Epilepsy and Driving

Very few people know this about me, very few indeed, but I am an epileptic. I have not had any symptoms or been on medication since I was 10 years old, but until then, I suffered from Petit Mal (also known as absence seizures). Absence seizures are the loss of consciousness. If a person is speaking, as it was with me, I would stop abruptly mid sentence or mid word, for a number of seconds, and then resume where I left off after the seizure. I would have a blank stare and hear nothing at all during these attacks. They usually last up to 30 seconds. It is known that people eating at the time of an attack, will suddenly stop with the food halfway to their mouth and remain transfixed until it is over. There is no violent seizure as you commonly associate with Grand Mal Epilepsy and there is no lethargy after a petit mal seizure. It is just like nobody is home, staring into space, there is nobody in there. I had it as a baby and was medicated for it. Then when I was about 7 years old, I was lying in front of the television and mum came up to talk to me. I cant remember if I was talking or anything but after a bit I realized mum was talking to me and asking me what happened and what I remember, etc. And again, it was petit mal seizures. I was on medication and had regular testing until age 10. Since then, there has been no signs of a return. This is common with early childhood epilepsy. I don't think that many people realize that Epilepsy comes in many different forms and it is not just the convulsive seizures that most people think. Non-convulsive seizures account for 40% of epileptic seizures.

As is the case with many cases of age dependent epilepsy, the disease is considered resolved once you pass a certain age or you have remained seizure free for 10 years with no medication for the last 5 years. Such as in my case. However, there is absolutely NO GUARANTEE that it will not return later in life, or return as grand mal seizures. You can outgrow it, but there is always that possibility for the rest of your life. That is why, about 10-15 years after, when I was going for my driving licence, I asked for an EEG test to check that it was gone. I did not like the results. They did see signs of the disease and although it is no longer present, they said there is a definitely possibility that it may not remain resolved. Even after all that time had passed.

A couple of months ago, I read in the Belgian newspaper that they were considering a law forbidding people with epilepsy from having a drivers licence. This came after a woman had a fatal crash while suffering from a seizure when driving. This happens all to often. I knew somebody in Australia that was killed in a rally when the driver suffered an epileptic attack while driving. And last year, just around the corner from us, a young man was killed when his car hit a tree because of a seizure while driving. This is all too common an occurrence. I am thinking that forbidding epileptics from having a drivers licence is maybe the best option. They are not only endangering their own lives, but others as well. And in that case, where would I stand? I have not had symptoms or medication for 37 years now but there is always that looming possibility. And it terrifies me!!!!! Especially when driving in the late afternoon and the sun is shining through rows of trees so that the light is flashing. I am very bothered by this (forget about flashing lights or strobe lights). And because it bothers me so immensely, I cannot, for the life of me, understand how somebody who currently suffers from epileptic seizures, is willing to get into a car and take that risk on a daily basis. Are they insane???? Why would you do that if there was a strong chance of a seizure at any time? I am at the stage where I think I should ask for another EEG just to put my mind at ease a little. Even though I have no symptoms and no sign of its return, I do stress about it and I do feel strange when there is flashing lights.

Epilepsy is a neurological disorder. It cannot be cured but 70% can control it with medication. And as mentioned already, many others like myself, can outgrow it. 1% of the worlds population suffers from epilepsy. The most common test used to diagnose epilepsy is an EEG (electroencephalogram). The electrodes attached during this test, record the electrical activity in you brain. For epileptics, it is common to have changes in the normal brain waves, so a seizure during the test is not needed to see if you suffer.

It is never far from my thoughts, especially when driving in late afternoon and the sun is flashing between the trees, or when holding my breath while swimming, or if there is fast flashing lights. Watching my poor furbaby Hardy, suffer from his attacks, brought it all back way too close to home for comfort. It has also impacted on my life at times. I applied for an apprenticeship in the army when I was 16 and was turned down when I was honest about my history with it. I was also forbidden from taking school scuba diving lessons in high school because of it. The threat is always hanging over me, even though it has not shown itself for so many years and it very well, may never show itself again. But there is still that chance. If I decide to have another check in the near future, I will keep you posted on the results. But I do feel it is my responsibility to keep an eye on this, even after all these years.