Epilepsy and me

November 2010 was the year I was diagnosed with Epilepsy.

There was nothing that would make me think that I would have this condition. There were no signs. No warnings. It just happened all of a sudden.

There is no history of Epilepsy in my family, so this was a shock for us all. After my first seizure, I thought ‘this won't happen again, maybe it’s just a one-off thing’. A few weeks later, I had another one and soon after that, another one.  It was at this moment; my third seizure, when I was officially diagnosed with Epilepsy. The next step was finding the cause. I remember going through MRI scans and a few other scans to determine what the actual cause was and they found nothing. It was a very strange time for me.

A year later when I was in Year 9, I was put on medication. Lamotrigine is what I was, and still am, taking. It really helped with controlling my seizures and for the next two years I was seizure-free. At some point, however, I was allowed to reduce my medication to the point where the nurse said I don’t have to take medication at all, since I was doing so well. At that point I thought ‘no more hospital visits and no more seizures.’ About a month later, my seizures came back. I was back on medication and have been since then. It was hard adjusting back to the medicine, but it was worth it in the long run. 

Prior to 2021, I would only have a seizure sporadically. Once or twice a year. I am taking my medication seriously and now I have been seizure-free for almost three years. My epilepsy is still something I have to think about but nowhere near the same extent it had been a few years back.

My relationship with Epilepsy is like seeing an old enemy from school you haven't seen in a while. It’s unpleasant and annoying but I somehow made peace with it. Even though my seizures are well controlled now, there are still concerns I need to think about or put in place. For example, I cannot leave the door locked when taking a shower and if I plan to drive, I have to make sure I am seizure-free for a year. Living with Epilepsy is something I always have to be careful about no matter how long I have been free of seizures.

The way I see it, is that as long as I am taking my medication the thought of Epilepsy is always going to be there. As long as I have my medication, I will be just fine.