A young mother diagnosed with depression after a breakup was shocked to learn that epilepsy was actually to blame for her panic attacks.
Madeleine Dippnall was left crying “hysterically” and paranoid after the end of her “traumatic” two-year relationship, which saw the 29-year-old return to live with her parents in Cornwall.
In addition to depression, doctors diagnosed him with anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Ms Dippnall, who was 22 at the time and living in an affluent area of north-west London before packing up her belongings, also lost almost sixth place and was vomiting constantly, leading doctors to diagnose her with anorexia.
The medications she was given only helped with a fraction of the catalog of problems she was diagnosed with, leaving her confused as to whether something else was at play.
Doctors told Madeleine Dippnall, 29, that her panic attacks were caused by depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, which she attributed to the end of a traumatic relationship.
After suffering an unexpected seizure six years later, in which she woke up on the bathroom floor, Ms Dippnall was diagnosed with temporal lobe epilepsy.
The graphic designer’s symptoms “literally disappeared” overnight thanks to seizure-fighting medications.
Recalling her diagnosis, Ms Dippnall said: “I was relieved I wasn’t crazy.” Now I know what’s happening.’
Around one in 100 people in the UK have epilepsy.
Temporal lobe epilepsy (a particular type) causes seizures that begin in areas of the brain with the same name.
They are responsible for memory, hearing and language understanding, according to the charity Epilepsy Action.
Seizures that start in this area of the brain can cause you to feel scared, have deja vu, hear things that aren’t there, experience an unpleasant taste or smell, and cause restlessness, which partly explains Ms. Dippnall’s symptoms. .
Cornish graphic designer diagnosed with epilepsy after unexpected seizure
After suffering panic attacks, she went to a psychiatrist who diagnosed her with post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression and anorexia, causing her weight to drop to less than six kilos.
Recalling her decision to return to Cornwall, Mrs Dippnall said: “I needed to be by the sea.
‘We had to escape. It was horrible.’
She said of her symptoms: ‘You have the adrenaline equivalent of being on a rollercoaster.
‘Everything sweats. I would go to the bathroom to get sick. She would be crying hysterically. You have this fear of God in you that something terrible is going to happen.
‘My mom used to put my head under a sink of cold water.
‘Sometimes I get catatonic. I couldn’t move. I would go inside myself.
“But if you were looking at me you wouldn’t really know what was going on.”
Mrs Dippnall, pictured with her husband Christopher, 35, was taking the drug for about three years and did not see much improvement.
Since her diagnosis, she has been able to enjoy her life again with her stepchildren, her two-year-old son, Bo (pictured), and her husband Christopher, who works as a carpenter.
Since being diagnosed, he has been taking lamotrigine, a medication to help with his condition, and said his depression “literally disappeared.”
Ms Dippnall was on a cocktail of medications for about three years and did not see much improvement, describing it as “frustrating”.
One night in April 2023, he woke up with the inside of his mouth bleeding. She had had a seizure.
She said: ‘My body had cramps everywhere. I bit the inside of my mouth. I had a nocturnal seizure, a tonic clonic seizure (where the muscles twitch and start to contract).
‘The next night I woke up on the bathroom floor.
‘I said to Chris, my husband, “Oh my God, I think I’ve had a seizure.”
“I went to the GP and he referred me urgently. I was diagnosed with temporal lobe epilepsy. I was relieved to not be crazy.
‘I was angry at all these authoritarian people who told me I had mental problems. “If this wasn’t addressed, I really could have been in trouble.”
Dipnell remembers having a seizure when he was about 19, but says it wasn’t properly investigated
After taking his new medication lamotrigine, he said he “feels good” and is building a graphic design business from the isolated cabin where he lives.
Mrs Dippnall added: “My dad had a gut feeling the whole time. He said ‘those aren’t normal panic attacks you’re having.’
‘I had a seizure when I was 19, but it wasn’t properly investigated because of the way I reacted to the tests.
“I felt like something was happening and something was wrong with me. “I felt like no one was listening to me.”
Since his diagnosis, he has been able to enjoy his life again with his stepchildren, Bo, two, and Chris, 35, who works as a carpenter.
She said: ‘Since taking epilepsy medication I haven’t had a single episode and my depression has literally disappeared.
“My husband says the difference is like night and day.”