Our son is 41 lives alone and is frightened of cooking and having a seizure and the risk of fire On Monday he had a seizure whilst out and was taken to hospital
They found he has a vitamin B12 deficiency and that is what caused the seizure
We worry that he is living on ready meals and not getting the nutrients due to his fear of cooking and having a seizure
Anyone have any helpful tips please
Thank you
Could maybe contact social services ,to see if free care is available or not for tea time visit
A referel from doc to a senior OT ,For help and advice ,and tips and tools ,
Council Ot assessment
And if not applyed
Apply for
Pip benefits
Extra money if granted
Can help for once a day care of your choice if available.
and maybe a takeaway home delivery once or twice a week more and more are doing just eat etc not just junk food
Just some tips
Maybe someone will come along with more
Thank you so much for taking the time to reply and for such great advice Very grateful bless you
Your son might try one of the companies that deliver prepared frozen meals, these are reasonably balanced and you can choose ones that go in the microwave. My Mum used to use Wiltshire Farm Foods which you can find online, they have a wide range of mains and desserts to suit different tastes. I’m sure there are others out there. Also worth buying fresh fruit, needs no prep and helps your 5 a day.
I was going to suggest an alternative, but possibly healthier, ready meal option too. Cook do some healthier options and I know relatives of mine have enjoyed the meals from them cookfood.net. I think they are a bit expensive, though.
Part of this depends on freezer space, but could somebody go to his and stay with him/help while he batch cooked some meals? Ones that he can easily microwave when he's alone. I make various things like cottage pie, risotto, lentil dishes, portions of mashed vegetables, then usually microwave some frozen vegetables to go with them. I don't eat tomatoes, which limits my choices, but things like bolognese, pasta sauces, chilli con carne used to be things I'd make. I have a slow cooker with a timer on, partly because I worry that I'll become unable to turn it off for some reason. That could be another idea, but lots of slow cookers come with no timers, so you have to be careful. I also bought my husband a mini rice cooker for Christmas, which also times itself, but I know some of the packets of microwavable rice aren't too bad. I am confident at cooking itself, worries about safety aside, but I realise not everyone likes doing it or has the time (apologies if it's a bad idea)
Regarding having seizures because of low B12, can a GP prescribe some high dosage supplements to correct it? I know some people have Pernicious Anemia, which is usually treated with B12 injections, but they should be able to help with that too. My GP sometimes runs blood tests on various things and it does flag up if I'm low (usually vitamin D & zinc for).
FredaN I can't thank you enough for taking the time to send such an amazing reply
You have given me so many ideas
The Cook range is very good and I hadn't thought of that
I love my slow cooker and I didn't know that you could buy ones with timers
All your ideas and advice is just wonderful
Bless you for taking the time it is so appreciated
I'm glad I could help! I also get really worried about burning the house down or having an accident when my husband isn't not home and I can imagine that's even scarier when you live alone.
My slow cooker is the 3.5L Morphy Richards Easy Time Slow Cooker, but I think I got it when it was reduced as it seems quite expensive now. It was a couple of years ago, but I'm sure there are others with timers. I just remembered you can also buy plugs with timers on too, which might be handy in some other way.
Hi Fred an,Sorry to but in but my hubby had really low vit D and sodium and apparently seizure meds reduce both these so he is now permanently receiving but D and I put a bit more salt in his diet to compensate, which seems to have stabilised the deficits. Queries it with epilepsy nurse and she confirmed the epilepsy meds do deplete vit D and sodium.
When my son was in the same situation we bought a Sharp combi oven. This is expensive but worth it for safety. It can be used as an oven, microwave or grill, or in combination. Because it only works with the timer there is little risk of burning things. It is cheaper to run than a conventional oven, in fact I have one as my only oven. It does need non metal cooking dishes when micro waving.
Amongst other safety things my son had a fire alarm conected to the emergency services. If the alarm went off they would phone him and if he did not answer they had the key safe number to come in. This was part of his emergency call button. Ask your local social services for their emergency service systems.
Good luck with it all
Hi Cat - I live alone & really struggle with feeding myself properly because of depression, constant tiredness, and having a small kitchen (I also have 2 types of epilepsy). I use my.large family sized slow cooker at least once a week. From Aldi, I buy a tray of skinless & boneless chicken thighs,2 bags of ready prepared "Casserole Vegetables" from the chiller section, a couple of tins of chopped tomatoes, and a tin of kidney beans. I put chicken in bottom of slow cooker, top the 2 bags of veg on top, add herbs and/or seasoning as desired, then pour over hot veg or chicken stock (made with stock cubes). I put that on earlyish in the morning ready to eat about 6 pm. The last hour of cooking, I add the tins of tomatoes, and the tin of (drained) kidney beans. 5 minutes before I dish it up, I stir in chicken gravy granules if it looks like it needs thickening a bit. This is delicious - I have 3-4 meals from it, then I freeze the rest in portions. If you're getting a bit fed up of it after a couple of days, you could add some curry powder or curry paste to it to make a change 😋😋🤩.
Like one of the previous commenters, I have a lifeline pendant which I wear 24/7, and a key safe box on a wall outside by my front door. When it was all fitted, the local fire brigade came to fit a special fire alarm, which is connected to the local fire station, and to the life-line services, who will then call my family as well. They all have my key safe number so they can get in during an emergency - it makes me feel very secure and makes my family.feel happier about me living on my own 🤩
My slow cooker doesn't have a timer on it, but this sounds like a very good idea - when I need to replace my current one, I'll look for one with a timer 😁
Best wishes to you and your son xx
Oh thank you so much Reading your reply brought tears to my eyes as you have your own struggles but you took time to write such a wonderful helpful message to me
Your recipe sounds perfect
I am so grateful for your tips bless you
Wishing you all the very best
Would something like an airfyer, that would auto switch off at the end of cooking time, allow him to cook healthier with less worry?
Son age 8 epilepsy diagnosis
Does anyone have a constant rushing noise in their head? Could stress have caused my epilepsy & is menopause/diet making it worse? 
Help - first time seizure mum - Tonic Clonic 
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