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What The Heck Happened?!?

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    #1

    What The Heck Happened?!?

    I take gabapentin for nerve pain, parasthesia, etc. 1200mg/day.

    This morning, 5:30 am, I was woken half an hour before my first daily dose.

    I was woken up mostly by my husband because I was jerking my upper body, up, up, and up. I remember feeling afraid. When it stopped,

    1. My R hand was laid over my chest curled down and tightened.

    2. My L hand was laid over my stomach curled upward and tightened.

    3. The L side of my body was really sore and so was my back from jerking.

    I remember feeling confused and afraid. My husband asked me to open my eyes which made me even more afraid. He asked me the day, where I was and my name. I struggled with the day but knew where I was and what my name was.

    4. After the confusion cleared a bit, I noticed my legs and feet were sore and stiffened, mostly my L side.

    5. My mouth felt stiff, like my teeth hurt and I got a headache, R temple.

    I asked my husband to please take the covers off of me and move my feet for me. They seemed to be curled down a bit.

    Today my legs and back are sore and the L side of my body is really stiff.

    I don't know what the heck happened but I NEVER want to go through that again.
    Tags: None
    #2
    I have unexplained scratch marks in my upper, upper, thigh area.

    Comment

      #3
      Bless your heart! That sounds really scary! It sounds like possibly a seizure or really severe spasticity. If it happens again, you may want to make an appointment with your doctor, insurance or not. You can always arrange to make payments.

      Hugs,

      Lisa
      Joy is not the absence of suffering. It is the presence of God.
      Cut aspartame from my diet in 2012 and my symptoms have slowly disappeared. Interesting!
      Alpha Lipoic Acid (200 mg) + Acetyl L-carnitine (1,000 mg) = No more fatigue for me!

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        #4
        It was really scary. I had unexplained jerking that woke me out of my sleep in April. The EEG a week later showed normal. But it was a very basic EEG.

        So I don't know. I'm very tired and sore today.

        Comment

          #5
          Originally posted by jamilea View Post
          It was really scary. I had unexplained jerking that woke me out of my sleep in April. The EEG a week later showed normal. But it was a very basic EEG.

          So I don't know. I'm very tired and sore today.
          So that's two episodes, the second worse than the first.

          These sound more like seizures than spasticity to me, because of the jerking aspect. Have you been tested for epilepsy &/or other seizure disorders?

          The fact that you're tired and sore could be either from spasticity or a major seizure, so that's not really a clue in and of itself.

          The one thing your husband should know, if it happens again, is to make sure you don't swallow your tongue. Putting something like a pencil or pen crosswise in your mouth is the usual method. Maybe keep something like that by your bed, since both episodes so far have been during the night?

          I'd suggest going to the ER immediately if you have another episode, no matter what time of the night (or day) it is. They'll have to treat you as an emergent patient, even if you don't have insurance. The bill can be dealt with later; most hospitals will let you do a payment plan.

          I'm very sorry you had such a frightening experience last night, Jami Lea.

          Comment

            #6
            Wow! I can't even begin to imagine how scary that was for you! (and for your DH)

            I've worked in the health care field for so long that what you described sounds like classic seizure symptoms (as opposed to spasticity), especially the symptoms you describe after the episode of the jerking limbs where you write of experiencing feelings of confusion (often seen in the post-ictal phase of a seizure).

            The thing that is weird (besided all of it, I'm sure) is that Gabapentin is an anticonvulsant, a med to treat seizures. Upon some research, this is a possible, and very serious side effect of that med.

            What did your neurologist say? Was that who recommeded the EEG?

            About what Sequoia wrote: "The one thing your husband should know, if it happens again, is to make sure you don't swallow your tongue. Putting something like a pencil or pen crosswise in your mouth is the usual method. Maybe keep something like that by your bed, since both episodes so far have been during the night?"

            I've been a CPR/First Aid instructor for the American Red Cross for 10 years. This is not the correct action to take. The risk for someone to swallow their tongue during a seizure is EXTREMELY low and the instruction is to NOT put anything in a person's mouth who may be having a seizure.

            The family should consult the American Red Cross or the American Heart Association to get instructions (and training) on what to do if this occurs again.

            Blessings and better health!
            Biscuit
            Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.
            Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

            Comment

              #7
              first aid for seizures

              It is no longer practice to place something in the mouth of a person in seizure. Too often the item broke in their mouth and they choked on it or it broke a tooth and they choked on it. Just lay them on the floor and move other items out of the area so they don't hurt themselves on them. If you can lay them on their side, although this is tough with how rigid they are. If they lose consciousness, then lay them on their side in case they vomit or have a lot of saliva.
              The other thing is that you can not swallow your tongue--it is attached at the bottom of you mouth. The airway can be blocked by the tongue but not swallowed. Laying them on their side will help with this.
              MS is not a crisis in my life. It is just a chapter within my life.

              Comment

                #8
                Originally posted by artteacher View Post
                It is no longer practice to place something in the mouth of a person in seizure. Too often the item broke in their mouth and they choked on it or it broke a tooth and they choked on it. Just lay them on the floor and move other items out of the area so they don't hurt themselves on them. If you can lay them on their side, although this is tough with how rigid they are. If they lose consciousness, then lay them on their side in case they vomit or have a lot of saliva.
                The other thing is that you can not swallow your tongue--it is attached at the bottom of you mouth. The airway can be blocked by the tongue but not swallowed. Laying them on their side will help with this.
                Thank you so much for this, artteacher! As you can see, my information was way out of date.

                Comment

                  #9
                  Wow, Jami. That sounds incredibly scary. I'm so sorry. I would think seizure. You might need a 24 hour EEG or more. How often does this happen?
                  I do not have MS. I have Whatchamacallit; and all of the symptoms are mirages.

                  Comment

                    #10
                    May Need Different EEG

                    We usually did sleep deprived EEGs on people when I worked in Neuro. Not sure but it sounds like some sort of seizure to me. I have seen it occur with people on Gabapentin who have never had any kind of seizure at all, which is why I try to stay on a really low dose.

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