Epilepsy: Root Causes and Types You Should Know

There are a lot of myths about epilepsy you might have heard about and perhaps believed. This includes that it has a spiritual root or that the person is doomed for life with no hope of living a normal life. Some people even go as far as thinking it is contagious and thus stigmatize patients suffering from this condition. Consequently, being diagnosed with epilepsy comes with many questions, which tend to cause more worry than the condition itself.

Epilepsy is a severe but non-contagious condition characterized by recurrent seizures for a prolonged period. Seizure, on the other hand, occurs when abnormal electrical signals are released rapidly from neurons in the brain. Although epilepsy and seizures are often mistaken for the same thing, they are different. Experiencing an episode of seizure does not mean that the person has epilepsy. This means that several bouts of seizures are the characteristic symptom of epilepsy.

In this epilepsy awareness month, you will learn some essential information about epilepsy you might not have known before and what you can do about it. 

Causes of Epilepsy

Your brain has billions of neurons with different functions all over your body. These neurons can either be excitatory (i.e., excite and transmit electrical messages) or inhibitory (i.e., suppress activities and reduce the transmission of messages). Under normal conditions, a balance between the excitatory and inhibitory neurons is established and maintained in your body.

However, in epilepsy, there is an over-stimulation of excitatory neurons and a decreased activation of the inhibitory neurons. Consequently, this causes excitatory neurons to continuously fire signals at the same time with little to nothing to balance out its effects. This imbalance of neurons which causes epilepsy can be due to the following:

• Traumatic brain injury after an accident:

• When this occurs, certain network of neurons in your brain can become overactivated. This could cause a permanent change in your network of neurons  changing how they are activated and function.

• Congenital birth defects:

  Sometimes, epilepsy has a genetic background that can cause its development in babies. This does not happen in all cases except when it is not managed. 

• Stroke:

• Stroke is a condition that can occur in your brain in two ways. This could be when there is a reduced blood supply to the brain (i.e. ischemic stroke). Or, when the blood vessels in your brain begin to leak which causes bleeding in the brain (i.e. hemorrhagic stroke). Damage in your brain due to stroke can trigger one or more seizure episodes, which can results in epilepsy. Although some stroke patients later have epileptic seizures, not everyone with a stroke develops epilepsy. It depends on the type of stroke and the severity of the brain damage.

• Diseases that affect the central nervous system

  These include meningitis, viral encephalitis, brain tumors, etc. These brain infections if not managed, can increase the risk of developing epilepsy. This is because the neurons in your brain can send wrong signals causing frequent seizures. 

• Autoimmune diseases:

• These include type 1 diabetes and some metabolic conditions such as low blood sugar levels, low levels of sodium in the blood ( called hyponatremia), etc. Sodium helps to control the amount of water that enters your brain. Therefore, when there isn’t enough sodium in the blood, then water flows into the brain causing it to swell. Also, your immune system can mistakenly attack specific areas in your brain and cause seizures to occur. This is called autoimmune epilepsy. 

• Some medications:

• These include drugs like cocaine, certain antidepressants, marijuana, tramadol, etc. These drugs can alter the normal functioning of the neurons in your brain resulting in epileptic seizures. This can occur especially if you take these drugs for a long time. 

Types of Epilepsy

There are various forms of seizures as well as different types of epilepsy. However, many forms of seizures occur in different types of epilepsy, and most people with epilepsy experience more than one type of seizure. In discussing epileptic seizures, there are two broad categories of epilepsy:

• Idiopathic Epilepsy:

  This is caused by genetic factors and appears during childhood but is diagnosed in adulthood. There are no abnormalities in the nervous system other than the seizures. It is further grouped into idiopathic generalized epilepsy and idiopathic partial epilepsy. The former is commonly outgrown with time as the brain starts showing normal activity, while the latter is characterized by partial motor seizures in the face and is also outgrown during puberty.

• Symptomatic Epilepsy:

• This occurs due to physical defects or injury to your brain. It is also sub-divided into symptomatic generalized epilepsy and symptomatic partial epilepsy. Brain infections such as meningitis can cause symptomatic generalized epilepsy in which the individuals also have neurological problems such as developmental delays. An abnormality in your brain caused by stroke, tumors, and trauma can trigger symptomatic partial epilepsy.

How to Control the Onset of Epileptic Seizures

Did you know that certain medications can alter the levels of some essential vitamins in some people with epilepsy? This can happen particularly in people that take antiepileptic drugs. Therefore, to control the seizures associated with epilepsy, you should ensure proper supplementation with essential vitamins such as NATURE’SFIELD VITAMIN B6 and NATURE’SFIELD VITAMIN B12. These vitamins helps control the function and activities of the nervous system and will significantly improve your quality of life. 

Notably, you should also avoid the triggers of epilepsy such as chronic stress, poor sleep, vitamin and mineral deficiencies, drug use, etc. Fortunately, there are many ways to manage the onset of seizures associated with epilepsy than ever before. Explore and take advantage of it coupled with taking NATURE’SFIELD VITAMIN B6 and NATURE’SFIELD VITAMIN B12 and live a fulfilled life despite being diagnosed with this condition.