epilepsy

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
Started reading Born On A Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant by Daniel Tammet.
He had epileptic seizures and it ran in his family. I know nothing about epilepsy beyond what most of us are probably aware of - which is something to be thankful for. It comes in different flavors which have different effects.

Believe me, I'm not so hip that I am reading Fyodor Dostoevsky. He suffered from 'ecstatic epilepsy' and I don't really know if 'suffered' is apt.

" For several instants I experience a happiness that is impossible in an ordinary state, and of which other people have no conception. I feel full harmony in myself and in the whole world, and the feeling is so strong and sweet that for a few seconds of such bliss one could give up ten years of life, perhaps all of life.

I felt that heaven descended to earth and swallowed me. I really attained god and was imbued with him. All of you healthy people don't even suspect what happiness is , that happiness that we epileptics experience for a second before an attack.
"

This is an identifiable physiological condition. Sounds awfully like a near death experience, doesn't it? One of the knee jerk reaction to NDEs is that it's just our brains shutting down. Having read this I have to admit that my expectations of an afterlife might need a little editing.
 

k

Honorable
Unfortunately, I've never known with epileptics too. But I can imagine how it's difficult to live with such a gift of fate. I can tactically take off and go home in case of exacerbation or neuroleptic syndrome. But it does not work in the case of epilepsy. Living with this disease may be tempting only if you have an opportunity to mooching off your parent during all your life because social benefit is not enough for a decent existence in some countries like Russia.
I'm hanging out at the schizophrenic forum and I can to tell that many people suffered from schizophrenia also like their disease. Because they believe that they have a lot of valuable, viable, extraordinary ideas based on a rational approach. But personally I learned this life's lesson a long time ago. Just when you think that you have comprehended some mystery of being, somebody demonstrates you that your subjective opinion is not fit in with objective reality. For example, there are certain laws of communication in the collective, whatever your opinion. And if you don't do anything with your broken intonator, you aren't going win in natural selection.
 

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
Unfortunately, I've never known with epileptics too. But I can imagine how it's difficult to live with such a gift of fate. I can tactically take off and go home in case of exacerbation or neuroleptic syndrome. But it does not work in the case of epilepsy. Living with this disease may be tempting only if you have an opportunity to mooching off your parent during all your life because social benefit is not enough for a decent existence in some countries like Russia.
I'm hanging out at the schizophrenic forum and I can to tell that many people suffered from schizophrenia also like their disease. Because they believe that they have a lot of valuable, viable, extraordinary ideas based on a rational approach. But personally I learned this life's lesson a long time ago. Just when you think that you have comprehended some mystery of being, somebody demonstrates you that your subjective opinion is not fit in with objective reality. For example, there are certain laws of communication in the collective, whatever your opinion. And if you don't do anything with your broken intonator, you aren't going win in natural selection.

I'm only part way through this book about Daniel Tammet. A couple of small spoilers. The kid isn't even 10 years old. A neighbor if Finnish and suddenly Daniel had access to books written in Finnish. He taught himself to read the language and to a degree, speak it. He also taught himself to write in ancient Phoenician just because he found a book. Gift of Fate indeed.
 

k

Honorable
Oh my eyes, how meany missteiks...:mad::wub8:
Pigfarmer, nivek and other members of forum! I go to hospital for 2 months and I will have an opportunity to use my phone with Internet after a week's stay there, so, I'll see you later! I systematically fail adaptation at a new job...
 

coubob

Celestial
I have grand mall seizures or did. I started haveing mine after high school and for 5 years after till they found depakote 1000mg a day helped and i have not had one since 91. I still have a few twiches called jackhammers at times. But my license was never taken away. My biggest greif it kept me from joining the military
 

k

Honorable
... And all around are such innocent, that there is a sense that only I will burn in hell.
 

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
I started this thread because of that book and it's mention of 'ecstatic epilepsy' and how much it sounded like a near death or religious experience.

The God Helmet was designed to test brain function but in some people can produce feelings ranging from nothing to sensing a presence, seeing dead relatives, etc:
God helmet - Wikipedia

Pilots in high-G centrifuges have reported out of body experiences:
Out of Body, Roger | Radiolab | WNYC Studios

I'd like to think that at certain times we get a peek beyond the veil at some 'other place' but it's hard to reconcile things like this.
 

Sheltie

Fratty and out of touch.
There was a really good episode of Through the Wormhole that talked about the God Helmet and gave both sides of the argument. It seem like there aren't many quality science programs on TV these days.
 

Shadowprophet

Truthiness
I have glanced at this Subject, I Just Want to Say I'm terrified of Seizures, I haven't been ignoring this subject, but I have actively been avoiding it, Anyone who has Seizures has my deepest sympathy, It's a horrifying subject for me, And even casual discussion about this is uncomfortably frightening for me. I've seen people have them, Just witnessing them paralyzes me with fear. It's like watching someone painfully die, And I know that's not always the outcome, But it's never promised that it's not going to be the outcome.

They are terrifying.


So, Just Dropping in To show My respects and Run away as fast as I can.
 
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coubob

Celestial
My first seizure busted the blood veins in my eyes. I`d sleep for three days straight after one. I`m glad i have not had one in 30 years. especially now that i`m almost 52
 

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
My biggest greif it kept me from joining the military

That's more valid than my excuse. I wanted to be in the Navy very badly and was actually tested and accepted. I was going to be a submariner. But at that age I was so f****d up I lacked the maturity to deal with the military. Long story, just too many snakes in my head. How my life failed to turn out far worse is a mystery to me.

And hindsight being clear it worked out better for both the Navy and I that I remained a civilian.
 

coubob

Celestial
I was bad as a kid and my dad ran out of ways to punish me and said he was going to send me to military school if i didn`t straighten my act up. i got exited and said i wanted to. didn`t have the cash he said.
 

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
The military seems to be doing fine without either of us.

This thread was really about physiological conditions that can produce many of the same effects as abductions, religious experiences, etc either resulting from 'organic' conditions like some specific forms of epilepsy or artificially induced by a centrifuge or some contraption you strap to your skullbone.

Chalk it up to statistical probability that the ghost hunters on TV might've hit on something correct - EMF can affect you and at a minimum cause you to be ill at ease or maybe a bit paranoid. Having spent a lifetime immersed in electronic equipment I am generally skeptical - we're constantly immersed in it. But maybe there are some specific conditions that can occur, probably with much more rarity, that might emulate what a God Helmet does to a certain extent. Unlike ghost hunters I highly doubt that everything that lights up their gadgets is either paranormal or capable of inducing any effects on observers.

To extend that a little maybe there are some environmental conditions that can cause the abduction or religious event.
 

coubob

Celestial
Kinda like when i was getting diagnosed by a neurologist, he told me my alpha wave spikes and has extra electrons that dont have a place to go, it all depends where they end up i could get a sharp pain someplace or smell, or taste something that aint there or see something as well, for me its a pain in the ass not knowing if what i sensed was real or not, there is always a disbeif and it sucks cause my word i seen something dont mean fuck
 
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