All about me

First, let me say I am NOT a doctor and I am not telling people what they should be doing to be seizure free. I am giving you MY story that works for ME. This is all a trial and error. But, I have to say, there weren't many errors on this. It was pretty smooth! =)


I was diagnosed with epilepsy in 1992 when I was living in Montpelier, France. I will try to keep a long story short - I was doing a study abroad and my French mother noticed me "zoning out, looking a bit lost." I noticed it too. So, I went to a doctor to see what was going on. A few minutes with an eeg and she saw there was seizure activity in the brain. When I got home and told my French mother, she couldn't believe it and thought the doctor was wrong. I was now taking Felbatol, which takes a toll on the liver. My mom here in the U.S was stunned, nervous, anxious....but we decided I finish my study abroad and when I get home to the U.S., we would see another doctor.

Back in the U.S, I saw a neurologist who reassured me that the brain activity was epileptic and meds are the way to control them. In about 4 years span, I have tried almost every drug out there to control the seizures and I was still having them. Brain surgery was then brought to the table. I remember asking the doctor, "Is there ANYTHING else I can do to control these seizures? Any alternatives? I can still see her face today. She had her face resting on her thumb and index finger and she she blinked her eyes closed and nodded her head. Looking back, I'm sure she knew there were other places to look and things to try. But, she had a western medicine point of view. In her opinion, drugs and surgery were the solution so didn't feel just to her to say something.

So, in July of 1995, I underwent brain surgery. I was not too nervous. I just wanted to have it done and then move on. I even got a second opinion at Dartmouth hospital and they agreed with my doctor at home. So, I had it done.

The day after surgery, my mom came in to see me and I said, "Hi mommy!" I thought that was her name. A couple days later, she told me her name and I was shocked! I also couldn't read the menu or have deep conversations. Again, to make a long story short, I had to take speech therapy. I used to be a French teacher and that was no longer with me after surgery. It did eventually come back to some degree, but not 100%. My short term memory now is not as good as it once was and remembering names is a chore.

So, did surgery help? Not much. I was still having them. More controlled, but still there. A year or so later after surgery, the doctor told me of ANOTHER surgery that would involve a pace maker - known as "The vegal nerve stimulator" to control the seizures. I met some people who had it done and their success was not 100%. And, having that attached to me and changing my voice and daily life was not of interest to me. That would have been a CONSTANT reminder that I had epilepsy. I said, "Not for me!"

18 years of ups and downs, seizures and side effects from the drugs, I was ready for a change in a positive direction.

So, little by little I have tried a few things. Neurofeedback, a bit of a change in the diet, a few herbs that didn't clash too much with my meds...but I was still having them. Then I read a book that really helped me look FURTHER into WHY I was having seizures.
The first book that opened my eyes was called "Reverse Aging" by Sang Whang. What an eye opener! It got me so intrigued - More later!