Archive for May, 2007

Disclaimer: This tongue-in-cheek explanation of epilepsy is done by someone recently diagnosed with epilepsy so it is by no means accurate. For an accurate description, please consult your doctor!

I noticed that when I mentioned Epilepsy some of my readers commented as follows: “I’m sorry I don’t know what to comment because I don’t know much about epilepsy.” So I’m going to try to explain in my own laymen’s term what it is.

First, I think that the most accurate way to describe epilepsy is to call it a condition or a disorder. It is inaccurate to call it a desease or a sickness or illness because those who have it can be very healthy individuals. What they have is a condition that makes them more susceptible to seizures than others.

According to my doctor, everyone can have a seizure when the condition is right. Someone with epilepsy just has a lowered treshhold for a seizure that is all.

Just what exactly is a seizure then? Well we all have electrical waves in our brains at all times, whether we’re sleeping or awake. A seizure happens when there is a sudden, abnormal electric activity in the brain. This means that I am a very electrifying person! (when my brain merajuk) Geddit?

Many people are afraid of the word Epilepsy because they do not understand it. When I was in primary school I had a classmate with epilepsy and whenever she had a seizure, the teachers would do the wrong thing (I’m going to explain what is the wrong thing in a while) and we all thought she was possessed! That is the social stigma attached to it due to lack of misunderstanding.

There are so many types of seizures that I can’t mention it all here without boring my readers. Did you know that there is even one that makes a person sing, dance, laugh or cry and remove their clothes in public without knowing it afterwards? It depends on which part of the brain is affected. It can be rather embarrassing which is why it is easy to get depressed, be afraid (of not knowing when you will have the next seizure) and have a lowered self confidence and self esteem as a result. So if you are helping someone with epilepsy, please realise that these are the emotions they have to deal with. Speaking of which, I am not going to let these emotions control me.

Did you know that there is another type of seizure called absence seizure which often happens in childhood which just makes the person stare in space for a while and waking up afterwards without realising what has happened and people just think that the person is not paying attention in class and has poor results from the moments he/she misses out? Epilepsy is not easy to diagnose and some people go on for years without being diagnosed.

When we are dealing with something we do not understand, people are afraid to talk about it and so they don’t sometimes because they don’t know what to say. Take for example my friend firehorse. She had written a post dedicated to me on her blog and she got 10 measly comments when she usually gets about 30 or so.  I take this to mean that two thirds of her readers are afraid or rather uncomfortable to say anything. Lol!

Some people have an aura (a brief electrical discharge in a localised part of the brain) which some would call a warning sign or a partial seizure before a bigger or generalised seizure. I will talk about my auras another day. I’m lazy today.

Ok. Now comes to the most important part of my post. How do you help someone in a seizure. I will just point out what I think is the most important thing not to do.

Most important things not to do to help a person in a seizure.

1. If its in a public place, don’t stand around oggling and being a busybody. If you don’t know how to help, just look if you must then move on!!! Don’t crowd around the person. They need the air and you don’t want to embarass and confuse them further by standing around looking.
2. Don’t try to stop the seizure. You can’t. Just make sure the person won’t hurt themself by moving hard or hot things around them. After the seizure turn the person to the side to prevent them from swallowing their own vomit or inhaling fluids or acids from their stomach which could cause pneumonia or choking, something that could be more dangerous then the actual seizure itself.
3. Don’t put any object into the persons mouth to “prevent the person from swallowing their tongue”. They won’t. In fact if you place a hard object like a spoon for example it could cause harm and injury to their jaw or teeth or if you place a soft object it could cause them to swallow it and choke. (This was what my teachers did to the poor girl in school. They always tried to push a spoon into her mouth.) If you want to be a hero and place your fingers into their mouth it would probably be bitten, so don’t.
4. If its in a public place, after the seizure, comfort and speak to the confused person gently and ask if they need help to get home etc. DON’T take this as an opportunity to steal their wallet!!!!
5. Don’t wake a person from their deep sleep after a seizure and don’t offer any food or water until they are fully awake.
6. There is no need to call and ambulance and send the person to emergency unless the seizure does not stop for 5 minutes or the person stops breathing for longer than 30 seconds in which case in could be life threatening and medical help is required.

My husband asked me how I would feel if I had a seizure in a public place and I told him that I would not feel anything because I don’t remember it afterwards. I only remember bits and pieces but I think it would be harder for him to handle. He would have to handle me, the inevitable busybody crowd plus make sure our two young kids are safe. (Which is why I stressed No: 1 as Don’t stand around oggling if you can’t help). Thats all I want to write for now. I want to go and do my exercise now.

Some of the self help techniques I am trying out for myself, include exercise, deep breathing, relaxation, getting proper nutrition and sleep, yoga (If can’t go to yoga, yoga will come to me. I can’t go to a yoga class so I bought a begginers yoga tape instead. Hehe.), awareness (reading and recording down), taking my medication with timeliness and working with my neurologist together. Hopefully I will become seizure free then.

Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it!

Some years ago, while driving along a busy road, hubby complained about the jam and said

“I wish the roads would not be so jammed up all the time when going to and from work. Its so jammed up everywhere! Even the malls are jammed up!”

