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Original poster

Neurology appointment

12 replies

mumof2g1rls · 30/12/2022 22:49

This might be a long post so bare with me

I am currently 28w3d pregnant with my third child, I was in hospital last week for my glucose intolerance test which I've never had before. All was okay, got my first lot of bloods done and had the glucose drink, sat in the waiting room with the other ladies doing the test and then about 30 mins of waiting I started to feel really really off, felt like I could possibly faint so I was trying to distract myself and got up to go to the loo, felt okay walking to the loo, got back to waiting room and just felt awful again, I got up to find someone to ask if I could possibly get a bed as I felt funny and she said of course let me try find a free bed, I sat in the chair in the corridor and next thing I know alarms are going off and I have about 7 midwives/nurse around me, one asking if I was okay and if I've ever had a seizure before. It took me a while to come back round as I could hear and see them but I was so confused as I felt like I was having a dream and I was in bed until I realised I had got up and been to the hospital.

I have had a seizure before, these have all been petit mals, 2 in a previous pregnancy and about 3-5 not during pregnancy. The midwife said she thinks this was another seizure as I went stiff as a board, locked my arms up to my chest and had my hands in a fist, eyes rolling to my head and slightly convulsing. In previous seizures I have lost control of my whole body and have wet myself but I believe I didn't that time as I had just been to the toilet but my whole body was tingly and numb for about 5 mins after coming around.

Any who, as a child I would faint for fun, as I said I've had a few seizures before so I was tested for epilepsy at the age of 12 I think, but as far as I am aware I was just strapped to a vibrating bed and had lights flashed at me to see if I'd take a seizure and I didn't so they put it down to the fact I have a heart murmur. The dr at the hospital who checked me out after my seizure said all my obs were okay and she wasn't concerned as I'd had this happen before in a pregnancy but then also said because this has happened before in a pregnancy that I should probably be investigated more. So the senior dr has referred me to neurology, the referral arrived at my doctors yesterday and I've to go in for a face to face appointment, i presume after this I will be given an appointment with neurology? However I am now very worried that even if my scans come back clear and I am okay, that because of my history I will have my license revoked for a while as my partners uncles just had his revoked for 6 months after a petit mal, his first ever and nothing found in scans but he still isn't allowed to drive. Anyhow I am a home carer within the community so to do my job I have to drive, if however I am told I can't drive until seizure free for however long I will have to go off sick. I am then worried that because my work pay statutory maternity pay that this will mess this up?? I have no idea what happens and I'm quite worried now. Does anyone have any experience with anything like this, or know what would happen with maternity pay if I was signed off sick until my maternity leave starts?

TIA

OP posts:
Daisy95 · 31/12/2022 00:26

Sorry to hear about your episode.
I have epilepsy, scans all clear but diagnosed with epilepsy due to the nature of my seizures.
All I can tell you is that normally you have to be seizure free for a year to have your license back. I completely understand the stress and worry of it all.

However (as I had to realise) if I drove and had a seizure not only could I have killed myself I could have more importantly killed someone else.

I know this isn't what you want to hear. But that is probably your worst case scenario.

I hope your appointment goes well. The tests they normally do is a eeg and mri however they may skip the mri as your pregnant.

Sorry again if that's not what you wanted to hear but I didn't want to read & run x

Original poster
mumof2g1rls · 31/12/2022 06:45

Daisy95 · 31/12/2022 00:26

Sorry to hear about your episode.
I have epilepsy, scans all clear but diagnosed with epilepsy due to the nature of my seizures.
All I can tell you is that normally you have to be seizure free for a year to have your license back. I completely understand the stress and worry of it all.

However (as I had to realise) if I drove and had a seizure not only could I have killed myself I could have more importantly killed someone else.

I know this isn't what you want to hear. But that is probably your worst case scenario.

I hope your appointment goes well. The tests they normally do is a eeg and mri however they may skip the mri as your pregnant.

Sorry again if that's not what you wanted to hear but I didn't want to read & run x

Thank you for replying! I hope you don't mind me asking but when you have an episode what do you experience? I know everyone is different and we're you medicated for epilepsy even though scans came back okay?

I totally understand 100% if I get my license revoked for a while until seizure free, I'm just worried what that means for maternity pay as I've never had to go off sick before maternity leave before😬

Again thank you so much for your reply, I really appreciate it! Xx

OP posts:
Hopingforno2in2023 · 31/12/2022 06:50

Are you 100% sure you are ok to drive now? Have you informed the DVLA of your seizure?

mummyh2016 · 31/12/2022 07:12

You're already passed the point where your SMP could be affected. If you're signed off work your maternity leave will just start at 36 weeks.

Original poster
mumof2g1rls · 31/12/2022 08:02

Hopingforno2in2023 · 31/12/2022 06:50

Are you 100% sure you are ok to drive now? Have you informed the DVLA of your seizure?

I've never been told not to drive by any dr, the dr at the hospital after my last seizure let me drive home so I didn't think anything about it to be honest until I spoke to my partners mum about her brother and she said about him not being allowed to drive and then my midwife told me there's a possibility that I'll loose my license for a while so then I started thinking about it! Every time I've had a seizure I've felt it coming and luckily never had anything like that when driving, I have the drs on Wednesday with my doctor for the appointment before referral so I'll ask him about it, because I don't want to be driving if I'm not meant to be

OP posts:
Original poster
mumof2g1rls · 31/12/2022 08:03

mummyh2016 · 31/12/2022 07:12

You're already passed the point where your SMP could be affected. If you're signed off work your maternity leave will just start at 36 weeks.

