Nothing Like A Seizure To Shake Up Your Routine

Another "first" to add to my 59th year. It was barely Thursday morning when I woke up dreaming that my left arm was either asleep or immoveable. Got up and headed for the kitchen for a cereal & yogurt snack that has become pretty much my routine when I can't sleep but felt funny and sat down in the living room. A few minutes later a slow involuntary twitching started. I yelled for my BBL to wake up and help her hubby who was just starting his imitation of being a fish out of water.

She assisted me back to the bedroom following the first rule to get seizure victims to a safe place. We started our debate on what to do next. I was for sitting it out and she was for driving me to an emergency room. Meanwhile the twitching had accelerated to a much quicker pace which made it impossible to get dressed. We comprimised on calling 911. By the time the paramedics arrived, the bed seemed to have developed "magic fingers" (make that fists) on steroids. We were thankful that we had not attempted to drive.

The last thing I remember from the evening was being loaded in the ambulance and one of the EMT's swearing because he couldn't find the medicine he was looking for. I assume he eventually found it because I don't remember anything more until I woke up in the hospital room at 6:00am.

That's when I discovered the weakened left side and lack of coordination (again) in the left hand and arm. But what was really wierd were the sensations in my left hand: although my hand was empty and still, every 10-15 seconds it felt like I was holding a different object with a different tactile feel. e.g. a piece of duct tape; a slippery poker chip; a glass brick; a sponge; a worm; a blister; peeling skin; etc. etc. You get the idea. Very disconcerting. It was like my brain was trying to find a "system restore point" but just like my Vista computer it was failing to do so. But two CT scans, an MRI and an EEG later, the neurologist announced that he thought everything was OK except for some brain slowing in the area where the staph infection had been.

No answers though as to what might have prompted the event or what to do differently if it happens again. Can't help but think if I had only made it to the Cheerios I would have been OK!