Driving and seizures

[UnsureMS]

Ok so my husband had two seizures last year while driving and got his lincese taken we went through everything we needed to and got it back. Including making sure we had his meds. This year about two months back he missed his night and next morning dose of his dilatin. So he had another smaller seizure while parking. The Ems said it was probably caused by not taking his meds and that as along as he gets back ok his meds he shouldn't have his lincese taken this time.

Yet teo months later we received paperwork that his lincese could be revoked. We took the papers to his doctor but his doctor is insisting that he can't help unless my husband is seizure free for six months. Mind you he had been for 12 months and only had one because of missing his meds. Can they take his lincese again? We live in texas and while the doctor doesn't have to report this last seizure he still is. I just want to know what to do he is our only way around. With winter coming early we need him to be able to drive.

[theonlykaran]

My suggestion for a good neurologist is a good University. Stay strong, as far a the changing of generic meds I've researched that and it doesn't matter. And until you find a sufficient alternative, DO NOT EVER let him run out of medication, missing a dose or two is one thing, but running out should NEVER happen, your local pharmacy will give you a dose if needed. These are not drugs you just suddenly  stop taking. With that said you should research changing the diet, and alternative natural meds. It's worth the time, he will feel a hundred percent better with a diet change, winch should include red meat. I will keep you in my prayer. Good Luck!

[theonlykaran]

Don't be discouraged, get diagnosed disabled then get free rides or low rate rides from several different programs that help with that. I also want to say that it's not the Doctor, you can get all the second opinions you feel you need and they will all repeat what your original Neurologist told you, GUARANTEED! The DMV are following a state Law they will not change thief mind, so don't waste your time with that. I have lived with it for ten yrs now, although inconvenient I'm just grateful to survive the seizures when they come, my close friend is going through treatment for stage three cancer right now. After watching him battle through thus far, It makes me grateful for every moment even the ones filled with Seizures. In June I'm starting a regime of PCB's hoping it works well enough to stop having to take all the poison(anti seizure meds).  WISH ME LUCK!

[flipper336]

Yes, all states have the legal power to revoke a person's drivers license if their seizures are not under control. The amount of time and what each state considers as being "seizure free" or controlled can before a person can get it back can vary state to state.

[flipper336]

Yes, all states have the legal power to revoke a person's drivers license if their seizures are not under control. The amount of time and what each state considers as being "seizure free" or controlled can before a person can get it back can vary state to state.

[shortie38]

Does that go for all states that they can revoke ur liscense?

[Chemtiger]

I'm so sorry you and your husband are having to go through all of this. Having seizures *****! I've only had one seizure while driving, but I was at a red light and I almost always have an "aura" before, which allowed me to pull over safely. I live in Louisiana, previously in Mississippi and Minnesota, it sounds as if the laws are pretty similar: it's up to the doctor if he or she will report him to the DMV. I started having seizures out of the blue at age 24, and my doctors can only theorize that a possible cause was a very high fever due to spinal meningitis as a child. At the time of my first seizure, I was under a great deal of stress, not sleeping well, and I was taking a pain medication (Tramadol) that lowers one's seizure threshold. I was a full-time city bus driver, that was the only job I'd ever had, and I was comfortably middle-class on just my income. My doctor was more understanding than your husband's: he agreed not to report my seizure to the DMV but I had to immediately resign from my job (5 years, it was my career!) and permanently give up my CDL. It took a while to find a seizure medication that actually prevented my seizures. I was allergic to several, and most just didn't work. I take Depakote, I have now for nearly 12 years. When a person suddenly starts having seizures, it permanently changes his or her life. That's one thing that your husband has to accept, and it was hard for me, too. There's the constant uncertainty, wondering if today will be the day, or tomorrow? Priorities get shifted. Taking those medications to prevent a seizure becomes as important as eating. After I had to give up a job that I loved, I was faced with the bleak reality of being a high school graduate who only had job experience with one job, and I could no longer do it. It was impossible to pay for my medication, I had to sell my car because it basically cost a car payment every month to buy my meds, out of pocket. He has to learn what triggers his seizures, and listen to his body! I didn't do that at first, many times I'd fall from a standing position, which almost always led to a concussion, and sometimes some other injury. Every new concussion makes future seizures more likely. The headlights in traffic is a trigger for me, too. Lack of sleep, anxiety, some foods, medications, not eating (that was a dilemma I faced at times: I couldn't afford both Depakote and food, so I'd buy Depakote and have a seizure because I'd go a day or two without food)… There are as many triggers as there are sufferers. I'm afraid that your husband's driver's license is at the mercy of his doctor. It's now his job to make avoiding a seizure a very high priority in his life, and if that means setting alarms to remember his meds, that's what must be done. Yes, please find a different doctor, this one sounds horribly unsympathetic, but he is bound by law to report it. Perhaps a larger dose or using two different medications (mine is long-acting, it only has to be taken once daily) may help him more. I know it's horribly inconvenient but he needs to be as consistent as possible with his medications. If he were involved in an accident due to a seizure, it would be horrible for everyone involved, but completely preventable. And, it would be highly likely that he'd be faced with legal action. Try to convince his current doctor that he will not miss any doses of medication, show him what he is going to do in the future so this doesn't happen. We all know that it's still possible for him to have a seizure, even with anticonvulsant medication, but if he wishes to continue to drive, he owes it to the public to do everything he can to prevent himself from having an episode while driving.
My last seizure occurred on January 19, 2012. I'd been out of my medication for one month, and I'd been unable to sleep for the previous two nights, and I had a feeling that it was going to happen. I thank God that I was getting gas when it happened. Still, I dislocated my right shoulder, had ANOTHER concussion, and broke my nose… again. The next day, I got a payday loan and filled my Depakote, and I've taken it every evening at 9:00 pm since that day. If that's what it takes to keep myself safe from having a seizure, I'll do whatever it takes to assure myself that I will have my meds. I'm praying for both of you, this takes a toll and it's so misunderstood. I'm sorry you and he are having to go through this.

