MAN: MY NAME IS JAMES ALTHOUSE.
I OWN A CORPORATION THAT I CREATED.
IT'S ALTHOUSE CONSTRUCTION GROUP, INC.,
AND I'M THE PRESIDENT.
I'VE HAD SEIZURE DISORDER FOR 28 YEARS.
I WAS IN THE UNITED STATES NAVY
AS A POLARIS ELECTRONICS MISSILE TECH.
I WAS IN FOR A 6-YEAR PROGRAM,
BUT AFTER A YEAR STARTED HAVING SEIZURES.
I HAD, UH, A SEIZURE DISORDER THAT WAS CREATED
APPARENTLY FROM A CALCIFICATION--
THIS PIECE OF CALCIUM ABOUT THE SIZE OF A PING-PONG BALL
IN THE BACK SIDE OF MY BRAIN.
WOMAN: SO, MR. ALTHOUSE HAS HAD A REALLY LONG HISTORY
WITH EPILEPSY, WITH A LOT OF DIFFERENT THINGS GOING ON.
AT FIRST, WE WERE ABLE TO REALLY CONTROL HIS SEIZURES WELL
WITH MEDICATION.
THE GOAL OF TREATING SEIZURES WITH MEDICATIONS
IS IDEALLY TO STOP ALL SEIZURES FROM HAPPENING.
NGUYEN: ANTI-EPILEPTIC MEDICATIONS WORK
BY KIND OF QUIETING DOWN THE BRAIN.
IN EPILEPSY, THE BRAIN BECOMES OVER-EXCITED VERY EASILY.
SO THE MEDICATIONS WORK
TO KEEP THE BRAIN FROM BEING OVER-EXCITED.
SEN-GUPTA: MEDICATIONS ARE QUITE EFFECTIVE
IN THE TREATMENT OF EPILEPSY.
MOST PATIENTS, ABOUT 2/3,
WILL BE QUITE WELL-CONTROLLED WITH JUST ONE,
SOMETIMES TWO MEDICATIONS
WITHOUT SIGNIFICANT SIDE EFFECTS
AND REALLY GOOD CONTROL OF THEIR SEIZURES.
JAMES: THERE WERE SO MANY MEDICATIONS
THAT THEY WERE TRYING ME ON.
BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, WITH THESE SEIZURES,
I WASN'T ABLE TO DRIVE.
UM, I WAS HAVING A HARD TIME WITH MY--
WITH MY SCHOOLING.
BEFORE JAMES HAD GOOD CONTROL OF SEIZURES, UM...
THINGS WERE-- THINGS WERE CHAOTIC
TO SAY THE LEAST.
UM, HE--HE NEVER WANTED TO STOP DOING ANYTHING
OR BEING AT SOCIAL GET-TOGETHERS OR GATHERINGS OR--
HE DIDN'T WANT TO MISS A BEAT.
SO...SO WHAT THAT THEN MEANT WAS HE WAS GOING TO SEIZE, YOU KNOW, AT CHURCH.
HE WAS GOING TO SEIZE AT RESTAURANTS.
HE WAS GOING TO SEIZE ON BUSES.
HE WAS GOING TO...
SEIZE WALKING DOWN THE STREET,
RIDING HIS BIKE, ON ELEVATORS.
UM, IT--IT HAPPENED EVERYWHERE.
THE PREVIOUS DRUGS THAT WE'VE USED BEFORE
WERE MORE FOR GENERALIZED SEIZURE DISORDERS,
UM...AND THEY DID HAVE SIDE EFFECTS,
AND THEIR DOSING WAS A LOT MORE COMPLICATED.
HE WAS ALWAYS FRUSTRATED, BUT HE WOULD--
HE WOULD NEVER, UM...
VERBALIZE THAT TO ME.
HE WOULD NEVER SAY THOSE WORDS TO ME.
HE WOULD NEVER--
HE WOULD NEVER SHOW IT TO OTHER PEOPLE.
