For those of you not familiar with the jargon, a refractory seizure is one that does not respond to medication.
Unfortunately, this is not a tiny fraction of epileptics. Rather, upwards of 1/3 of epileptics have seizures that do not respond to any medication that is used. The options that mainstream medicine have at this point are not pleasant. Vagal nerve stimulators embedded in your neck. Surgery to remove a part of your brain. Or, just deal with it.
The impact on the lives of these patients is severe. Restricted driving, inability to work and social isolation can be the result.
However, I have long felt that mainstream medicine’s approach to seizures is an inherently faulty one. In almost all cases, the initial, and sometimes only, goal is to use medication to control the seizure. If this doesn’t work, a different medication is used or they are used in combination. Statistically, if the first doesn’t work at controlling your seizures, the likelihood of being able to control your seizures with medication just goes down from there.
But there is rarely the thought to heal the brain and restore the way it is supposed to function. The medications do not do this (in some cases it is actually worsening brain cell function), rather, they are designed to keep one sick brain cell from communicating with its neighbor. Ramp up the suppression strong enough and hopefully you can stop the seizures. But you haven’t fixed the sick neuron that started the mess in the first place.
Which brings us to this particular article.
My book, Migraines and Epilepsy, How to Find Relief, Live Well and Protect Your Brian, has a strong focus on the mitochondrial aspect of both migraines and epilepsy. In a nutshell, when your brain cells cannot produce the energy they need to function optimally, things break down. Chronic migraine headaches and seizures can result. While it’s not that simple, this is the basic concept.
When you understand the mitochondria and the role it plays, you can better understand the factors that contribute to migraines and seizures as well as the natural remedies for seizures and migraines that improve brain cell function.
As mentioned by the author, treatments geared towards improving energy needs of the brain cells are “untapped.” This is probably an understatement, but you begin to see the point.
Overall, by NOT looking at natural remedies for seizures and migraines, researchers have might have missed out on therapies that are more effective and far safer than current medications. The difference is that this type of an approach to treatment works on healing the brain at it’s most fundamental level–the energy needs of the cell.
Stay tuned…