Seizures during sleep
 

If there is no one to monitor my sleep pattern, how do I know if I am having this problem:

Frontal lobe seizures...Mayo Clinic
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/fro...810/DSECTION=1
Signs and symptoms

Frontal lobe seizures can vary greatly, but some characteristics are commonly noted:

* Frequent seizures
* Clustering of seizures, often during sleep

I am taking 500mg of Keppra twice a day already. I had my first seizure a coupe of weeks ago after brain surgery on the frontal lobe.

The most common method is to look for indirect clues. My wife can usually tell by her sore/cramped muscles (especially the calf muscles), or if she bit her cheek or tongue. Waking up with a headache or disoriented (more so than normal) can also give her a clue.

The more I read on these various epilepsy forums, the more I wonder about whether the majority of folks who have nocturnal seizures also have sleep apnea (which causes a drop in blood oxygen). If you suspect you are having nocturnal seizures, you might ask your doc about getting tested for it.

Thanks Bernard.

I woke yesterday feeling somewhat disoriented, but this could simply have been me waking in an "off" state due to Parkinson's. So, as you can tell, I have to sort through a couple of issues here.

I will call my neurolgist.

Hi Carolyn
 

When I started having seizures (complex partials) they were ALL at night but woke me so I was well aware of them. It was months before they moved to daylight hours too.

If you would have a Video EEG in your hospital any seizures would be easy to spot.

I spend some time in a brain tumor forum and lots of the people who have had brain surgery for tumors develop seizures. There it is very common.

Best wishes.

nocturnal sz
 

My Epi suggested I keep a notebook next to my bed and write down anything 'off' as soon as I wake up. Like if I have sore muscles, bitten cheeks or tongue, feeling unrested even though I slept, etc.

Maybe give that a try and see if it helps out some.

Carolyn-

I frequently would have seizures at night while sleeping (complex partials) that would awaken me (usually) or else I would sense them while they were happening. Another big clue for me was nightmares which were very frequent and the panicked feeling I would get as part of my aura would happen sometimes awakening me. I too kept a journal of how I felt when I awoke. Generally I had a headache after I'd had a seizure (also very common since I had a brain tumor, but it was different somehow when I'd had a seizure during the night, mainly because I'd been clenching my jaw something fierce).
The nightmares have recently returned and I'm wondering if that means the seizures are returning at night again too. I feel for what you're going through.
A VEEG was very helpful for me in finding out what was going on.

stef

:( I also have had seizures while sleeping. Describing them is a little difficult, but I will try.

I go to bed when I am tired. After about five minutes or so, I fall asleep. Once asleep the action begins, and the scary crap begins. At first it starts out a nice little dream. Then it goes horribly wrong. In an out of body like experience I can see myself having a full grand-mal seizure. I can see and hear everyone around me.

Many of the family and friends around me are crying because of the result of the full grand-mal seizure. At that time I'm back in my body, when I hear my mother crying as she begins holding me. I tell her I'm alright but she continues to cry, and tells me my face isn't. It seems the full grand-mal seizure had cause stroke-like face sagging. But the dream makes it worse. At that time I wake up from my bad dream, so I think.

Soon after I have another seizure. This time it's different. I am conscious, but I can speak or move any of my muscles. I try as hard as possible to yell for help, but I can't get the words out. When I eventually break through, I finally wake up. My whole body is shaking, and I'm covered in sweat.

I just started having these types of seizures this year. So far I've had about five (that I know of). The first (which I described) was the worst, and scariest. :(

I am sorry you started having this happen after your surgery! You have had good answers already. My son has seizures in sleep and his have been hard to determine with EEG. They do find some abnormality in both frontal and temporal lobes, so we feel it starts frontally and spreads. HE has been treated for this, but still does not have control for his seizures. When he has a seizure in sleep, he wakes up feeling really foggy and his thinking is very slowed. We can tell that is is "off", just not his normal self. We have seen his seizures on occasion (not as often now that he is a teen). He also has a sleep disorder, complicating things immensely. He is often sore and achy and sometimes bites his tongue, but not always. That link really describes the variables very well!

I hope your neuro gives you answers and help!

G

i stopped here in this forum, perusing, although i don't suffer from seizures. well, i had an eeg done a year ago at the university hospital (my neuro is a professor) and it came out inconclusive. funny. and duh, i'm almost totally deaf and blind in my left eye, as i have been my whole life. so, i wonder???? how do i know if i have seizures if my disabilities mess up the eeg? i've read that you can get it even conscious. i've had an experience once as a kid that i didn't tell until i could explain it, as i grew up thinking it was made up by my overactive mind. i also had experience of shaking in my sleep 14 years ago. i told my doc, and he just dismissed it. of course, i've had problems with mental fog, which could be caused by a wide variety of conditions or medications. i've had disorientation, too. it's weird because i would feel like i'm losing my mind. i even ended up in the e.r. last year because i was way out of whack mentally and my coordination was messed up. turned out to be a migraine, but i'm not sure about it, though. docs know best, huh? i doubt the veeg would help because i can sleep like the dead. i've woken up not knowing what day it is. sure is a crazy spin, but a lot of us here at neurotalk seem to be going through the crazy spin, too. i mean, spin in life and diagnosis - not the head, although some get that literally.