This is one older post I did with some websites mentioned on this earlier
site.  -->

The main Idaho Epilepsy News site is at http://www.epilepsyidaho.org  .
Within that are links that also go through an Education area called Learn
about Epilepsy -- at http://www.epilepsyidaho.org/learn.htm.

  Often some *symptoms people **exhibit give clues to *type of seizures
they're having and best described on a First Aid for Seizures Chart.  These
are my favorites -- also from Epilepsy Idaho. One is
http://www.epilepsyidaho.org/seizure2.htm    and that links to
http://www.epilepsyidaho.org/seizure.htm .   One of those is easier to
print, although both display well for information or reference.

  There is also a separate page for First Aid in Water I didn't include,
although those sites might link to it.  What to do when someone in swimming
is somewhat different that if they were to collapse 'on land'.

    Howdy Dave has a site he put together ~10? years ago and he regularly
updates.  He was also one of the oldest :-<  members of this group and
someone told me he was one of the Founders too.  Most people don't know
that, so he doesn't get a swelled head or anything.. :->   His site is at
http://www.howdydave.com  .  G2R2/

//  G./

She is having short spikes of electric activity in an area of her brain
called the 'occipital lobe'.  If you want to read up on what that controls
and how damage or misfiring might affect that area, while you wait for them
to complete their tests, you could search on that area just to see the sorts
of things they control -- (I think there are *2 occipital lobes?  If there
are, you'll later need to know if it's one or both, and *Which one, if it's
only one. You *might be able to tell by reading the symptoms of either side
in the literature or at efa.  Treatments and symptoms can vary depending
which side a spike was occurring on.   )
 Various areas of our brain control various functions and abilities, and
either damage or deficit in a particular area can produce different symptoms
that, so far, *you've done a better job of analyzing than the Medical help
you have.  Any therapies or things you or the school could do to help, would
depend on whether any damage was minor or more severe, and the extent to
which it could get worse as she matures.   *Some kids these things just
clear up while the med. staff search for solutions.  Not always, but enough
that it is something encouraging to hope for.  Alternatively there might be
a milder (than adult) medication that might help her suppress those 'spikes'
it mentions, and that might be enough to help with her learning and
schoolwork until she is older and either outgrows the condition or moves to
an adult dose medication.  (As she  had spikes during the test, it could be
possible she also has them at night, so could be getting less rest than if
they were controlled.)

(I recognize the name [occipital lobe], but am not familiar with the Area
and what it controls, or I'd have given it here when you first posted.
Perhaps some of the others around *now, who have **Occipital Lobe-based
seizures, can tell us about them and GIVE US A Name for the seizure type, or
some www addresses....

 The 'Generalized Epilepsy'  stuff above is junk.    There are about *5
main seizure types and they haven't used Any of the standard *names you
could do a search on, unless you just want to use Generalized.
   There are Simple Partial, Complex Partial (mine-> usually end in loss of
consciousness),
Grand Mal,  or Petit Mal seizure types.  Younger kids can have 'myoclonic'
or one other type, depending on age. I'm not a Doctor.   But usually, when
they refer to a seizure 'generalizing' (you might encounter yet) it means
electrical waves spread across the rest of the brain, and can result in loss
of consciousness, and possibly kidney control.

** Generalized Seizures do not exist on the Ep. Foundation Charts? (I think)
It's like saying your car has a loose strut somewhere, without completing
the diagnosis of exactly what the H** is wrong with it and what's causing
it....   There's not enough information on that report to do anything with.
Hopefully the 2nd test will give something useful.  My opinion
(non-medical)-- the only useful info. we have so far is about the Doctor/
staff ordering the tests.

    The advantage of having these is if you also get the Other Test
results, including the one he 'forgot to do' ?? you could carry them to a
Doctor who might be able to analyze them if you decided to.. *I wouldn't let
this Dr. do any kind of surgery or work that requires *attention...  Just my
opinion.
*********
    In the meantime, wrt. seizure types, you could look at http://efa.org 
under Absence Seizures, possibly Petit Mal and Simple Partial to see if any
of the symptoms fit into what she already had experienced.   Although some
types of seizures can be outgrown, it would be to her advantage to start
without assuming that, and looking under those descriptions for information.
    If she is Prescribed anything, the efa site has a Medications Glossary
you could look at for additional information beyond what your pharmacy
provides with the first prescription. (If they don't provide information on
what to avoid or use with it,  *ask them for the Manufacturer's Website so
you can get that information for yourself  to print.  ) /

*** That could be the case.  The trouble with an Absence (I've had) is she
can be 'away' for periods of seconds to minutes, and unless she's doing
something that required attention -- riding a bike or skateboard -- she
might not be aware she *had them.    That's why it was *good that the
Teacher noticed those and let you know about them.
   If you can see any posts still up from Julie, at the end she usually
includes the www of the Idaho website -- there are 2 excellent First Aid
charts there (land and water), that also help identifying the szr. type
based on behaviours the patient exhibits.   The main site (and likely 1st
Aid) should be on bookmarks for easy reference too.  You can look through
the whole site when you have time, as there's a lot of useful information
there, that will save you having to learn this stuff from scratch and might
help with questions for a doctor as you supervise her treatment to a
successful control and outcome.    Keep us posted, as some people only read
the group 2-3x a week, and may not respond for a few days after your
original posting went up.   /

We have to have the foolishly

**** The Computer Assisted Tomography is a 3D Heat senser, that then
produces a 3D map of what's inside.  It's often more accurate (down to
millimetres) if there was any damage or blood blockages than an EEG, which
detects Electric waves and spikes (above), but doesn't always show where
it's *from.   It's from an Occipital Lobe but that didn't tell us much so
far...  What we want is to know if there's any lump, blood blockage or what?
that might be interfering with its operation.  Possibly there's a small
glitch that predates her being born or when she was really young, that the
Dr. can treat either with therapies or medications.    (We use Occupational
Therapists for the former in Canada, who help school kids/adults develop
workarounds if they had learning problems, or to catch up to where other
kids might be, then she could carry on with the rest of the class from
there.) /G.

Given that he

<snip>

Howdy!

That's a toughie...

The problem is:

How do you get someone to adjust to something that
they don't even know is happening in the firstplace?

The only evidence we had (in my case) of absance seizures
was the fact that I got some "Daydreams during class."
Comments on my report card.

I fiercely denied the accusation... I never even knew that I
had missed a chunk of the lesson.

Unless somebody is specifically looking for absance seizures
they will probably either be missed altogether, or misinterprited
as daydreaming or something else.