SEN-GUPTA: THE MEDICATION DOESN'T JUST TARGET MAGICALLY
THE ONE AREA OR AREAS THAT ARE RESPONSIBLE
FOR CAUSING A PERSON'S SEIZURES.
SO, ESSENTIALLY, ONCE THE MEDICINE'S IN THE BLOODSTREAM,
IT'S GOING TO HAVE EFFECTS THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE BRAIN AND NERVOUS SYSTEM.
AND SO, COMMON SIDE EFFECTS ARE PEOPLE FEELING SOMETIMES LIKE
THEIR THOUGHT PROCESS IS NOT AS CLEAR OR AS LUCID, AS FAST.
SOME OF 'EM ARE GETTING YOU REALLY DOPEY,
UH, SLURRY,
AND, UH, HAVING A HARD TIME REMEMBERING THINGS.
ONE OF THE SIDE EFFECTS THAT WE SEE IS SEDATION, FATIGUE.
UM, SO BASICALLY PATIENTS WILL GET VERY TIRED EASILY.
THEY WILL BE DROWSY.
THERE WAS A TIME
WHEN HE WAS VERY, VERY WACKED OUT ON MEDICINE
AND, UM, HARD TO DEAL WITH, HARD TO TALK TO,
HARD TO COMMUNICATE WITH.
SOME MEDICATIONS CAN HAVE THE POSSIBILITY OF WORSENING DEPRESSION
IN PATIENTS THAT HAVE IT,
WHICH IS WHY THAT'S SOMETHING WE ALWAYS TRY TO ASSESS
BEFORE STARTING CERTAIN CLASSES OF MEDICATIONS.
YOU KNOW, I THOUGHT MAYBE-- MAYBE I WOULDN'T BE AROUND FOR THE FUTURE,
YOU KNOW, BUT, UM...
HE--THAT--A LOT OF THAT WAS NOT HIS FAULT.
YOU KNOW, HIS MEDICATION WAS WREAKING HAVOC WITH...
WITH HIM.
HE--HE JUST WAS KIND OF OUT THERE.
I DON'T KNOW HOW ELSE TO SAY IT.
THE SERIOUS SIDE EFFECTS THAT WE WATCH OUT FOR
WITH SOME OF THE ANTI-EPILEPTIC DRUGS ARE RASH, LIVER FAILURE,
AND BONE MARROW DEPRESSION, WHERE THE ANTI-EPILEPTIC DRUGS
IMPACT THE BLOOD CELL LINES IN OUR BODY.
OVER THE YEARS, UH, WE HAVE, UH,
INCREASED THE NUMBER OF MEDICATIONS THAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE
TO TREAT EPILEPTIC DISORDERS.
UM, MANY, MANY YEARS AGO, WE HAD A CHOICE OF A FEW.
SIDE EFFECTS WERE, UM, VERY CHALLENGING.
BUT THE NEWER AGENTS THAT WE HAVE,
THE NEWER ONES THAT HAVE COME OUT OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS,
HAVE OFFERED EASIER DOSING FOR OUR PATIENTS
WITH LESS COMPLICATIONS AND SIDE EFFECTS.
SAYERS: SEIZURE MEDICATION IS NOT TO BE TAKEN AS NEEDED.
IT NEEDS TO BE TAKEN AS PRESCRIBED.
SO, IF IT'S ONCE A DAY, IT NEEDS TO BE TAKEN ONCE A DAY.
UH, IF THEY SKIP A DOSE OR THEY FORGET A DAY,
OFTEN THAT'S FINE. THEY CAN LINK UP THE NEXT DAY.
UM, BUT IF THEY SKIP A FEW DOSES,
THAT COULD BE PROBLEMATIC.
IN THAT THEIR SEIZURE DISORDERS COULD COME BACK.
THEY MIGHT NOT HAVE THAT MUCH OF A SAFETY MARGIN, BASICALLY,
AS FAR AS GOING INTO RECURRENT SEIZURES.
