I’m very nearly 70… still pretty active. My epilepsy followed the oncome of Sleep Apnea, followed by occasional partial seizures after an arm chair snooze, irregularly for 2-3 yrs, so always ‘nocturnal’. Then one night in 2019 at 3am my wife found me in a full Tonic Clonic seizure, not breathing. Called 999 and was told to drag me to the floor and give CPR. She was doing this for 8 mins before paramedics knocked on the door and took over.
At 7.00am…ish, I became aware of a doctor in hospital asking me which County I lived in, the name of the Queen and how old I was. Answering correctly I rested in the recovery ward (with a fabulous Shepherd’s pie lunch) and was sent to a neurological consultant at 2pm, prescribed Levetiracetam (Keppra) and been fairly ok since… had it upgraded from 500 bi-daily to 750 bd, following 2 more ‘deep sleeps and ‘fuzzy wake up’s’ 6 months ago.
I feel a ‘bit of a cheat’ when I hear other stories because my epilepsy remains ‘nocturnal’ as I’ve been given my driving licence back, as long as I declare any further seizures… and of course stop driving until they allow me back on the road! But I’m definitely part of our community and stay fully aware of other’s experiences.
Chris