Living with epilepsy

I've been living with epilepsy for almost 11 years. I'm sure there's people out there who have it worse than me, but I have learned some tricks throughout the years that have lead me to finally being seizure free!

Of course, medicine plays a big part in this. That's a no brainer, Over these past 11 years, I have tried at least 15 different types and medications and combinations. I finally found a combination that works the best. The trick to the medicine is to take it at the SAME exact time every day. Set an alarm on your phone or your watch. If you know you won't be home at that time, make sure you bring your medication with you wherever you're going. I keep mine in my car at all times. Your body needs to stay regulated. If you take it at 8 in the morning and 10 at night, your body is being deprived of the medicine for at least 2 hours and you're more inclined to have a seizure.

Something that is very hard, but very detrimental to being seizure free is sleep. If you're over tired, your brain is going to over work itself and misfire. You need to make time for yourself to get rest. Rearrange your priorities. This needs to be a number one. Staying up late and sleeping in til noon isn't necessarily good for you, but it's better than staying up late and getting up at 6AM to go to work. Get a job that you can do on your own time or one that will adhere to the schedule you need to put yourself on.

Next up...orange juice! Yes, you read that right. The acid in oranges is not good for your bloodstream and will effect your brain in negative ways. I know it's a fruit and it seems insane, but it's the truth. Be very careful with these delicious balls of color! There are a lot of foods that can have negative effects on your brain that may seem good for you.

Okay, the biggest secret on how I got seizure free. This answer is going to involve surgery. Most people aren't prepared to take that risk. I absolutely was ready to try anything and everything to stop my seizures. 24 years old and I never had a license. This surgery changed my life and I don't regret it at all. It's called a VNS, also known as a vagil nerve simulator. Basically, it's a device that is implanted and attaches to your vagil nerve. When it senses a seizure coming on, it shocks your this nerve. For the first month or so, you'll feel these shocks, but it's been over a year and I don't even notice it anymore. I highly recommend this implant. It's a fast healing process and most insurances will cover the entire surgery.

I know that headaches and migraines can, also, cause seizures. They're just apart of this stupid disease. Seizures cause headaches and headaches cause seizures. Do everything in your power to prevent headaches. Less screen time, more sleep, less stress.

This one is probably a given, but getting excessively drunk will cause seizures. I'm 24 years old and didn't get to experience the "party" phase of the teenage years, so I'm trying to makeup for it. The only downfall to it is you can't party like a rockstar. I go out and get tipsy and that's fine, but no more than that.