Panic attacks and non-epileptic seizures.

[ThornAmongstRoses]

Has anyone experienced either of these and would be happy to share their experience?

I may have had one and I’m feeling pretty scared by the concept...

Hello! This is something that affects me and I’m happy to share my experience if it helps you. I have a specific phobia and suffer with daily anxiety in relation to this phobia (recently diagnosed with OCD as well!). Even the mention of the thing I have a phobia of will start the panic and as early as when I was 5 or 6 years old (mid 20s now) I have fainted. About two and a half years ago I was forced to come face to face with the phobia and since then my anxiety and panic has been sky high and I have had these seizures, on bad weeks sometimes daily or multiple times a day. I’ve recently started therapy to try and address this. Basically, the way it has been explained to me by doctors and my therapist is that my panic reaches a certain level and what should happen at this point is the panic levels off and starts to reduce. My body starts to get distressed as my panic is not reducing, so just knocks me unconscious as a way of ‘forcing it’. This is almost identical to a faint, but unfortunately presents as a seizure for me, with jerking limbs, loss of control of bodily functions ( I pee myself about half of the time basically). I have even stopped breathing for very short periods of time during these episodes. I haven’t developed epilepsy, I don’t have seizures until I start to panic, which is mostly in response to my phobia. It’s just unfortunately my body’s coping mechanism but is not dangerous as such. Sorry this is long but hopefully slightly reassuring!

Make sure the do a blood test for B12, folate, ferritin, fbc and full thyroid panel. Don't take vitamin supplements or red bull type drinks in the 4 months before the test.
www.b12deficiency.info/what-is-b12-deficiency/

Thank you for your reply.

I’m 37 now and was diagnosed with epilepsy when I was 16.

I had a few good years and bad years of seizure control and changing medication etc and then 8 years after my initial diagnosis I finally got control over things.

I remained seizure free for 13 years and then last year, completely out of the blue, I had a tonic clonic seizure at work. It turned my life upside down in many ways and I took it very hard.

Sadly, 11 months later I had another tonic clonic seizure, again at work

Last Thursday I was at work and had what may have been a seizure of sorts but I’m worried now that it was a panic attack.

I only work two days a week so what is the chance that after 13 years of being seizure free I then have 3 in the space of 15 months and they have all happened in the workplace.

I will admit that being at work recently has made me anxious because of fear I’m going to have a seizure.

The episode I had last Thursday though was very different as I was overcome with feelings of panic, I couldn’t stop crying, I was behaving irrationally, my colleagues said I was acted scared, I was agitated, vacant and withdrawn (as though I wasn’t on the same planet) and that my face was really, really flushed. For the first time in my history of epilepsy, these feelings didn’t progress into a tonic clonic seizure.

I’m just I’m just curious as to whether my episode last week was actually a manifestation of anpanic attack at the thought of having a seizure as opposed to an epileptic seizure itself.

Make sure the do a blood test for B12, folate, ferritin, fbc and full thyroid panel. Don't take vitamin supplements or red bull type drinks in the 4 months before the test.
www.b12deficiency.info/what-is-b12-deficiency/

Was this posted in error? Not sure how it’s an response to my question??

Sorry that you’re having a hard time. As I don’t have epilepsy I don’t know anything about how you may be able to tell the difference between the two, so my experience is probably not all that helpful to you. Hopefully there’s someone else that may have a similar experience that can help.

ashmarie - epilepsy aside, your post was still very helpful to read

No I didn't post in error.
Non epileptic seizures can be a symptom of pernicious anaemia.
it's worth having a simple blood test, if only to rule it out.
If left untreated it can be very unpleasant

I’m already on treatment for anaemia - iron tablets and folic acid - and have been on it for almost 6 months now.

I have spoken to my doctor and they are getting me in for blood tests on the 4th of January to assess how things are.

I've had non-epileptic seizures' since I was four - I wouldn't actually call them seizures as there's no electrical activity in my brain, but I suddenly fall unconscious and my body spasms.

They didn't know what it was at first but now think it is related to blood-injection-injury phobia. This has been getting worse and I have been in states of panic a fair few times out of fear of having a fit. Such as at blood tests, and I will shake and struggle to control my breathing.

It's awful and I have no solution as of yet unfortunately. The more frightened I am the more likely a fit. Luckily, the only solace is that they have said the fits will not harm me.

Sorry have read you are actually epileptic so am not sure how safe yours are, mine are like the PP where my panic causes my body to drop my blood pressure way way down and this causes fit-like faints.

@ThornAmongstRoses

I’m already on treatment for anaemia - iron tablets and folic acid - and have been on it for almost 6 months now.

I have spoken to my doctor and they are getting me in for blood tests on the 4th of January to assess how things are.

There are several types of anaemia. You are already on treatment for iron anaemia and folate anaemia, so there is a very strong possibility you cannot absorb B12 from your diet - this is called pernicious anaemia or B12 deficiency. Diagnosing and treating this correctly can be tricky for doctors but there are additional tests you can request. www.b12deficiency.info/b12-testing/ It's urgent you get this explored since it can be nasty if left untreated. It's a lifelong condition so it won't go away if you ignore it.

so there is a very strong possibility you cannot absorb B12 from your diet - this is called pernicious anaemia or B12 deficiency. Diagnosing and treating this correctly can be tricky for doctors but there are additional tests you can request. www.b12deficiency.info/b12-testing/
It's urgent you get this explored since it can be nasty if left untreated.

I ended up in A&E 5 months ago after a seizure which is when my low iron count was realised (it was 92) and I was told I also had low B12 levels. I wasn’t given any treatment for my B12, just started on iron and folic acid.

I had to have repeat blood tests 4 months later where my iron level was just within normal limits (it was 121) and my folate levels had normalised too. My B12 wasn’t mentioned at all and so I just assumed it was fine.,

My mum has them . Has done since about 1976 . She had a horrible time in childhood with abuse and then rape and domestic violence as an adult .

They’re horrendous - she’s had them everywhere imaginable eg airplane, giving birth, swimming pool, on a moving escalator , but with a great deal of support - OT, full mental health team, neuropsych and neurologist - she’s managing them with a lot more control . Her triggers are varied but a lot of sensory stuff . She can’t hack optician, hairdresser, dentist etc .

She has full blackouts with eyes funny, limbs jerking, incontinent etc . It’s horrible to see and far worse for her .

My sister has had a handful too; she’s severely autistic - the psychiatrists think mum might be too and that there’s a link .

Mum interestingly has pernicious anaemia too as do I .