Epileptic Mums?

[excitedanxietyyorkshire]

Hi All,
Any mums-to-be/mamas with epilepsy?
I'm 12 weeks along and I have tonic clonic seizures when sleep deprived. I'll be starting on medication soon and have been told I have to have a Labour ward delivery because of the risks of seizure. How did you guys cope with pregnancy? Labour?
Early months of looking after baby at night?
Any tips appreciated, pretty apprehensive!
Considering maybe getting a night nurse a few nights a week when baby is here so I definitely get some sleep. Costly though!

My mother has epilepsy. My mother's epilepsy actually stopped when she was pregnant and stated again when I was 15. However, when looking after her gc she's definitely aware of her triggers (heat and stress) and warning signs so she has time to ensure gc is in safe place. Sorry not much help, there are Facebook groups specifically for mothers with epilepsy.

@excitedanxietyyorkshire I'm currently 12+4 and epileptic. I get absence seizures when stressed or tired. TC seizures are well controlled- I'm also worried this might change once the baby's here as I'll be totally drained. When I've brought it up with my Consultant and he's sort of said watch this space- I'm just very aware the wait is about 6m for an appt with him!
Epilepsy awareness/advice seems to be minimal anywhere I look. It's starting to worry me a bit now. Only seems to be guidance for people with uncontrolled epilepsy.

Hi I’m 13 weeks today and I’m epileptic. I have temporal lobe epilepsy and have had a few tonic clinic seizures. I’m currently on lamotrigine, 450mg a day. Lack of sleep can sometimes trigger mine, or sometimes they just seem to happen. Saying that, I haven’t had a seizure since February 2019 so the medication is working well for me. I gave birth to my son in 2016, all was fine during the pregnancy, labour and during the night feeds. Things seems to be going fine this pregnancy too so far!

I had my third baby last week. The only advice I was given to help with the sleep deprivation was to get DH to do some night feeds so I could get a chunk of sleep. Oh and to sleep when the baby sleeps...! I soon got the hang of feeding at night on my side which meant I didn't properly wake up to feed - this also helped. I came close to a seizure in the early days with DC1 but I think my body soon got used to less sleep?! Second time round I also ignored advice to reduce my dose as soon as baby had arrived and waited a few weeks. I think first time round reducing my dose straight away, along with the sleep deprivation is why I came close to a seizure (I've not had one in years). This time I'm also going to wait a while before I reduce back to pre pregnancy dose. I also had to give birth on delivery unit but it was fine. No problems!

TLE here too but very mild, only simple partials since during waking hours but they’ve stopped now that I manage my diet better - and have only had sleep seizures since 2014 and only when I’m pregnant (I have 3 dc).

I had no extra management for the epilepsy as mine was so mild. I don’t take meds as my seizures are not a problem for me at all and are rare now. Labour was totally fine and one went on for over 2 days and I coped without the sleep but as I say, mine is very mild. Good luck

I have epilepsy and am 24 weeks. My epilepsy is controlled and I haven't had a tonic seizure for 4 years. However, my lamotragine has been increased since I fell pregnant as the levels dropped. I had a few days during the cross over where I felt almost like I had an aura but nothing happened.

Sleep deprivation was my major trigger for seizures so I spoke with my consultant about this and concerns I have about a long labour, lack of sleep. He spoke to me about a drug they can administer in the event that I am having contractions for 24hours + or in labour overnight. He also said that, in the unlikely event that something does happen, that's why I'm having my baby in the hospital rather than midwife centre