Surviving the festive season if you have epilepsy.

Maria Lowe from Epilepsy Waikato Charitable Trust

Maria’s ‘Ten-Plus-One Valuable Tips’ on surviving the festive season:
1) If you are prone to photosensitive epilepsy as a result of: flashing fairy lights, sunlight bouncing off the water or through the trees, and even the tv or the computer screen, by covering one eye and turning away from the source of the light this may prevent a seizure from happening. Wearing wrap-around glasses may also help to avoid those glaring sun-rays.
2) Christmas is a stressful time of year and so find out what your stress triggers are and try to avoid them; be it mad late-night shopping trips, crowds of people, hot and sticky weather conditions or just the thought of coming together with family and friends. It is okay to adjust your social calendar in times of stress. Be kind to yourself to avoid unwanted seizures.
3) This festive season can be a time of over-indulgence and so go easy on those highly caffeinated soft drinks and alcohol. These can trigger seizures.
4) Be careful near the barbeque with those hot plates and glowing charcoals. Think safety all the time. There are some helpful tips to be found on ewct.org.nz....
5) Special care needs to be taken around any water activities. New Zealand has particularly high drowning rates and you are especially vulnerable if you have seizures. Swim with a buddy and avoid those activities that put yourself, and others, at risk. Take a look at: ewct.org.nz...
6) Late nights can play havoc on your body’s ability to cope with tiredness. Being tired is a seizure trigger and you may forget to take your medications, which is also a seizure trigger. If you are out late, set an alarm to remind you to take your morning meds.
7) If you take short walks in the sun, don’t forget to ‘slip, slop, slap and wrap’ to avoid getting burnt. If being hot is your seizure trigger, then find ways of keeping cool. You may like to invest in a portable fan.
8) If you are going away on holiday, make sure that you take plenty of your medications. Don’t be caught short without them, and risk becoming vulnerable to having seizures and possibly going into status epilepticus, which is a serious medical condition.
9) Keep these important telephone numbers close at hand.
10) Have fun! Do enjoy yourself, meeting friends and having fun is therapeutic and it makes us feel energised and happy to be alive. If you get a ‘dose of nature’ at the same time, then it doubles your chances of feeling great. Call a friend for a walk or a cuppa.
11) Check us out on Facebook: www.facebook.com...
or our website at www.ewct.org.nz...
Emergency (Police, ambulance and fire) 111
Healthline 0800 611 116
Poisons centre 0800 764 766
Waikato Hospital (07) 839 8899

Take special care and have a good and relaxing festive season.