AND SO, THIS CAN BE VERY DANGEROUS
BECAUSE WHEN YOU HAVE REPEATED SEIZURES,
UH, THAT'S ACTUALLY POTENTIALLY A LIFE-THREATENING CONDITION.
AND THIS IS WHEN A MEDICATION TRAY WOULD COME IN HANDY.
UM, LIKE A 7-DAY TRAY WHERE WE CAN--
THE PATIENT COULD ACTUALLY LOAD IN THEIR MEDICATIONS FOR THE WEEK.
JAMES: AND AS I SET THAT UP,
I KNOW THAT I'VE GOT EVERYTHING IN THERE
THAT THE DOCTORS HAVE MANDATED THAT I DO.
I PUT THAT IN THERE, AND, UM...
AND THEN THERE'S NOT A PROBLEM.
JUST OPENING THAT IN THE MORNING,
TAKING WHAT I NEED TO USE,
AND LEAVING IN WHAT I NEED FOR THE NEXT, UH,
POINT IN YOUR DAY,
TO OPEN IT UP AND TAKE THAT OTHER MEDICATION.
IT MAKES IT REAL SIMPLE.
THERE WAS A TIME IN OUR MARRIED LIFE
WHEN I WAS WAY MORE INVOLVED WITH ALL OF THAT.
I WAS HELPING HIM ALL THE TIME WITH EVERYTHING,
BUT, UM, HE'S-- HE'S DOING SO WELL NOW
THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST KIND OF
A NICE FRIENDLY, "HEY, DID YOU TAKE YOUR MEDICINE?"
YOU KNOW, REMINDER.
AND NOW, IT'S JUST PART OF HIS DAILY ROUTINE.
HE KNOWS HE HAS TO HAVE IT.
HE CAN'T--IT'S JUST LIKE BRUSHING YOUR TEETH
OR, YOU KNOW, BRUSHING YOUR HAIR.
SO, WHAT WE ALWAYS RECOMMEND TO ALL PATIENTS
IS IF IT'S A DRUG YOU USE ALL THE TIME,
WHEN YOU GET YOUR FIRST FILL, YOU COULD THEN ACTUALLY PROCESS YOUR REFILL.
THE PATIENTS COULD DO THAT BY PHONE,
THEY CAN ACTUALLY DO IT ON THE COMPUTER IF THEY'RE REGISTERED IN MY HEALTHY VET,
OR THEY COULD MAIL IN A REFILL SLIP.
JAMES: YOU HAVE TO CALL IN,
WHICH IS A SIMPLE DEAL WITH THE VA.
JUST LOOKING AT THE NUMBERS THERE, YOU CAN CALL IN
AND ASK FOR THE MEDS, AND BINGO-BANGO--
YOU'LL--YOU'LL GET IT COMING BY THE MAIL.
LISA: THE MEDICINE THAT HE TAKES HAS DEFINITELY HELPED HIM
TO BE SUCCESSFUL, YOU KNOW, IN HIS WORK AND IN SCHOOL
AND AS A HUSBAND AND AS A FATHER.
I'M LIVING MY LIFE TO DO WHATEVER I CAN IN SERVING OTHER PEOPLE.
AND TRYING--TRYING TO BE A HUSBAND
WITH--WITH MY WONDERFUL WIFE AND A FATHER TO MY CHILDREN.
[WOMAN SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
AND I JUST DON'T KNOW HOW ANYBODY WOULD DO IT
IF THEY WEREN'T A VETERAN AND DIDN'T HAVE THEM
PERFORMING AT--WITH THE ABILITY THAT WE HAVE.
I WOULD SAY I LOVE THE VA. I'M GRATEFUL FOR THE VA.
AND I--I KNOW SOMETIMES THE VA GETS A BAD RAP, ESPECIALLY LATELY,
UM, BUT THE VA HAS, UM, DONE GOOD BY US.
YOU WANT MY OPINION?
I HAVE THE BEST DOCTORS IN THE WORLD.
[SNIFFS]