What triggers epileptic seizures?
Try this surprising list… from the Epilepsy Foundation:
Seizure Triggers and Precipitants:
missed medication
Sleep and wake cycles
hormonal fluctuations
drugs,
illness or fever.
Adding or removing prescription medications or supplements (and should therefore be done gradually).
emotional stressors such as worry, anxiety and anger, especially if combined with fatigue or chronic sleep loss.
Unpredictable changes in metabolic factors, such as vomiting, diarrhea and physical stress
“In contrast, reflex epilepsy is a condition in which seizures can be provoked by an external stimulus”
flashing lights
internal mental process (ie mathematical calculation).
“An EEG response to repetitive light stimulation is called “photosensitivity,” and is seen in about 25 percent (so absent in 75%) of individuals with primary generalized epilepsy. Triggers in pattern-sensitive epilepsy may include circles, stripes or other patterns, usually of high contrast”.
TV and electronic screen games.
sensory stimuli, such as light touch, tapping or soaking in hot water,
auditory stimuli (less common triggers of seizures).
“Another type of reflex epilepsy that is even more intriguing and unusual is triggered by complex actions or mental processes. This includes primary reading epilepsy, seizures induced by:
thinking and eating-induced seizures.
“For the most part, once triggers have been indentified, exposure can be limited, and that is the typical treatment, along with standard anti seizure medications”.
info from Epilepsy Foundation http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/aboutepilepsy/Diagnosis/seizureprovokingtriggers.cfm
