain surgery that might stop the  seizures. Some how the surgery couldn't be done until he was 18. I'm not sure if this was a medical rule or the parents did not want to decide on  the surgery without Norm's consent. What I know is that Norm looked forward in anticipation of the surgery. 

   When Norm turned 18 he got the surgery as soon as possible. The seizures were under control and Norm got his driver's license. 

   Norm went on to get his B.Ed and became a counsellor. 

   He is now in a doctorate program. 

   So other than a head with many surgical scars, life is good. Norm has been a leader in his field. 

   Since I had juvenile epilepsy , I had some knowledge and understanding of seizures. I certainly had sympathy for any of my students who had epilepsy. 

    I had juvenile epilepsy which ceased when I went through puberty and some forms of epilepsy do not cease. 

MORE ON COGNITIVE ISSUES

      I have written on this topic before and some of you may remember that post. It fits in with my last post.

      In 2008 I had a two hour period where I did not make new memories. I came in the house and saw that it was 12:20 PM and didn't know where I had been. I usually make lunch around 11:30. So I had no memory of the last two hours. The micro manager said quick. We have to get to emergency because you're having a TIA. So off we go and I'm driving. Many times the Micro Manager starts a trip and then says I wonder if I turned the stove off.  Apparently, I turned around and took her back home and then went to emergency. 

     I thought I was only minutes in emergency before they scanned me. Apparently I had to wait. They did many tests and couldn't find a problem. They had me stay all day for observation. From about 1:30 on I was again making new memories. I was sent home.

    Three years later I had the same situation. I had the same neurologist. She said , there's no sense in doing the tests over again because they will show that you are fine. But, she said there's one test we haven't done. We haven't done an  EEG with sleep deprivation. So I had to stay awake all night and go at 9:00 Am for and EEG. The EEG showed an area in the brain that indicated seizures. 

    Now many seniors have this condition and it's not diagnosed and they are treated as if they have permanent damage or aging. The situation is easily controlled by medication. For me it's lamotrigine.

    Check this link and you will find lots of information on this topic. I happened to have been very lucky to have and excellent neurologist who diagnosed me.

     So now I'm as good a forgetter as the rest of you. 

INTERNATIONAL EPILEPSY DAY

      This is a topic I know about. I had juvenile epilepsy and now have senior epilepsy. Juvenile epilepsy disappears with the onset of puberty. Other epilepsy will stay with you for a life time. Senior epilepsy shows up in seniors and is completely under diagnosed.

      As a child I had epilepsy which hit me when I was about 8. I had grand mals which took place just after bedtime. I'm sure that my parents were terrified  as they probably knew nothing about epilepsy. The old country doctor knew exactly what my condition was and prescribed medication to control it. Once diagnosed, medication kept me relatively free of seizures. However , in the late 40's and early 50's there was much stigmitism regarding epilepsy. I would not tell anybody I had epilepsy and I don't think my parents went out of their way to tell people either. I also didn't understand what epilepsy was and as a child I thought I was going to die. I knew that there were health risks due to epilepsy. Epileptics were feared and shunned because of their seizures.

     Most years of my teaching career, I had kids with epilepsy that was not well controlled so there were seizures in class.

     Senior epilepsy is much more surprising because I'm at an age when I understand things much better.

     I went to emergency in 2008 because my wife thought I had a TIA. I had spent about 2 1/2 hours and did not remember anything that happened. A multitude of tests were given and there was no evidence of a TIA. A neat little term was given to my condition...trans global amnesia. The medical profession could describe what happened but they didn't know what was going on.

     Three years later I had another incident of global amnesia. This time the Neurologist said, "It's no use doing all the tests over again as they won't show anything." But, she said, "There's one test I haven't done yet."

     She ordered an EEG (Electroencephalogical)  with sleep deprivation. I had to stay up all night and go in at 9: 00 AM for the test. This test showed a section of the brain with faster than normal activity. It indicates epilepsy. So the neurologist cheerfully told me that I had senior epilepsy and that it could be controlled with medication.

   I happened to get a top notch neurologist who's bright, knowledgeable and with it. She's an awesome specialist.

     I didn't say anything, but I thought , I've had epilepsy and that's not what this is. As soon as I got home I went to the computer and googled senior epilepsy. The first thing I found was all kinds of information on senior epilepsy.

     There's much research being done on senior epilepsy. It's under diagnosed so many seniors live in a dozy state and their behavior is classed as senior moments.

     So here's my contribution to publicize epilepsy on International Epilepsy Day.  I hope that with more information epileptics receive better medical attention and supportive association from the community.

The Doctor Has Spoken: But Was I Listening?

        A few days ago I posted about getting the results of an EEG. I had posted before about having to go all night without sleep in preparation for the EEG.

        On Sept. 7 the neurologist gave me the results. She told me that there was an indication in one part of the brain of faster wavelengths. This she said would indicate an area prone to seizures and that the incident I experienced June 19th was probably a seizure.

       If you read the post "The Doctor Has Spoken" you will see that I had a very healthy dose of denial. I used one term "iffy" for the diagnosis. I also said that I had seizures as a youngster and what I had June 19th was not a seizure. I was very critical of the neurologist's diagnosis. The neurologist prescribed medication to help prevent seizures. I wasn't comfortable taking this medication but I respected her professional opinion and went along with the prescription.

      Since that time my view has changed. The first medication prescribed did not agree with me at all. I had poor balance, extreme drowsiness, tics in my hands and feet and some loss of appetite. A different prescription was given. I waited four of five days for me to recover from the first prescription, but really I was delaying facing up to the issue. Then I googled seniors and epilepsy. I wasn't expecting to find anything. I was surprised. I found many excellent sites. What I gathered is that in the last ten years researchers have discovered that many of the symptoms shown by seniors are really the results of seizures. So bouts of confusion and memory loss, which is  common in some seniors behavior, is the result of seizures. They have tested and found areas of the brain with increased rate of activity. They put the two things together and come up with the premise that many seniors are having seizures.

      Once I read that research shows evidence of seniors with seizures I sat back and started to accept the truth of my diagnosis. It then made sense for me and why I was taking medication for seizures.It is to  prevent seizures and to allow me to live a normal quality of life. I can carry on with all the activities I normally take part in. Yesterday I ice skated and had no problems whatsoever.

      So it took a while. I had heard  the neurologist but I had refused to really accept what she was telling me. I see the neurologist in October again so I will admit that I had a healthy dose of denial but  since that time I have seen the light.