Saturday, July 5, 2014

I'll Have a Gin and Tonic Clonic Please

It is a well known fact that alcohol and seizures don't mix (this is not the beginning of a freshman essay I swear). But neither does college and sobriety. I had my first college seizure when I was 19. It happened in the least surprising of situations. I was in Las Vegas, deprived of both sleep and alcohol. I was on a charter bus with about 50 of my peers.

You may think that this was the most embarrassing moment of my life. Nay. In fact, it showed me how different college students are from high school and middle school students. No one laughed, no one shunned me, and everyone was concerned. Not to say that all youngsters are cruel, and not to say that people didn't make fun of me later, but at least everyone had the decency to not point and laugh. Of course, everyone could have been, and were most likely, drunk. Also, there was another, possibly more embarrassing situation for someone else on that bus ride. Let's just say it involved their alcohol-induced lust and a disappointing gag reflex.

Anyways...even though this had been my first seizure since I was 12, I can't say that it was the most depressing. I hadn't really gotten used to the idea of having epilepsy I suppose since it hadn't really impacted my life at that point. At least not physically. Confusion is probably the most accurate. Apparently (this word will come up a lot), my friend asked me if I knew who she was and I said no, and that's when she called the paramedics. Who were RUDE by the way. Side note: if you have ever had a seizure, you will know the amazing experience of pulling sticky electrodes off your boobs. At least I don't have chest hair.

Also, the post-seizure haze wasn't that different than what I had experienced the past week. To be clear, I do not condone, nor am I proud of, the decisions I made in college. I would like to meet someone who is. But it happened. And it continued to happen. And it will continue to happen to others. In conclusion (ok, maybe this is a freshman research paper), no matter what happens, there will probably more eventful things (and people) to talk about.

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