Low Glucose?

It's amazing how not being able to drive will slow ones life. The past two days I have been sleeping and sleeping. Well, sleeping and bathing. I'm almost rested, and very clean. Yesterday, I took both a shower, and a hot bath. Water conservation fanatics would curse me.

Although the second seizure was a shock, I'm feeling better.

What does one do when their body starts doing weird things? Obviously...Goggle it! At least, that's what I do. It's how we found out about the brain tumor in the first place. Thank you internet!

According to the National Institutes of Health
Causes of seizures can include:

• Abnormal levels of sodium or glucose in the blood
• Brain injury (such as stroke or a head injury)
• Brain injury that occurs to the baby during labor or childbirth
• Brain problems that occur before birth (congenital brain defects)
• Brain tumor or bleeding in the brain
• Dementia, such as Alzheimer's disease
• High fever
• Illnesses that cause the brain to deteriorate
• Infections that affect the brain, such as meningitis, encephalitis, neurosyphilis, or AIDS
• Kidney or liver failure
• Phenylketonuria (PKU), which can cause seizures in infants
• Use of illegal street drugs, such as cocaine or amphetamines
• Withdrawal from alcohol after drinking a lot on most days
• Withdrawal from certain drugs, including some painkillers and sleeping pills

After trying to find the cause of my seizures, Dan, my parents and I have isolated the similarities between the episodes. There are only two bullets from above that work. Obviously I have a brain tumor, and the second cause is abnormal levels of glucose in the blood. Both days that I had seizures, I skipped breakfast (I know, I know, very stupid move but I was busy) and drank 2+ espresso shots.

My whole life I have been irregular with my morning meals. I've never had a problem skipping breakfast, or drinking lots of coffee on an empty stomach, but now, my life is changing, my health is different, and what used to work does not work any longer. I am not the iron horse I once was. Again, I need to be more gentle with my body.

At every turn, with this tumor adventure, my body is making me slow down. If I don't listen to what my body needs (like more glucose), my body makes me listen.

Note to self: Eat breakfast and keep a regular eating schedule. Maybe it's time to revise my diet a bit.

2nd Seizure

Damn it. Danny is in town for the weekend and we spent the entire afternoon in the ER. We were running errands, Dan went into the DMV to renew his tabs, while I sat in the car, and after about 5 minutes I started getting the tingles in my arms. It was just like the feeling before my first seizure. I became insanely hot, my heart was racing and I thought for sure I was going to lose my cookies. I lost control of my hands and arms - they shriveled up, I couldn't grasp objects, nor could I lift my arms. It's a long story and I don't have the energy to expand.

I have sense napped for a few hours. The whole ordeal was exhausting. I'm just so disappointed that this is happening. It's frustrating and sad. I know that my seizures effect everyone around me, they worry, they change their lives to take care of me. I hate the fact that my body isn't reliable. I've never experienced anything like this before.

Dan took a photo of me in my hospital bed. Not my most shinning moment.

At least we were able to stop the seizure from turning into a grand mal. My doctors had prescribed a medicine for me to take when I felt a seizure coming on. When I was in the truck, Danny came back from the DMV and I started begging, begging, begging for water, he ran to the nearest place and paid for a huge water, putting the straw in my mouth. He then remembered the super pre-seizure pills that I couldn't access (nor did I remember in my time of confusion). After swallowing one pill and putting the next one under my tongue, we were off to the ER.  

What a day!