Absence Seizure

[morganstaker]

Wow. This is amazing. Usually after my seizures I have severe confusion and I don’t even know what I was talking about before the seizure.

[_Mysticery]

my french teacher confuses my epilepsy with ADHD, while in my absence seizures, I hear tangled voices in my head, and the other students confuse this with schizophrenia. So, for the next school year, I will prepare an oral presentation regarding epilepsy

[Mia-wzhe]

I had these in second grade it was so embarrassing. This teacher was telling me something then I zoned out and he said "you really need to stop doing that" and every time I think about my seizures I used to have that pops up in my mind..I'm in 7th grade now and I'm cured 😊

[mdcomic]

Throughout the years i had hints of zoning out and forgetting things and i got all the time that i am crazy or a daydreamer. Then one day after my 18th birthday my situation suddenly got worse. I forgot everything than all the information came back. Then forgot again. Suddenly my grades dropped down and i was incapable of learning. I am at home since October aka my birthday and went to 5 psychiatrist. The 5th one diagnosed me with absence epilepsy. Now I'm on my 3rd medicine but my situation rn is worse. This video talks to my heart because right now thanks to my seizures people tell me i should give up on dreaming about being an actress. I am confused but hope that like many of you i get better one day😔😊

[annads]

Great Video on Absence Seizure. The drama class was a great example.

[shannonselby]

I had absence seizures every 30 seconds at night when I was sleeping when I was 3 years old and my mom knew there was something wrong because I would stutter and my mom took me to the doctor and as soon as the doctor heard me talk he knew immediately it was seizures and so I got an EEG and when I got the results back it showed that I was having absent seizures every 30 seconds while I was sleeping and the doctor prescribed me a medication and after a week of being on the medication I was speaking in full sentences and I am so glad that I am cured and I can tell people about my story

[kyrenelee]

Most of seizures result in confusion but this is somewhat accurate. When I have a seizure my eyes will roll back or go crossed. mine usually only last a 10-15 seconds, and kids would start calling me stupid but I was too afraid of them freaking out to tell them it was a seizure.

[JohnAckerman]

I was diagnosed with this type of seizure a few years ago. I remember having these attacks where I would space out and become dizzy and feel like I was goi to get sick. One day my mom took me to the hospital to get to the bottom of the attacks. Doctors ran tests, everything was normal. Before we left I had an attack. I was kept overnight and neurologists did an EEG. The EEG came back that I was having seizures. It was absolutely crazy

[malcilraeure]

My 8 year old does this awe getting her some help tomorrow! I’m so glad I found this!!!

[austinballard]

I started having these sort of seizures in my early 20s after a head injury. It was AWFUL and I was scared until I finally got diagnosed properly at age 25. Typically I would sense an odd, unpleasant smell in the time leading up to one, which usually lasted around 10 seconds, so I was told. With time I started to adapt, but it was not easy.

Medication did stop them, though when I was taken off after a few years, the absence seizures eventually came back, but with less frequency.
I am 41 now and on another medication, Gabapentin (which was tried rather experimentally, as its generally not used for this type of seizure). It half-works, though it often leads to a lot of twitching as I sleep and I am very likely to be given something else....my advice, when you get a good doctor(s) that you trust and they put you on a medication that works, stay with them! You might end up switching medications over the years...not all doctors know as much as they say. A neurologist is really what you need, though a psychiatrist can be a good place to start. DO NOT listen to unsolicited "advice" from non qualified professionsls...even many RNs are not very knowledgeable in this area beyond the basics. You really need a well qualified neurologist and nurses well versed in this area of medicine!

[spicylemon]

I don’t remember much about my absence seizures (they occurred only until I was about 3 or 4 and then haven’t happened since) but I do remember how they were described to me later in life wherein I was said to look vacantly ahead, I also was told that I was very lucky that my teachers were familiar with the signs of absence seizures because I apparently had them relatively frequently in daycare and early pre-school and that they would keep the other kids from interacting with me for the duration of those seizures

All in all very grateful to have grown up around people who knew what absence seizures were and more importantly what they looked like and how to deal with them

[selenasmith]

My dad would have petite mal seizures, where he would walk around making a noise, "yeah" was his.. Followed by him thinking he was somewhere else doing something, usually work, and acting out. He once caught the bus for home and ended up getting off 30 minutes away. And he even had burned his hand badly in the oven. He once even lost money out in public, assuming he had a seizure and gave it away.
Following the acting out, he would slowly come out of it, not remembering, and needing to rest.

I wish there was more talks of this type of seizure. Because honestly people don't realize it's happening and they can put there lives in harms way. Me and my mom witnessed a man of sound and mind, holding a conversation with him, as he had a whole episode.

[Torresknows]

I was diagnosed with epilepsy in 2022 at 29 years old after experiencing two grand mal seizures in 2021 and 2022. The second one happened late at night but throughout the day I was having, what I now know, are absence seizures. For me it was either a feeling of dejavú or complete confusion. For example, I’d be in the middle of a conversation either talking or listening and would completely lose my train of thought and wonder whether I’d already said what I was saying or heard what I was hearing. When I asked loved ones if they noticed they all said no. That night I had a grand mal and needed to go to the ER since I fell and hit my head.


In the ER they put me on “Keppra” a common anti-seizure drug via IV. Luckily I had a trusted neurologist (which I highly recommend finding) who did all the tests for me (EEG, Cat, etc.) and found no reason why I would be having seizures. To this day we believe it’s likely genetic and mostly triggered by lack of sleep. The Keppra was terrible for me, I was hit with all the negative side affects and my doc put me on Lamotrigine which has worked to stop my grand mals. That said, if I don’t get adequate sleep for multiple days in a row I run the risk of having absence seizures which is a sign to me that I need to take a nap since they have led to a grand mal in the past.

Anyone experiencing anything like this, you’re not alone and I know it can be scary but it can be managed. My unsolicited advice is to find a neurologist, get a second opinion to find one you trust and don’t be afraid of trying medication. I was (and still am) hesitant to be on any prescription meds but once I’ve found one without side effects it’s been a game changer. Even simply having the sense of security knowing my chances of having a seizure are low.

Hope this helps someone out there!

[robynwhite]

AFTER ANY SEIZURE SOMEONE SHOULD BE TOLD!

[saritch]

I had these seizures until I was 16, diagnosed at age 5. My triggers were panting like a dog, "snow" tv, alcohol, and artificial sweeteners. I was on zarontan. I got off at 16 and haven't had any since (I'm 40). I remember they estimated I had up to 400 per day.

[savannahfox]

Suffered a lot of these as a child and a teen. I’m almost 20 now and I don’t think I suffer them much anymore. Nothing noticeable enough for people to tell me at least...it’s rather confusing to think about cause it’s never interpreted my life enough to bother me?? I mean sure as a kid adults would always end up waving and yelling in my face but whatever.

[williamarmstrong]

I'm 70 years old and my absences make me very depressed...they only last about 3 seconds and most of the time I don't realize I've even had a seizure....

[GirlNextDoor]

This is what mine look like. As a child I was embarrassed about them because I had a teacher who yelled at me for blanking out and when I tried to explain she said there was no such thing as absent seizures. So I stopped taking my medication then I would start again now I’m 22 and I still have them. I just wish I had taken my medication religious when I was a child so I wouldn’t still have them

[oneiceb]

Thank you and people think I am crazy when I am not

[dylangeorge]

This happened to a girl in my class. She was walking to the desk and all of sudden she starts staring at the wall blankly for about 10 seconds and the teacher calls her name multiple times. And then all of sudden she regains alertness immediately.