One thing I have been worried about these last few months since my VNS surgery is going back to work part time. Before the implantation of my VNS I was having lots of seizures, even afterwards I was still having seizures at a regular pace while my VNS was being ajusted. Finaly I have come to a point to where I haven't had any seizures in a while. Finaly aafter all the waitihg at home I decided to go bact to my old work place and see if I could have my old job back, and fortunantly for me I will be going back to work soon.
There is one thing however I am concerned about and that is how my body will react to me working again since I have not been working since July of 2012. I have notice at home after working around the house I get burned out after about 4-5 hours. I think it is do to the medication and the high amount of electrical stimulation from the VNS. I guess I will have to take it slow for the first few weeks.
One thing a person must consider when getting any kind of surgery for epilepsy is scars weather it be brain surgery or VNS. Once you've had a procedure
Neck scar after VNS surgery
done your stuck with not only the physical scars but also the scars of the outcome results. I will tell you that in my opinion there is no cure for epilepsy or any other seizure disorder. These types of procedures just makes it easier for people with seizures to make it through life. I had the VNS implant surgery just this year, and my experience has been that I have less seizures, but I do feel burned out and tiered from the stimulation. So even though my seizures are less frequent I still have to deal with a few seizures still and fatigue from the stimulation of the VNS. So sometimes I wounder if this was worth the physical scars left behind on my chest and neck. I've only had this device for about a mounth or two so only time will tell.
Recovering from my VNS procedure has been a lone and hard road. At first when the device was turned on it didn't bother me that much. The stimulation was at a minimum level that I could tolerate.
Unfortunately I was still having a lot of seizures. So when I went back to see the doctor recently, he had to up the dose of stimulation.
I have recently been suffering from dizziness, disorientation, feeling lightheaded, shortness of breath, hoarseness of voice, and more seizures. I'm not saying just yet that the VNS is not effective. I'm just saying that there is a long time to recover from the surgery, and all the adjustments from the device. I am very sure that everything will work out in the end. I am just writing this article so epileptics who want this procedure will know what to expect. So far there has been a lot of pain with the healing, and a lot of dizziness with the adjustments of the VNS device.
One thing I know from being an epileptic for so many years is that visits to doctors and specialists can be very costly, ever after insurance. Just for a MRI is about $500.00 after medical insurance pays. With epilepsy it seems like a never ending cycle. My VNS alone is about a $50,000.00 procedure, my insurance pays all but 2,000.00 and that doesn't include the turning on of the device and the adjustment appointments witch I have about every two weeks until my VNS is adjusted correctly. Since my surgery I have racked up an estimated $4,000.00 in medical expenses. On top of that my medication that I have to take. It is very hard for me to make it on a fixed income as an epileptic.I myself have tried to start working from home but to no success. I have and online T-Shirt Shop my sales have been slim to none. My wife works but I want to contribute to my families finances and do my part. I would go back to my old job but the amount of seizures I'm still having won't allow me to. One other thing that is quite costly is my medical supplies such as my adult diapers due to my incontinence. So you see there are a lot of expenses when it comes to epilepsy.
I just had my VNS turned on yesterday, I will tell you it's no picnic.When the generator was turned on right away I felt a jolt of electricity go up my neck and into my brain. I would have to say that I'm glad that I was sitting down because it was intense enough to knock me down. Other things I have experienced have been shortness of breath, dizziness when standing, feeling lightheaded, and sore throat. When I use the magnet the intensity is about double or triple of normal stimulation. When I went to sleep last night I woke up with a choking sensation in my throat. After waking up this morning I still felt very tired. Today I have already had two seizures, so I'm thinking that when I see the doctor in two weeks that he may have to raise the dose of electric stimulation.
I have also decided to put the helmet back on because of the breakthrough seizures that are happening. One day hope to permanently rid myself of the helmet, but now I feel it's the right thing to do right now for my personal safety.
I would like to say to those considering having a VNS implant that not everybody has bad experiences. I know some other people who I have met, that have had great results with the implant. These are just my personal experiences, and I'm only two days into this. I'm very sure that things could get better as I go along with this process. I'm just sharing this for those who may be considering getting this procedure. So you may have some things to think about before making a decision on if you would like to have VNS Therapy.
This article is about a medical procedure I recently had done. (VNS) wich stands for Vagus Nerve Stimulation, it consists of a small pacemaker like generator with a lead wire that attaches to the left Vagus Nerve. When activated it sends pulses of electricity to the brain to help stop seizure activity in the brain. I have recently had my surgery, so I haven't had mine turned on yet. One thing I have to say so far is that after the surgery the first couple of days was hell. I had a lot of neck pain. I'm really looking forward to see what happens when the doctor turns it on.
This is a video of me after surgery. In further articles I will keep you updated so please stay tuned to my blog.
