QUESTION:
Dear Dr. Heller,
I am a 24 year old mother of three. When I was a child I was diagnosed
with epilepsy and suffered from two grand mal seizures when I was five.
I was placed on Phenobarbital and then to Tegretol when I got older. I
was weaned off the medication when I was twelve, however, I still had unexplained
symptoms such as twitches in the face and eyes. And periods where I would
black out for a few seconds at a time. Since I have been married I have
not had these symptoms as much. All my life I have had mood swings, ranging
from severely happy to extremely angry. It seems lately I have been so
angry that I can't get anything done that I need to get done. Is there
a chance that the epilepsy I had as a child could have manifested itself
in a form of BPD? I know this may seem like a strange question but I just
want to figure out what is wrong with me. thank you for any information
you can give me on this subject.
I’ve seen many patients with a similar story, and to me it’s clear that a predisposition towards seizure problems can cause or worsen BPD dysphoria. Since epilepsy medications work well for bipolar, the same thing may be true as well. Stress can easily trigger seizures, and lowering that stress can clearly make a difference. Since I believe the BPD is a seizure disorder in the brain’s "trapped" or "cornered" animal response, your conclusion makes sense. The BPD has been caused by head trauma, emotional trauma, and brain infections.
There are many diagnoses you should look into, including the BPD, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and bipolar. I highly recommend looking at the screening test. Making all the diagnoses and treating them comprehensively is crucial.
AAPEL - Back to BPD Borderline page
Warning:
All the informations
on this site are with an aim of helping to understand a "particular" disease
at the very least and puzzle
But more especially
to support peoples who suffer, sick or not. In all cases, it is ESSENTIAL
to have recourse to a therapist specialized
in the disease to confirm or to cancel a diagnosis
Though it is
the name doesn't much matter, which is important, it is to apply "the right"
treatment to each patient
2020