And then the economic downturn came and the roads became quieter and the malls became even quieter and some had to be closed down. And he didn’t have a job for a time so there was no need to drive to and from “jammed” roads. Hmmm…..

When I was pregnant, I complained. “I wish I didn’t have to wear this clumsy and ugly looking maternity clothes. I feel so heavy and fat!”

Now, I can’t get pregnant or rather it would probably not be a good idea for me to get pregnant. Hmmmm….

When the kids were little, I said “I wish they would grow up faster then it would be easier to look after them.”

Well they have grown up now but it isn’t that much easier to look after them (lol!) and oh how I miss those sweet baby moments. Hahaha.

Whats the moral behind this? Be happy with who you are and what you have right now and don’t wish for anything else or you just might get it! Don’t wish that your kids will be less talkative or not jump around so much (you should be happy they are healthy and happy instead of sickly in the hospital) or that your spouse will not work so late (he may lose his job and not have work at all if your wish comes true!), or that your old folks will not impose on you so much or (enjoy whatever time you have left with your old folks and that includes the in laws) ……..It would be so silly to wish your life away instead of enjoying what you have.

Be thankful for everything that you have. Be thankful even for the traffic jams because it means the economy is robust and you have a job to go to! Lol!

 

 

I tak boleh tahan adi, wrote to paypal and got this reply from them a moment ago.

Thank you for taking the time to contact us with your concerns. We apologize for the delay in responding to your service request. I am happy to assist you further.

Sincerely,
Sissy
PayPal Global Services
PayPal, an eBay Company 

So, to all Malaysian Paypal users, just give Paypal the benefit of a doubt and keep on checking the next few days to see if you can accept the payments.

Theres just too many rumours running around that this technical glitch may not be for real since its taking so long to resolve. However, I prefer to be patient for now rather than try out some of the other suggested ways to accept payment especially those that involve keying in some other account numbers in case I fall for some scam.

Afterall, if this is not a real technical glitch why would they even bother to reply in this manner and logically speaking there are many Malaysian Paypal users so they should look after their Malaysian Users too don’t you think? 

• In my teens I read Enid Blyton and other adventure books
• In my late teens I read mostly Babara Cartland type Romance Novels, trashy celebrity gossips and scary novels
• In my 20s I read women’s magazines and other fashion magazines, more scary plus adventure novels
• In my 30s I read Business Magazines (kononlah, wanted to be or emulate successful business woman. Hahaha.)
• In my late 30s I read Nursery Rhymes and Fairy Tales (to the kids of course) and Parenting Books and Articles
• And now in  my 40s this is what I read. Tadaaa….

Yup! The 3 books I’ve ordered have arrived and I shall be digging my nose into them at the speed of lighting. I usually read at the speed of lighting and can finish any book in a jiffy. So these are the current books on my nightstand. Nice ”light” reading material aren’t they? Lol! Give me my brainless fashion magazines anytime.

 

This is a rojak post. I just want to get some stuff off my chest.

1. I have been on the medication for more than a month now. At first it made me so sleepy I slept on everybody’s couch and I’m the type who can only sleep in bed not on couches. At first it gave my right eye a twitch, I think.
2. I’m afraid to stand in front of my dressing table and look in the mirror now because it gives me bad memories. Memories of standing there one moment and losing conciousness the next.
3. I feel pressured to sleep and my husband pressures me to sleep too. And the more pressured I am, the harder it is to sleep. When I don’t have enough sleep eg sleep late and wakes up early I feel extremely worried and try to make up for it the next day and when I can’t, I feel even more worried and it gets harder to sleep. Aarrrggh! I hate it. Theres got to be more to life than just sleep! I also feel guilty when I have some free time and I don’t use that to sleep! I believe that lack of sleep is a trigger for my seizure so its a vicious cycle. In this case fortunately the medicine and its drowsy effects helps occassionally.
4. I have ordered 3 books on epilepsy to read but they have not arrived yet.
5. I feel more relaxed now and like to pay more attention to the  people who are important to me, mainly my family.
6. I complained about some of the potential side effects of the medication like weight gain, acne etc. My husband says they are only small things but I can’t help it. I am woman and I am vain. I joke with my girlfriend that if I have a seizure I already look quite awful, I don’t want to look awful and be fat and pimply at the same time. You won’t understand this unless you are a woman. Lol!
7. I am saddened that this means that we can’t have the 3rd child we both want.
8. I am back to doing my exercises now. Perhaps I shall get more exercise videos so I can do more routines. Hubby does not understand why I need new exercise tapes but then he is a man. Lol!
9. I am afraid to walk down the stairs or take a bath alone or boil water or handle a knife alone or be in public places alone. Perhaps I shall get hubby to accompany me when I take a bath. *wink wink* But then another side effect of the medication is lowered libido. Hmmmm……
10. I wish I could drive again. I haven’t driven in 2 years and this is a big loss of independance to me. Looking at the bright side, I am now “si tau poh” and gets driven everywhere I go!

Ok. Enough ranting for the day.