[teddybears4ever2]

My brother-in-law has lost his license so many times from having a seizure I've lost count.  He always gets is back in the end, but he has a lot of hoops that he has to jump through to get them back.  I'm sorry you are going through this and I hope it's going be resolved soon.  Be sure to come back and update us when you have more information.

[UnsureMS]

Thank you for the caring ear. Yeah his doctor doesn't care but until we get health insurance it is what we have to go with. I am going to help him fight and I won't give up. I just feel a need to know all I can about seizures to help him through this.

My husband only has them when driving so far. I think it had to do with the headlights on other vehicles. As I posted in another post I think before his meds he was having absent seizures. We discussed them recently and he admitted to me that if he glances at the headlights of another vehicle headlights it messes with him. They had ran done test but he was on his meds by that point. I just want to help him.

I feel like him having to take his meds make him feel weak. He has always had a quicker temper and stresses easily. But I can honestly say since his seizures he has worked on these traits. He also loved to drink but has stopped completely. The only thing that worries me is his meds.

They keep switching what generic brand he is on. Plus I have read that he become immune to them. Is this true? What do I need to know as a spouse to help him. Can the meds if taken right stop the seizures all together and will they help with the absent ones. So many questions and not able to get a good doctor right now just *****...

[flipper336]

Do not give up, I know you are going through a hard time and it is frustrating as h*ll. When they said that missing two doses would be all that it would take to cause his seizure they were correct, and that is most likely the reason. I just wanted you to know that just because he did miss the doses that there are other reasons that could of caused the seizure.

If he is under allot of stress that can also cause a seizure even if he is taking his meds like he is suppose to and they can also happen for reason's that are unknown. I am also on Dilantin plus 4 other  seizure drug's and on top of that I have a device called a VNS stimulator

If he has not done so I would recommend setting alarms to help remind him to take his meds at the same time every day if possible. Not taking them at the same time every day can also bring them on.

As for your husbands doctor, find a new one if you are able to. If he is not willing to hear what you and and your husband has to say, that to me sounds like he does not care and just wants to get you out of his office.

If you ever need someone to vent to just send me a note. I wish you and  your husband the best of luck and I will be praying for you.

[UnsureMS]

Thanks prayers are truly helpful. Here in the states it is hard to get good medical care without a good amount of money or being below poverty line. I pray that this year I will be able to get great insurance and my husband will be able to get a great doctor. The Nero I see will go out of his way to help me, and does it all free for me.

Unfortanlly I haven't found someone like that for my husband. His doctor doesn't want to hear us out, and didn't care that he had truly been seizure free for the amount of time asked of him. The Ems and nurse at the hospital stated that the two missed doses was all it would have taken to cause my husbands last seizure. Now my husband has done all he can to remember to take his meds. Plus he has made changes to bad habits that could have caused his seizures. I would not want my husband to be allowed to drive either if I thought he could hurt himself or anyone else but I don't.

[richard83]

i also have epliletic tonicclonic seizures and been in that situation once before and my doctor said that i shouldnt be driving i dont know the law in texas i live in new england and up here u have to be seizure free for three  yrs and have a dr release card along with ur drivers license but in ur husband case if his doctor send a report to dmv then yes they can revoke it till he has his documents to reinstate it but in the mean time if hes having them still even if he misses a dose or not maybe u should check in to taking it more in a day so the levels of his meds dont drop .i was taking 200mg twice daily of tegrotol but have the generic kind which is carbomizepine and had my last seizure was in 2010 they raised my dose from  200mg twice daily to three times 200mg a day so 600mg its very hard to wing urself from one to another medication most of the time it worsens it but im sorry ur husband has to go through all these hoops on top of it, have to go through the pain of the seizures,but if u can try to pro long the process of his dl being revoked it will definitly benifit ur situation and i pray for him and his family that in the end there can be a better solution to all this

[UnsureMS]

That truly isn't right everyone from the Ems to the nurse concluded that missing his dose twice caused the seizure. It was at a 0 level on his dilatin. He takes 500 Mgs a day. And it took alot to get his level right. He never misses his meds and the cause behind the original seizures was coming off of binge drinking.

He doesn't drink anymore and has been seizure free for 12 months before his last seizure, and two months since. He is working on stress relievers and everything he can to insure he doesn't have another one. The doctor he has now knows nothing about the laws or his history and won't take into consideration about the past history.

[flipper336]

First off I would like to say that I am sorry for what you are going through and that I also know what it is like, because I have been in your husbands shoes. Now to answer your question about them being able to take or revoke his license the answer is yes, they can.

The state has to take into account the safety of everyone that is on the road and since he had another seizure they might. Also just because he missed taking his meds does not mean that was the reason for the seizure. The doctor is just trying to protect everyone and that includes you and your family.

Unfortunately there is really nothing you can do. You could try and talk with the Department of Motor Vehicles, the department that will make the decision and tell them your situation. But even then there is no guarantee that it will work.