Okay thank you, I had asked my manager at work and she just said she didn't know and payroll was closed so wasn't very helpful

OP posts:
Hopingforno2in2023 · 31/12/2022 08:09

I am 99% sure you are meant to report it to the DVLA OP. This is from the Gov website. I used to work for the neurology service (not in a medical capacity) and it was amazing how few A&E doctors and GPs told patients they couldn’t drive. We had patients drive to their first neurology appointment and the neurologist would have to tell them that they shouldn’t have been driving for the entire time they were on the waiting list.

this was a few years ago though so things may have changed! In your shoes I would call the DVLA though.

Neurology appointment
Original poster
mumof2g1rls · 31/12/2022 08:36

Hopingforno2in2023 · 31/12/2022 08:09

I am 99% sure you are meant to report it to the DVLA OP. This is from the Gov website. I used to work for the neurology service (not in a medical capacity) and it was amazing how few A&E doctors and GPs told patients they couldn’t drive. We had patients drive to their first neurology appointment and the neurologist would have to tell them that they shouldn’t have been driving for the entire time they were on the waiting list.

this was a few years ago though so things may have changed! In your shoes I would call the DVLA though.

Wow thank you for this!! I honestly would have had no idea I'd to report it myself, I would only thought this would be done if the drs have told you that you can't drive until further investigation! Atm there is no diagnosis other than them blaming these episodes on my heart murmur so I don't know if that's why nothings ever been said to me about it or what! Thank you for this though, I'll contact them

OP posts:
Hopingforno2in2023 · 31/12/2022 08:46

Glad to help :) It may be that if they are not classed as seizures you are absolutely fine to drive but definitely worth checking.

Original poster
mumof2g1rls · 31/12/2022 08:50

Hopingforno2in2023 · 31/12/2022 08:46

Glad to help :) It may be that if they are not classed as seizures you are absolutely fine to drive but definitely worth checking.

It's hard to tell to be honest because I'm not aware of what's going on around me when it's happened so I don't know what it looks like to others haha, but the midwife reported it as a seizure and in my previous pregnancy an ambulance was called as I collapsed in tkmaxx and the ambulance said it was a petit mal as I had wet myself and didn't remember anything, so as far as I'm aware they're seizures but not big ones which is good, still not amazing tho😅

OP posts:
Daisy95 · 31/12/2022 09:10

So I tend to feel a bit rubbish that day, I then tend to fall to the ground and my whole body shakes (like what you would see in a film), have lost control of bladder.
Yes I have been medicated for epilepsy and still am even though no tests showed anything.
My triggers for seizures are tiredness & stress so they said that would never show on a eeg.
I also don't think you should be driving due to the law. Do you know when your appointment is?

Original poster
mumof2g1rls · 04/01/2023 10:23

mumof2g1rls · 30/12/2022 22:49

This might be a long post so bare with me

I am currently 28w3d pregnant with my third child, I was in hospital last week for my glucose intolerance test which I've never had before. All was okay, got my first lot of bloods done and had the glucose drink, sat in the waiting room with the other ladies doing the test and then about 30 mins of waiting I started to feel really really off, felt like I could possibly faint so I was trying to distract myself and got up to go to the loo, felt okay walking to the loo, got back to waiting room and just felt awful again, I got up to find someone to ask if I could possibly get a bed as I felt funny and she said of course let me try find a free bed, I sat in the chair in the corridor and next thing I know alarms are going off and I have about 7 midwives/nurse around me, one asking if I was okay and if I've ever had a seizure before. It took me a while to come back round as I could hear and see them but I was so confused as I felt like I was having a dream and I was in bed until I realised I had got up and been to the hospital.

I have had a seizure before, these have all been petit mals, 2 in a previous pregnancy and about 3-5 not during pregnancy. The midwife said she thinks this was another seizure as I went stiff as a board, locked my arms up to my chest and had my hands in a fist, eyes rolling to my head and slightly convulsing. In previous seizures I have lost control of my whole body and have wet myself but I believe I didn't that time as I had just been to the toilet but my whole body was tingly and numb for about 5 mins after coming around.

Any who, as a child I would faint for fun, as I said I've had a few seizures before so I was tested for epilepsy at the age of 12 I think, but as far as I am aware I was just strapped to a vibrating bed and had lights flashed at me to see if I'd take a seizure and I didn't so they put it down to the fact I have a heart murmur. The dr at the hospital who checked me out after my seizure said all my obs were okay and she wasn't concerned as I'd had this happen before in a pregnancy but then also said because this has happened before in a pregnancy that I should probably be investigated more. So the senior dr has referred me to neurology, the referral arrived at my doctors yesterday and I've to go in for a face to face appointment, i presume after this I will be given an appointment with neurology? However I am now very worried that even if my scans come back clear and I am okay, that because of my history I will have my license revoked for a while as my partners uncles just had his revoked for 6 months after a petit mal, his first ever and nothing found in scans but he still isn't allowed to drive. Anyhow I am a home carer within the community so to do my job I have to drive, if however I am told I can't drive until seizure free for however long I will have to go off sick. I am then worried that because my work pay statutory maternity pay that this will mess this up?? I have no idea what happens and I'm quite worried now. Does anyone have any experience with anything like this, or know what would happen with maternity pay if I was signed off sick until my maternity leave starts?

TIA

Update

I was seen by the dr today and he said neurology have referred me to cardiology to have my heart checked, so I'll be having tests done on my heart, which I had when I was younger as neurology don't think I've had a seizure but the dr thinks I have had a seizure and in my medical history I've had them before so he said if my cardiology tests come back okay I'll have to be referred back to neurology, so it seems a bit of a faff around🥴

OP posts:
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