It can be fun to think about where your life will take you in 10, 20 or even 30 years’ time. Maybe you will be living in a different state, running your own business, or studying at college. If you have epilepsy, you might also be wondering how your condition will develop too.
Does epilepsy go away with age?
For some people, epilepsy may go away over time. But taking a ‘wait and see’ approach may not be best, because the long term effects of seizures could be detrimental. If your seizures don’t come under control with standard treatment, you may wish to ask your physician for a referral to an epilepsy center.
If you were diagnosed with epilepsy while you were a child or a teen, your epilepsy may gradually go away as you get older. Similarly, if you developed epilepsy after a stroke or head injury, the seizures may happen less frequently over time. But as mentioned above, there is no guarantee they will go away by themselves, and it’s best to get seen by a specialist as soon as possible.
Analysis suggests that about seven people in 10 who get diagnosed with epilepsy are in remission (disappearance of symptoms) after 20 years. Many people achieve seizure freedom while still taking their anti-seizure medications (ASMs), others may eventually stop taking medication entirely (this should only be done in consultation with and under the advice of your doctor).
For some people, seizures go away within a few years of them starting. But even for people who have seizures for a long time, they tend to become less frequent as they get older. In one study, researchers found that 10 years after seizures began, 65% of people experienced a five-year period where they were seizure-free. What is more, after 20 years, 76% of people had at least one seizure-free period lasting five years.
It's important to be aware that seizure freedom varies depending upon the individual and their type of epilepsy. An analysis of research into the outlook for epilepsy shows:
- People who have refractory epilepsy, which is when seizures can't be controlled by medication, are more likely to live with seizures for the long term. Nevertheless, they may experience extended periods without seizures as they get older.
- People who have other neurological difficulties or learning disabilities are less likely to become seizure free.
- People who have ten or more seizures in the first six months after diagnosis are less likely to achieve seizure freedom, compared to people who have fewer seizures to begin with.
- It is unclear whether the outlook for people with generalized seizures is better or worse than it is for people with focal seizures.
- People who stop taking their medication are more likely to have new seizures than those who keep taking ASMs.
- People who have brain surgery are more likely to achieve permanent seizure freedom.
- People with temporal lobe epilepsy are less likely to achieve long term seizure freedom than people whose seizures start in another part of the brain.
Other research has shown that, among people who have brain surgery, success rates are higher when the intervention is done sooner. To find out if surgery is appropriate for your kind of epilepsy, you may wish to talk to your doctor about this option, rather than waiting.
Does epilepsy get worse with age?
For some people, epilepsy can get worse over time, while other people continue having occasional seizures for their whole lives.
This is why it’s so important to visit a specialist as soon as possible - there’s no guarantee epilepsy will get better on its own, and there’s a risk it may get worse or harder to treat.
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Living with epilepsy as you get older
As you get older, keep talking with your physician about managing your condition. There are some issues to be aware of:
- Pregnancy and birth control
If you are trying to get pregnant and have epilepsy it's important to speak to your doctor about your plans. It’s important to know that some seizure medication can make birth control pills less effective or impact the health of your child.
- ASMs may become less effective over time
As your body gets ‘used to’ your ASMs, they might become less effective at controlling your seizures. Talk to your doctor about this risk.
- Dating and relationships
As you get older, you might want to start dating. It's important to think about how you will communicate with any potential partners about your seizures.
- Work and school
When you attend high school, college or join the world of work, it can be useful to think about what this will mean for seizure management.
- Watching your mental health
Even people who have had long periods of seizure freedom can feel anxious about an unexpected breakthrough seizure. Try to set aside time to monitor your mental health.
A long term condition
If you began having seizures when you were a child or a teenager, it may be helpful to know that epilepsy does go away with age for some, but not all, people That said, epilepsy can still affect your life - whether or not you achieve seizure freedom. It’s really valuable to keep monitoring your condition, and to visit an epileptologist if you have any breakthrough seizures or notice a change in your seizure control.
You might find it helpful to track your condition in the Epsy app, which lets you monitor how many seizures you've had, what medication you've taken, and even share this information with your doctor.
