Hi - Does anyone know if deja vu is a symtom of a seizure? Or has anyone had an experienced this?

crwstar

Hi Crwstar,
A deja vu is a form of a simple partial seizure also known as an aura sz. I've had them many times especially right before a complex partial sz.
What happens to me is a get a nervous feeling in my stomach and then I start to see colors flashing back and forth in my eyes but I'm totally conscious and aware of what's going on around me. Sometimes I will smell an odd smell like deviled eggs, or something burning. I've learned the moment that I get the nervous feeling in my stomach to tighten up all the muscles in my body and make my hands into tight fists for a few seconds and this will stop the sz. I learned about this back in the 1970's from my neuro and it has stopped many of these sz. Here's wishing you well and May God Bless You!

Sue

The deja vu is the simple partal seizure, and for some an aura of a seizure. For me it was the first seizures that I had. I started with the smple partial seizures for a little while, and then moved up to complex partial, and had both. The complex partial is i go into a staring spell where I'm unconscious, but not where i fall to the ground. Everyone says it just looks like I'm deep in thought. Then when I come out of the staring spell I'm in 100% total confusion. I don't know who I'm with why I'm there, or where I'm at. Half the time during the confusion family and friends have told me that I hallucinate for a few seconds. Then when I come back to 100% normal I have no idea I was ever in a seizure, unless something happens and I wasn't alert to see it. I have them because of blunt force trauma to the head, and that causing scar tissue on the right and left temporal lobes. I hope that you're in a better situation than me since I have been ranked disabled. But they did that because I can no longer or do certain things where you have to be 100% alert all the time. At the end of 2006, grand mals started on me if I don't take my meds. So now I have simple partial, complex partial, and grand mal. I'm a marine war vet and the neuros lean towards me getting them at Desert Storm. But they aren't sure of that.
Sincerely
shawn33

Hi again crwstar ~ (I kinda' talk too much, right?) Just like shawn said, deja vu is is the very first seizure I had but I didn't know it was deja vu and I certainly didn't know it a seizure! I did not know adults could develop epilepsy - I thought it was a problem you had to be born with.

I was (I think) 46 years old and soon after going to bed and falling asleep I would be awakened by "seeing" sights of things that had happened to me as a small child. I could not move or speak and I was TERRIFIED. For some reason this FRIGHTENED me horribly. But I quickly fell back asleep. Of course my husband did not believe me -- he was certain these were nightmares. After months and when they started happening in the daytime too, I went to a doctor. He pooh-poohed me too and almost threw me out of his office.

See - I talk too much. Sorry. Anyhow - My seizures were led by deja vu and I didn't even know it. My seizures were caused by the brain tumor and nobody knew it.

You chat away Wren - I enjoy it!! I have started posting on more forums cause my symptoms span so many things - hopefully, I will chat with more of you consistently

Thanks for all your repsonses. I think I've been having deja vu seizures, its the only way I can explain what happens. I get that deja vu feeling but it happens incessantly and then I get this bizarre feeling and I am altered. Don't know that thats the order but back in Feburary is when I really noticed it - And I have noticed more that I wake up smelling something burnt. I'll have to pay more attention to what precedes these. I have both and aneurysm and a pituitary tumor and think one of these or both have something to do with it.

I have a twin who developed seizures in our early 20's and they subsided after 9 months never to return. We never found out what the cause was.

Shawn33, you make me think....blunt force trauma, that may be a cause for me as well as I had a accident a while back that I need to mention to the doctors.

Hope you all are well.

Hi Crwstar,
I do know that a tumor, head injury and aneurysm can cause seizures for people. You also mentioned that you have family that had sz. so it could be genetic. My advice to you is to go to a Epilepsy Center that are usually at University Hospitals and see an Epileptologist, Neurosurgeon, and neuropsychologist. These Drs. work together as a team and can tell what is causing the sz., and do surgery if needed. I had 2 brain surgeries done to help reduce my sz. from 300 sz. a yr. to an average of 106 sz. a yr. If you haven't started yet get a calendar and write down what time you have a sz. along with discription of the sz. Also make a note if you are sick or if there's a low pressure with the weather because sometimes these things can trigger sz. just like bright lights can sometimes trigger sz. for some people. Stay away from anything with nutra sweet in it because nutra sweet causes more electrical activity in the brain which can trigger sz. I found that out the hard way when I used to drink diet soda all the time. It caused me to have many more sz. You also might want to try cutting back on the carbs and proteins and start eating food high in fat. this is known as the ketogenic diet and it stops sz. for many people. I've been on this diet for a few yrs. now and it's worked great. Also try taking vitamin B12 once a day it calms the nervous system down. Here's wishing you well and May God Bless You!

Sue

This is what I've read on many of the brain tumor or aneurysm forums. Tumors, aneurysms and brain trauma can all cause seizures either from pressure on the brain or scar tissue that developes from trauma or after surgery from these things. You'd be surprised at the amount of people who have had surgery from these and are on anti seizure medication. My case luckily for now is still at the stage of questioning if this is actually happening to me. I will make sure I mention the deja vu episodes in my next appt cause I think it is and it will help to have tracked it. I've started a headache journal and will add what I think are seizures to this. You have been very helpful,
Thank you.

I will let you know how it goes with the doctors. I have been going to a teaching hospital and will hopefully, get someone who knows about epilepsy. I did make that request of them and think once I get my foot in the door I should be good to go. So far they've taken really good care of me.

What was interesting about my sister is that they found nothing by way of MRI or any other tests - is that normal with seizures?

If you think of anything else let me know.

God bless

Hi Crwstar,
Here's wishing you the best of luck with the Drs. In regards to your sister having an MRI and the Dr. not finding anything this has happened to a lot of people I talk with and the reason why they can't find anything is because the scar or brain damage is to deep in the brain for the tests to pick up anything. I had scar tissue on the right temporal lobe but I never had a sz. until I was 10 yrs. old (45 now) Before I had surgery my Drs. did a bunch of tests on me but it wasn't until they did brain surgery and cut me open and that's when they found brain damage on the left side of the brain as well as the frontal lobe. What happened is I had so many sz. for so many yrs. that it spread more brain damage along with shrinking the right hippocampus of my brain so when I had surgery they removed 75% of the right temporal lobe and all of the right hippocampus. I still have to take AED's (sz. med) I have learned to stay away from Neurontin. Many Drs. perscribe this drug for pain and sz. but they have found out that it can cause sz. for people who have never had a sz. in there life and the drug co. making the drug has over $240 million in lawsuits. My family Dr. put me on this drug after I was in an auto accident and had a concussion but the drug caused me to have status sz. which are very dangerous. I got off the drug as soon as I saw my Epileptologist who told me it was to worst drug anyone with epilepsy could take. Also I forgot to tell you by keeping track of your sz. and headaches your neuro. may see a pattern as to what days of the month or what time of the day/night you are more likely to have a sz. Here's wishing you well and May God Bless You!

Sue