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If you’re living with epilepsy, you know how important it is to take your medication exactly as prescribed. Still, life can get hectic. Maybe you’re rushing out the door or distracted by your daily routine — and before you realize it, you’ve taken an extra dose.
Taking a double dose of your seizure medication can lead to dangerous side effects. Call your doctor right away if you realize you’ve taken your medication twice in one day.
It can be scary when you realize you made a mistake with your medication, a feeling shared by many MyEpilepsyTeam members. One member asked, “I accidentally took double my medicine yesterday. I am waiting for the pharmacy to open. Has this happened to anyone else?” Another member shared, “I have accidentally done the same thing before.”
Accidents happen. Here’s how you can prevent an accidental overdose and what you can do if you’ve made this mistake.
Everyone makes mistakes. But it’s important not to panic. You may accidentally double up on your medication if you’re distracted or not keeping track. Getting sick, having a change in your normal routine, or receiving unclear instructions from your doctor can also cause mistakes.
One MyEpilepsyTeam member revealed how this happened to them: “I am usually pretty good, but due to special circumstances, I had some pills with me and took those. Then, when I got home, I thought I forgot to take them.”
In addition, up to 70 percent of people with epilepsy have some degree of cognitive impairment. This means your ability to learn, remember, and make decisions may be affected at certain times.
Several factors related to epilepsy can affect cognition. Sometimes, the condition itself directly impacts brain function. Many people with epilepsy also notice memory problems in the minutes or hours after a seizure.
Also, any medicine that affects your brain and nerves, like anti-seizure medication, can affect how alert you feel and how well you think. Other conditions related to epilepsy, like depression and sleep problems, may also cause memory issues.
If you take a second dose of your medication, it could result in a life-threatening overdose. An overdose happens when you take a toxic amount of medication.
Severe symptoms can include extreme drowsiness, confusion, trouble with coordination and speech, low blood pressure, breathing problems, seizures, or coma, depending on the drug and dose. In rare cases and for certain medications, acute liver injury or liver failure has also been reported as a serious, unpredictable reaction.
Serious health risks are much higher if you’re also using another substance at the same time, such as taking multiple seizure medications or using alcohol or drugs (even over-the-counter ones).
Call for medical care if you develop any serious signs of overdose, such as:
When you realize you accidentally took your medication twice, it’s important to call your prescribing doctor right away. If you can’t reach your doctor, your pharmacist can help you understand the risk and determine your next steps.
In the United States, the Poison Control Center has pharmacists and nurses available 24/7 to give medical advice and answer your questions. You can reach poison control at 800-222-1222 (free, 24/7 in the U.S.). In case of an emergency, it’s a good idea to save this phone number in your cell phone and have it written on a note on your fridge.
In some cases, you may need to go to the emergency room (ER) for treatment. In the ER, they can monitor you for any dangerous changes in your vital signs, including your breathing, heart rate and rhythm, blood pressure, temperature, and mental status or level of wakefulness.
Most treatment for overdoses of seizure medication is called “supportive.” This means the doctor will closely monitor you and provide treatment for any side effects of a drug overdose.
In the ER, you may receive an antidote to help counteract some of the negative effects of the medication. Activated charcoal can help soak up the medication in your stomach to prevent it from being absorbed into your bloodstream. It works best if taken within about one hour of ingestion. Don’t take it on your own — follow medical advice. When activated charcoal prevents you from absorbing the medication, it also means that your seizure medication can’t work to prevent seizures.
Benzodiazepine medications — such as diazepam (Valium), lorazepam (Ativan), or clobazam (Onfi) — have a specific antidote available. In some benzodiazepine overdoses, clinicians may use flumazenil (Romazicon), but it’s only given in specific situations because it can trigger seizures.
Other seizure medications — such as lamotrigine (Lamictal), levetiracetam (Keppra), carbamazepine (Tegretol), and topiramate (Topamax) — don’t have specific antidotes. If you have doubled the dose of these medications, your doctor will monitor your symptoms and treat them as needed.
Managing medication for chronic (long-term) conditions can be difficult, especially when you’re taking more than one prescription. Talk to your doctor and pharmacist about each of your medications so you understand how to take them.
Ask your doctor and pharmacist:
You may want to take notes or bring a friend to your appointments, so you can remember everything that was discussed.
After you understand how to take your medication, create a strategy to help you successfully take it as directed.
It’s important to make a plan for taking your medication that works for you. Your plan may look different from how another person remembers to take their medication.
MyEpilepsyTeam members have shared what works for them. One member said, “I have a pill organizer.”
Pill organizers use separate sections for each day of the week. They can also be divided into multiple compartments per day. If you take your medications from a pill organizer, and you’re unsure if you have taken your medication that day, you only need to check to see if that day’s pills are still in the box.
This method only works if you make sure to take your pills from the organizer. You also need to make sure you take the time to refill it weekly. Pill organizers may not be the safest choice for the elderly or people with cognitive issues.
One MyEpilepsyTeam member shared how they use a paper system to keep track of their medications. “I keep a regular letter-sized sheet of paper on the fridge with a magnet. On it, every day, I use a black marker and write Rx and the date at the top. To the left of the page, I write the names of each med with a colon after the med name. After taking each med, I write the time I took it and a check mark. Everyone is different, but this has worked for me for several years.”
Another member shared how they use alarms to remember their medication. “First, it is important for me to set my alarm to my preferred 12-hour interval. If your alarm has the option to set it to everyday mode, it is an advantage. This is hugely important to me.”
You can also try using a medication tracker app or placing your medication in a strategic location so you’ll remember. Writing out a checklist of your medications and taking your medications at the same place and time every day can help avoid errors. Your healthcare provider can help you brainstorm solutions that will work for you.
On MyEpilepsyTeam, people share their experiences with epilepsy, get advice, and find support from others who understand.
Have you ever doubled up on anti-seizure medicine? Let others know in the comments below.
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The Pharmacy Can Make Up A Bubble Pack, Labeled By Day, Date And When To Be Taken. This Is Done Without Additional Cost.
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I really get tied of taking medication. With all the possible side effects, discovering You may be allergic to one. Sometimes it gets so frustrating when even after taking medication I still have… read more
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