Brain zaps.

AmoroAgain

Dat ain't right.  I'd have a chat with a doctor about that.

kellyjellybelly

I think I remember someone mentioning that awhile back.  I think I would freak the f out if I started getting brain zaps, regardless if they were a known side effect.  There doesn't seem to be anything 'normal' about a brain zap...

louisvillebride21

WTF is a brain zap?

ohwhynot

I have a condition called trigeminal neuralgia - one cause of brain zaps.  It used to be called "the suicide disease" because, before there was treatment, so many people who had it killed themselves in despair (as it progressed - it's a progressive disease, generally).  It's horrible, but luckily mine is a very mild case and it's been successfully treated and hasn't progressed.  I hope that continues to be the case. 
It doesn't sound to me as if that's what this poster has, so hopefully she can find a drug combination that relieves her neurological symptoms without causing the zaps.  I've never heard of a drug that gives brain zaps as a side effect - just the drugs that calm them.  I hope the poster gets a 2d and 3rd opinion and finds relief very soon. 

pinkpinot

Whenever I see a prescription drug commercial on TV I always think the side effects sound worse than the actual condition that is being treated. 

kikibaby

When I was reading about the side effects of withdrawing from my AD, it said 'brain zaps' was one of them.  I was wondering what it was... sounds craptastic.

ohwhynot

LVB: The best way I can describe it is it's as if there's an electrical storm inside your skull.  A lightning bolt of pain, like an electrical shock, will suddenly (and during an acute attack, almost constantly) run through your brain and/or down the side of your head. 

kikibaby

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_brain-zaps?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:a9dfc362-0e0f-4b1b-970a-51d2279580e0Post:1ed093bd-44bb-4756-a250-ea8670cdb8d1">Re: Brain zaps.</a>:
[QUOTE]Whenever I see a prescription drug commercial on TV I always think the side effects sound worse than the actual condition that is being treated. 
Posted by pinkpinot[/QUOTE]

That reminds me- they used to always show a commercial for some pill for Restless Legs Syndrom, and one of the side effects was compulsive gambling.  It just always made me laugh.

nhelene

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_brain-zaps?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:a9dfc362-0e0f-4b1b-970a-51d2279580e0Post:712bbffe-1335-4a79-9370-6c419f376daf">Re: Brain zaps.</a>:
[QUOTE]When I was reading about the side effects of withdrawing from my AD, it said 'brain zaps' was one of them.  I was wondering what it was... sounds craptastic.
Posted by kikibaby[/QUOTE]

I know a lot of people who have had them during withdrawal periods.   This is the first time I've heard of them as a side effect of the medication itself.

baystateapple

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_brain-zaps?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:a9dfc362-0e0f-4b1b-970a-51d2279580e0Post:2461dde7-5f6c-4e97-941e-f942e3a699c2">Re: Brain zaps.</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Brain zaps. : That reminds me- they used to always show a commercial for some pill for Restless Legs Syndrom, and one of the side effects was compulsive gambling.  It just always made me laugh.
Posted by kikibaby[/QUOTE]

There's some drug on TV right now that lists a side effect as "burping".  The first time we saw it, my FI and my sister started cracking up.

waltzingmatilda13

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_brain-zaps?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:a9dfc362-0e0f-4b1b-970a-51d2279580e0Post:a9183b9f-1e30-4521-8c1e-bef8ddb0da7b">Re: Brain zaps.</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Brain zaps. : There's some drug on TV right now that lists a side effect as "burping".  The first time we saw it, my FI and my sister started cracking up.
Posted by baystateapple[/QUOTE]

I just saw that commercial last night and H and I had to rewind the DVR to see if we heard it right. We did.

pinkpinot

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_brain-zaps?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:a9dfc362-0e0f-4b1b-970a-51d2279580e0Post:84a9bd36-bd8c-4b04-aac7-10740a84445d">Re: Brain zaps.</a>:
[QUOTE]LVB: The best way I can describe it is it's as if there's an electrical storm inside your skull.  A lightning bolt of pain, like an electrical shock, will suddenly (and during an acute attack, almost constantly) run through your brain and/or down the side of your head. 
Posted by ohwhynot[/QUOTE]

Brain zaps are sucktastic.  Ouch.

Can you function during a zap?  What would happen if you were driving and you got one?

ohwhynot

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_brain-zaps?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:a9dfc362-0e0f-4b1b-970a-51d2279580e0Post:7a6cc3b4-2e83-4c63-a85b-b7b69679e16e">Re: Brain zaps.</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Brain zaps. : Brain zaps are sucktastic.  Ouch. Can you function during a zap?  What would happen if you were driving and you got one?
Posted by pinkpinot[/QUOTE]

They last about as long as a sneeze, generally, for me.  Like, there's a sharp blast of pain, and then it's gone.  In an acute episode (and I've only had 3 of those), they'll keep coming one after another, with increasing frequency - that's when I hightail it to the doctor to get back on the meds.   For me, it's taken a day or two or more to go from the occasional zap to a full-blown "one after another" episode so driving, etc., hasn't been a problem.

I'm very lucky in that I've only had a few episode and it doesn't seem to be progressing.   I've had to take fairly heavy-duty medications for several weeks, but then I've been able to successfully wean off of them.  Many people with the condition are on meds all the time and there are a couple of surgical procedures out there (with mixed results) if the meds stop working.  It's a really crappy disease. 

pinkpinot

OWN, that sounds awful but I'm glad to hear it's not a regular occurrence for you.

[Deleted User]

That can't be healthy. And for it to be a side effect rather than her actual condition...is the medication even worth it? LIke PP said, it seems like the side effects of medication are worse than whatever's wrong in the first place.

I have severe carpal tunnel syndrome and my doc recommended surgery. When I asked what I would experience after, like possible complications, she said loss of hand movement, tingling/numing sensations, and wrist pain. Gee, sounds a little like what I'm experiencing now, doesn't it?

There's got to be a better solution for this poster.

amysmomma

A very close friend of mine had these when he was trying to wean himself off of the anti-depressant, and the brain zaps he described were exactly how OWN described them.  There were points where he felt VERY depressed about it, I'd say flirting with suicidal thoughts.  Thank god he's not on them any more.

salt78

I get them if I stop taking my anxiety meds. No fun.