Until three weeks ago, I was adamant that I'd never use PowerPoint as a classroom tool. As are many things I pretentiously reject, it was perfectly acceptable for other people, but I was happy with chalk and, you know, my voice. More to the point, I hate change and am technologically inept. And then I … Continue reading “Frazzled University Instructor with Epilepsy” and PowerPoint: A Love Story
Tag: topamax
Pill Organization and Eternal Love
In what amounted to a grand romantic gesture, my husband surprised me by filling my long-abandoned pill organizer while I was on campus the other day. There've been a few times over the past month in which I've had a seizure in an unfortunate window that left unclear whether I'd already taken my evening meds. Of … Continue reading Pill Organization and Eternal Love
Year in Review
In many respects, 2014 hasn't been a stellar year for me. That said, it's important to acknowledge the good along with the bad. In that spirit, here's a "balanced" overview of some of the events of the last twelve months of my life. The Good My teeth haven't fallen out. As some of you may … Continue reading Year in Review
Back to Real Life: Hard Decisions
I'm set to go back to my program and start teaching in January, which is a little exciting but mostly terrifying. To be honest, I know that I'm capable, but I'm not sure if I'm completely ready. I'm not totally not ready, though, so I feel like I should push ahead. There are, however, a … Continue reading Back to Real Life: Hard Decisions
Six-Month Checkup: Ugh (Positivity!)
I had an appointment with my epileptologist last Wednesday. I make this weird assumption that specialists are going to be angry about something that I did or didn't do or about the fact that I haven't made better "progress," even if the lack thereof isn't my fault. And so I was incredibly anxious on Tuesday … Continue reading Six-Month Checkup: Ugh (Positivity!)
Topamax: Five and a Half Months Later
I'm sure all y'all have been eagerly awaiting an update on what's been happening with Topamax, the antiepileptic medication that caused me to function at the level of a second-grader drugged on sleeping pills when I started taking it in May. Well, you'll be pleased to know that tremendous progress has been made: I now … Continue reading Topamax: Five and a Half Months Later
Breakthrough
Remember how Topamax was working miracles, eliminating my convulsive seizures and transforming my days into a series of peaceful, anxiety-free, productive moments? (Slight—okay, major—hyperbole.) Well, the tonic-clonic seizure that I had last night reminded me that nothing lasts forever. Not true, actually: even the eponymous and moderately annoying Maroon 5 song is still around. But … Continue reading Breakthrough
Cost of Control
I complain so much about the side effects of the anticonvulsants that I’ve been prescribed—the infamous Topamax, not Lamictal, which I also take but tolerate very well—that I forget how lucky I am to be able to afford these meds in the first place. When I go to the pharmacy to pick up a monthly … Continue reading Cost of Control
Cutting It Out
I’m currently on the waiting list to go back to the Epilepsy Monitoring Unit at a hospital in my city so that my epileptologist can capture more data about my seizure activity. The prospect of a week or two of hospital time isn’t exactly thrilling, but at least there’s potential for productive information gathering and … Continue reading Cutting It Out
Dopamax
I’m the first to concede that I had pitifully low expectations for Topamax when it was added to my pharmaceutical regime in early May. My bad attitude was, in my admittedly negative opinion, warranted: I’d unsuccessfully tried many other AEDs and had no reason to expect that this would be any different. It has been, … Continue reading Dopamax
De Morbo Sacro: Life and/with Epilepsy 