#Why I write Mikey with epilepsy

[brightlotusmoon]

The Postictal Phase of a Seizure

Six hours after seizure: I should sleep. There's a cat on my lap. I don't remember what happened but I know I seemed normal.

I think the cannabis regimen that's been in place for almost four years has changed my seizures. It's not that deep anymore. Like how weed reduces stress nightmares in PTSD. Still there, just much less.

[brightlotusmoon]

In the grand tapestry of human resilience, seizure recovery is but one thread – but it’s a thread that shines with the strength of the human spirit and the awe-inspiring power of the brain to heal, adapt, and overcome. So here’s to the journey ahead, to the victories big and small, and to the incredible organ that makes it all possible – our remarkable, resilient brain.

[brightlotusmoon]

The baclofen and gabapentin kicked in while I was recovering from the seizure. The RSO and the vape kicked in. I am very medicated. The sensation of muscles relaxing and cooling off will always feel strange and weird and scary and beautiful and aaaahhhh

[brightlotusmoon]

Sometimes I forget how strong postictal fatigue the next day can be. Wheeee.

[brightlotusmoon]

[brightlotusmoon]

Chapters: 3/? Fandom: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Bay Movies) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Relationships: Michelangelo (TMNT) & Original Female Character(s) Characters: Michelangelo (TMNT), Raphael (TMNT), Donatello (TMNT), Leonardo (TMNT), Splinter (TMNT), April O'Neil (TMNT), Casey Jones (TMNT), Chief Rebecca Vincent, Vernon Fenwick Additional Tags: Psychic Mikey, empath mikey, Mikey Is An Iron Woobie, Break the Cutie, Epilepsy, Autistic Original Character, Head Injury, Family Feels, Family Drama, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Mikey is a cinnamon roll, Raph is a teddy bear, Mikey Has ADHD, Autistic Mikey, Neurodivergent Mikey, Michelangelo Has ADHD, Autistic Character, Disabled Character Summary:

Mikey is depressed. He doesn't understand why or how, but it's getting worse. After a severe head injury, he starts to realize that he's not the happy go lucky cheerful kid he thought he was. That's when an amateur therapist steps in. The Turtles' lives are unexpectedly changed.

[brightlotusmoon]

Chapters: 3/? Fandom: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Bay Movies) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Relationships: Michelangelo (TMNT) & Original Female Character(s) Characters: Michelangelo (TMNT), Raphael (TMNT), Donatello (TMNT), Leonardo (TMNT), Splinter (TMNT), April O'Neil (TMNT), Casey Jones (TMNT), Chief Rebecca Vincent, Vernon Fenwick Additional Tags: Psychic Mikey, empath mikey, Mikey Is An Iron Woobie, Break the Cutie, Epilepsy, Autistic Original Character, Head Injury, Family Feels, Family Drama, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Mikey is a cinnamon roll, Raph is a teddy bear, Mikey Has ADHD, Autistic Mikey, Neurodivergent Mikey, Michelangelo Has ADHD, Autistic Character, Disabled Character Summary:

Mikey is depressed. He doesn't understand why or how, but it's getting worse. After a severe head injury, he starts to realize that he's not the happy go lucky cheerful kid he thought he was. That's when an amateur therapist steps in. The Turtles' lives are unexpectedly changed.

[brightlotusmoon]

idk why but epileptic mikey (specifically 2012 cus that's the iteration i have brainrot of rn) brings me so much comfort like aghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

You know what? This ask brings me so much comfort. I based Mikey's epilepsy and fibromyalgia on mine.

[brightlotusmoon]

2003 Mikey chronic pain headcanons, give them to me.

Arthritis in both legs, for example. I headcanon him with hypermobility EDS III alongside the AuDHD. Restless Leg Syndrome. Chondromalacia Patellae. Sciatica. Tendinitis.

[brightlotusmoon]

National Epilepsy Awareness Month.

Sometimes I wonder if being on Trileptal for 15 years really did anything. I still wonder why my last seizure monitoring never showed anything after I started taking cannabis. I'm still impressed cannabis is part of my first line defense.

[brightlotusmoon]

Welp, time to disappoint my calendar by writing "had seizure" yesterday and today. The last one was the middle of August. Hey, just over two months is pretty good for 0 Days Without.

[brightlotusmoon]

Before Medical Cannabis: Seizure twice a week.

After Medical Cannabis: Seizure maybe once every month.

Mmmm, dendrite building neuroplasticity.

Anyway, the edible took away the pain. My system didn't know how to handle not having pain, so it gave me spasms leading into a seizure. Then the edible stopped the seizure and the spasms rode out. Also, husband grabbed my left arm and hit some pressure points to distract and redirect my brain. It worked.

Now I have to lie down and coast through 20 mg THC induced euphoria.

[brightlotusmoon]

Wrote this in 2021 on FB. Today is the second anniversary of my medical cannabis certification anyway.

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*tents fingers and leans forward* Yes. Replacing the Adderall with Intuniv was a fantastic idea. The neurologists will be thrilled, and I'm not even through my first month. Guanfacine apparently takes care of ADHD symptoms unaddressed by Adderall: hyperactivity, impulsivity, behavioral and emotional dysregulation. It keeps things so quiet that being able to maintain just a couple of thoughts as desired feels unnerving. I've never had normal* brain but I guess this is how non-ADHD people can regulate?

Plus, it lowers and regulates blood pressure and tachycardia, bonus for me.

*(normal in relation to typical average mean for society. And because I never liked the phrase "normal is just a dryer setting"... cerebral palsy is not normal. There's a basic average normal and I was never it. We debate this often in my palsy groups)

"Guanfacine is in a class of medications called alpha 2a specific adrenergic receptor antagonists or, simply, alpha agonists. These medications activate receptors on nerves that use adrenaline as their neurotransmitter. Adrenaline is familiar to everyone who has ever been frightened. It prepares the brain and the body for flight or for fight. The activation of these receptors tricks the adrenaline nerve into being less active, which in turn leads to lower blood pressure but also a significant decrease in hyperactivity, drive, impulsivity, insomnia, and emotional over-reaction. For these reasons, the stimulants and the alpha agonists are near-perfect complements for the management of ADHD at all ages. The other medication in this class is clonidine, which is also FDA-approved for the treatment of ADHD in children.

Non-stimulant ADHD medications like guanfacine can also be helpful for patients who can’t take stimulants due to undesirable side effects or who don’t experience any benefits from them."

-ADDitude magazine

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Which then reminded me of the scene I wrote in a fanfic about how caffeine and chocolate work for ADHD.

[brightlotusmoon]

Goddamnit seizure go away and take the palsy spasms with you

Time for weed. Blue Milk and Moon Boots should work.

[brightlotusmoon]

I think the thing that just happened was a seizure. The nature of the seizures changed as soon as I switched to the cannabis regimen last year. My house mates assure me that they're quicker, less scary, with easier recovery. I'm less concerned. It's still annoying.

*hits vape pen* Ahh, THCV.

[brightlotusmoon]

Hey! Do you think you can write a chubby reader x the bayverse tmnt, maybe the reader has autism, I have autism btw, and I also have tics or seizures because of it, so I wanna know what the four would do if they caught the reader mid seizure, if that’s ok with you of course, I don’t want you uncomfortable

I'm not taking writing requests right now, but I am taking ideas! I can pass along your request to others in the fandom.

I actually already write characters who are autistic and epileptic, if you wanna read through my AO3! 2012 and Bayverse so far. And I'll hunt down some little oneshot imagines with an epileptic self insert that I wrote a few years ago. Your ask just reminded me.