Question
Hey all i was wondering. My friend was told by his company a little while back that he couldnt drive anymore because of the meds hes on. He just had brain surgery to fix a vascular malformation. Even though he has never had seizures before or after his surgery they put him on keppra which is an anti convulsant. They told him that he would always be at risk for one after the surgery even though on the medication they told him it would prlly never happen. Now he doesnt have a job. Is that fair...........fill me in
Answer
How fair is it if he were to have a seizure while driving an 80,000 lb vehicle and ended up wiping out a school bus full of kids killing everyone including himself?
Even though the doctors think he may never have a siezure they admitting that there is enough of a chance of one by placing him on meds to try to prevent one from happening.
I spent over 4 years working in social services and many of my clients were seizure prone. Some with proper medications went years without ever having one and then for some reason would get hit with either a minor or major siezure and then go months or years and never have another. Anything from food or drug reactions to visual stimulas can trigger them. I know of one who would only have them when he seen a blinking red light, like the type found at some stop signs or light controlled intersections when the normal light pattern has been disrupted.
Answer
Tell your friend to apply for vocational rehabiltaion services through his state's department of human services. His condition has displaced and disqualified him from his job and may apply to many other jobs as well. The state will test him to see what he may best qualify for and retrain him in a field of his choosing. He can even go to college and get a degree and the state will pay for everything. Depending on his disability he may even qualify to start drawing social security. But he needs to be evaluated by a vocational rehab counselor.