November is designated as National Epilepsy Awareness Month to give people the opportunity to educate themselves on the challenges millions of people face every day due to this common neurological disorder.
For the Rio Grande Valley, residents are invited to participate in the Walk to End Epilepsy event happening at the Edinburg Municipal Park on Saturday to help raise funds for the Epilepsy Foundation Central & South Texas.
The free non-timed 5k family-friendly community event will begin check-ins and registrations at 7:30 a.m. with the actual walk beginning at 8:45 a.m., though participants can register early online by visiting walk2endepilepsy.com/rgv.
Participants will learn about epilepsy, share their stories and connect with others affected by epilepsy, such as Weslaco resident Maria Serna who was diagnosed earlier this year.
“She had fallen on September 6,” Maria’s son, David Serna, said. “My dad came to her aid and (found her) having a seizure.”
According to Serna, his mother had been experiencing some cognitive issues that night when his father noticed she was acting strangely while preparing dinner, but he brushed it off.
Serna’s dad had gone outside to look for some tools when he heard a loud thud and rushed back inside to find his wife experiencing a seizure despite not having a medical history of it.
It’s important to note that epilepsy and seizures can develop in any person at any age and is more common in young children and older people.
“Seizures are defined as abnormal electrical activity in the brain,” DHR Health Neurologist Dr. Leo Estofan said. “They could be caused by many things including stroke, low sodium, high sodium or low blood sugar and those seizures can be fixed when addressing the cause.
“Epilepsy is defined as true, unprovoked seizures.”
In the case of 61-year-old Maria, doctors couldn’t find the cause of her seizures and at first thought the episodes were psychologically related.
She was unable to speak or eat and her memories were affected by the seizures.
It wasn’t until the Serna family returned to DHR Health three days later that Estofan finally caught the cause of Maria’s episodes.
The doctor had originally hypothesized that the possible cause of Serna’s seizures was a condition called autoimmune encephalitis, which is when one person’s antibodies attack their brain causing inflammation, and discovered his hypothesis to be true.
Once the doctor began treating her with medication, she began to regain her memories and was able to speak again after receiving physical therapy, though it may take a year or two for Maria to fully recover.
Serna is currently resting and being taken care of by one of her daughters and is attempting to live a stress-free life since stress can trigger seizures in epileptic people.
According to Estofan, when someone experiences a seizure it’s best not to restrain the person and to turn them to their side in order to clear their airway in case the person throws up.
Placing a soft cushion under their head is also recommended so they don’t hurt themselves when experiencing an episode.
“Estofan did an amazing job and he’s an amazing doctor,” Serna said. “He would call my sister, my brother and I after hours when he didn’t have to and check in on my mom.
“He went above and beyond as did the people at DHR and Edinburg Regional.”
Estofan is the only fellowship trained physician specializing in treating adult and adolescent patients with epilepsy in the RGV.
