Are these epilepsy symptoms???

[AnxiousMum]

Hi, I'm hoping for some advice. My 14 year old daughter was diagnosed with Juvenile Absence Epilepsy a year ago. She is currently taking Epilim which seems to keep seizures under control on the whole. There are the odd days here and there when she has absences but she hasn't had a tonic clonic seizure since treatment began. However, she is struggling. I have seen her neurologist and GP several times but don't seem to be getting anywhere. She is tired all the time but cant sleep, she cant concentrate at school and struggles to retain information, even for the simplest of things. This is causing problems with her school work. With GCSE's fast approaching, she is behind. I try my best to help her at home but she's so tired all the time, she just cant take anymore in. Before the initial seizure that started all this a year ago, she was complaining that her food tasted funny. For the last few days, she has been saying her food tastes funny again and today she is having absences, feels dizzy and has blurred vision. Is this food tasting different a warning sign??? Is the tiredness, memory problems, sleep problems due to the epilepsy? Medication? Or could it be something else unrelated? If anyone has experienced similar, it would be good to hear from you. She has seen a psychologist, tried different sleeping techniques etc we've even redecorated her room to try and create a relaxing atmosphere. Thank you in advance.

[Seaotter2020]

I am not a medical person so please don’t take this as medical advice. Sounds like a symptom/s of the medication. Unfortunately this is what happens to children on meds. Do you and the school have a 504/ IEP plan to accommodate her? Many children have memory issues with these meds sometimes knowing they aren’t alone helps. Is there an Epilepsy center around you? A support group? The school can do more.

[wxy123]

I wonder if your daughter has had an MRI scan. It's highly unlikely but our son's brain tumour started with food tasting funny. (With treatment he recovered).

Skipping a year at school might reduce stress.

Good luck with finding a solution.

[Jennski01]

My daughter reacts differently to medications. She also had an issue with one generic which was causing cluster headaches so I switched brands. She has absent and grand mal for the past year. She stared the same month she turned 10. Many times it's about finding the right dosage or the right medication because on a lower dose of her medication, my child has sleep issues, anger issues, melt downs, focus issues, has trouble understanding direction in school. She does have a 504 at school and I found a booklet called "Young Epilepsy" Guide for Schools and it was published in the UK in 2013 but it's online and free to download. I thought it was informative so that the school had a better understanding of what children with epilepsy can go through. It is also important to have this 504 plan so that should your child have an episode in school, there is protocol put in place in case of such incident.

[Rraditau]

Hi ,

I have suffered from epilepsy since I was 4 and have all of those problems. I have been on so many different types of medication starting with a liquid that I can't even remember the name of then onto tegretol 200 mg which was ok for a while then onto 400mg then adding Epilim along with the tegretol , switching to Keppra and now trying perampenol along with my usual dosage of other meds . I have absences etc but also have the tonic clinic seizures and don't know what to suggest. Ask her to tell you if she gets feelings of dayjavu in any places you've never been before etc because there have been numerous times I get that and it can lead to an absence or full seizure however not always because everyone reacts to meds in different ways. Is she on anti depressants as well ? Because they can be a problem conflicting with the medication taken for the epilepsy or any other type of med. When it comes to food it's mainly dairy produce that is the main problem. With regards to the main cause of seizures I'm not sure as no two people are the same , mine are stress endured when too much pressure is put on me for things , however my best friends partner has epilepsy and she has it under control , working and also has a drivers license so her symptoms are completely different to mine . I wish I could help you but I hope you manage to get it under control as it can always lead to depression which makes it even tougher to find a way .

Take care.

[dog_lover16]

I have the same problem with my epilepsy I got it when I was 13 to this day I have problems focusing and also I have memory problems and I’m always tired and dizzy but I never have a problem with the food tasting funny but epilepsy is different for everyone