LIVING with epilepsy imposes certain limitations on a person's life. But with modern medication a person can control his-her epilepsy and with the right attitude one might go on to live a fulfilling life.
Ntombizethu Maxhawula was only 11 months old when she had her first seizure. Though she takes anti-epilepsy drugs, she still has seizures at least once a week. She refused to speak to us but asked her mother, Noluvuyo, to speak on her behalf.
"Ntombizethu was a perfectly healthy child. She only started getting sick when she was 11 months old. The doctor told me she had epilepsy. Because of her repeated seizures her left arm became damaged," Noluvuyo says.
Ntombizethu is now 32 years -old and recently gave birth to a healthy baby girl.
"Her pregnancy was a difficult time for all. She had seizures up to three times a day," Noluvuyo says.
Ntombizethu's first doctor suggested that she terminate the pregnancy because of her repeated seizures and the general strain the pregnancy was putting on her health.
"The second doctor said, at six and a half months, it would not be safe for her to terminate the pregnancy. The doctor also said it was possible for a woman living with epilepsy to give birth to a healthy child," Noluvuyo says.
On April 25 Ntombizethu gave birth to a healthy baby girl. But because of her disabled left arm and her condition, she needs a lot of support taking care of her baby.
According to Epilepsy South Africa there is only a six percent chance of a mother passing epilepsy on to her child if the mother has had the condition since childhood.
"Seizures are the attacks that patients get - a patient falling down, jerking, biting their tongue . that sort of thing. So, if someone gets these fits or seizures repeatedly ... that condition is called epilepsy.
"There are many variant - and they don't all need to be dramatic, with the whole body jerking," says Dr André Mochan, a specialist neurologist working at Johannesburg's Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital.
Mochan says there are no obvious causes for the condition, except in a few patients who present causes such as a brain tumour and-or an injury to the head. Mochan says children are most prone to epilepsy.
He says the condition is controllable if one takes the right medical treatment.
Mochan says many people with epilepsy can feel a seizure when it comes. He advises them to stay away from potentially dangerous environments such as sitting next to a fire or driving a car.
Modern medicine can help control epilepsy
LIVING with epilepsy imposes certain limitations on a person's life. But with modern medication a person can control his-her epilepsy and with the right attitude one might go on to live a fulfilling life.
Ntombizethu Maxhawula was only 11 months old when she had her first seizure. Though she takes anti-epilepsy drugs, she still has seizures at least once a week. She refused to speak to us but asked her mother, Noluvuyo, to speak on her behalf.
"Ntombizethu was a perfectly healthy child. She only started getting sick when she was 11 months old. The doctor told me she had epilepsy. Because of her repeated seizures her left arm became damaged," Noluvuyo says.
Ntombizethu is now 32 years -old and recently gave birth to a healthy baby girl.
"Her pregnancy was a difficult time for all. She had seizures up to three times a day," Noluvuyo says.
Ntombizethu's first doctor suggested that she terminate the pregnancy because of her repeated seizures and the general strain the pregnancy was putting on her health.
"The second doctor said, at six and a half months, it would not be safe for her to terminate the pregnancy. The doctor also said it was possible for a woman living with epilepsy to give birth to a healthy child," Noluvuyo says.
On April 25 Ntombizethu gave birth to a healthy baby girl. But because of her disabled left arm and her condition, she needs a lot of support taking care of her baby.
According to Epilepsy South Africa there is only a six percent chance of a mother passing epilepsy on to her child if the mother has had the condition since childhood.
"Seizures are the attacks that patients get - a patient falling down, jerking, biting their tongue . that sort of thing. So, if someone gets these fits or seizures repeatedly ... that condition is called epilepsy.
"There are many variant - and they don't all need to be dramatic, with the whole body jerking," says Dr André Mochan, a specialist neurologist working at Johannesburg's Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital.
Mochan says there are no obvious causes for the condition, except in a few patients who present causes such as a brain tumour and-or an injury to the head. Mochan says children are most prone to epilepsy.
He says the condition is controllable if one takes the right medical treatment.
Mochan says many people with epilepsy can feel a seizure when it comes. He advises them to stay away from potentially dangerous environments such as sitting next to a fire or driving a car.
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