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Seizures Take Their Toll on Stroke Survivor
Steve is in desperate need of prayer!! He appears to be regressing considerably physically and mentally.
1. He’s had four seizures since December, and each one does some damage to the electrical part of his brain. Last night he started on an anti-seizure Keppra, so I’m monitoring him for any side effects that may be harmful. Please pray that these side effects will be minimal and tolerable, and that God will keep these seizures in check and give him a sound mind.
2. I was holding off on giving him the Keppra because his breathing has been so labored, and his heart is racing with the Atrial Fibrillation. I was hoping it would settle down a bit, but it hasn’t. He saw a PT and a biofeedback therapist for the breathing, but so far neither of them were able to provide any lasting relief. He feels like someone’s standing on his chest. Please pray that he’ll be able to breathe normally and that his heart will be at peace and calm down.
3. His shoulder on his good arm has been extremely painful for the last 2-3 weeks. He can hardly lift his arm to brush his teeth. He uses this arm for everything and this is no doubt the result of him weight bearing on that arm and pulling himself up. We have been to a therapist, but he got no relief. He is seeing a new doctor on April 14. Please pray that the pain will leave, for strength to enter his shoulder and that it will be healed.
4. He has lost all ambition to get better. Any type of therapy is like pulling teeth. He was doing better physically and emotionally last October than he is right now. I still go with him to the CP pool and do one-on-one therapy with him. It feels good to be in the water, but the chlorine bothers his breathing. I bought a recumbent bike to help him use at home, but he feels too weak to use it. Depression is always at the door because of the other physical problems he’s going through. He is really struggling to think anything positive, and he just wants to die so it will be over with. Please pray for him to be motivated and for joy to come to his heart. He’s is grieving the loss from the stroke. God heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. The joy of the Lord is his strength.
Steve is hurting so much, and I am at a loss of what to do except to request prayer. Please pray! Thank you.
Kathy
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I am hoping you may be able to help us. Approximately a month or so
December 30th, 2011 at 9:45 pmago my mom suffered a stroke. It has been tough because along with the
stroke she also fractured a part of her back and wears a brace.
Physical therapy, occupational therapy, an aid all come during the
week for her. About 2 days ago physical therapy was attempting to get
my mom to walk up steps. However, she must have blacked out for about
7 seconds, they called it in as a seizure. My dad was also at the
house. She is now in the hospital and they are still running test they put her on Keppra- while we visited her we could not get her up. Clearly the amount of Keppra was too much. She was actually supposed to go home, that is the scary. Now they are going to do an eeg (i think that is what it is called just to check for seizure or stroke activity. My mother has been on Zoloft only for about a month now.
After reading your story “red flags” went up for me. Before the stroke my mother was never depressed. My brother and I will be talking to her doctor and we want her off of Zoloft. I am curious as to what remedy your husband is using for seizures. The keppra scares me too many side
effects. Please if you could give me some insight I would greatly appreciate it. Your story is simply amazing and gives us hope for our
mom. Thank you
Dear Kelly,
Thank you for writing. I certainly know what you’re going through with the doctors, anti-depressants and Keppra. My husband is now taking a very small dose of regular Keppra (250 mg) which he tolerates very well, along with a natural anti-seizure remedy that is safe, effective, and free from side-effects. His neurologist is very amazed that he’s been seizure free since March of 2009 with the small dose of Keppra and this natural remedy Epi-Still. It really works!!
The recommended dosage is 20 drops in 1/3 to 1/2 cup of juice or other liquid 3 times a day. (Steve prefers grape juice, but it tastes okay in apple juice and ice tea too.) I give it to him in the morning, mid afternoon and right before bed.
I hope you get your mom’s seizures under control quickly because they can do further brain damage as they did in my husband. They affected his motivation to get better.
BTW…Steve is now taking Lexipro as an anti-depressant and it is working well for him and presents no risk for further seizures. I hope that helps. If you have any further questions, please let me know.
December 30th, 2011 at 9:50 pm