Seizure-free for fifteen months on Tuesday, Eric Saxman of
Bradford is now able to enjoy his independence. For the first time
in his 22-year-old life, he can drive himself where he needs and
wants to go.

Just a few months before he turned 16, Saxman started having
seizures. He has now had his driver’s license for six months.

“I had to have people drive me around for six years,” said
Saxman, adding that the state of Pennsylvania requires that drivers
be seizure-free for at least six months before they can receive a
license.

“I couldn’t go anywhere unless someone took me,” he said.

In 2002, Saxman had surgery where a device was placed in his
chest that works to combat his seizures by sending electrical
impulses to the vagus nerve in his neck.

The procedure is called Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) Therapy.
The device is the size of a pocketwatch; from the device location
in the chest, wires stretch to the vagus nerve in the neck. The
wires carry timed, measured electrical pulses to the nerve which
activates areas of the brain.

Physicians adjust the frequency and magnitude of the pulses
using a computer system and a wand they hold outside the area where
the device is implanted. For additional help in seizure prevention,
or to help the person recover more quickly from a seizure, a
special magnet is given to them to wave over the implant.

After the implant procedure, Saxman had a few seizures, but he
attributes that to his body getting used to the device. Authorities
say it is not unusual for those who have the implant to continue to
have seizures, but they at least have fewer episodes, or are able
to reduce the severity and abort them with the magnet.

Saxman admits his seizure problem is somewhat different from
others he has talked to or heard about. He said he wasn’t on very
many medications prior to the procedure and has heard about people
who have had debilitating side effects from the medications they
have been forced to take to combat the seizures.

One such man, The Era talked to a year and a half ago is George
Dexter of Duke Center. He said in March of 2004 that the
medications he had been taking caused nerve damage in his legs and
feet. He, too, opted for the VNS Therapy and was improving.

At this time, Saxman is still on only one medication to help him
with the seizures, but he said he is on less medication than he was
before.

“The ultimate goal is to get independent from the medications,”
he said.

“I feel better about where I am than where I would be – I would
have been relegated to this one area,” added Saxman. “This has also
given me an opportunity to be in contact with others and to be able
to help them as well.”

Saxman is now an ambassador for Cyberonics Inc., the company
that makes VNS Therapy available. The Food and Drug Administration
approved the use of VNS Therapy in 1997, and they have also
introduced another model.

“The device gives me more confidence than before – before there
was nothing I could do but have them (seizures) and wait out the
time after them – which isn’t fun,” he said. “Now they can stop
altogether.”

Saxman has talked to at least eight families over the telephone
about the procedure and has given two talks during epilepsy
education programs, sponsored by the epilepsy foundation.

He said that recently a woman whose son had the procedure done
in August called him to see how he was doing – just to talk to him,
and tell him about her son and how he was doing. He said he was
happy about that.

“They want real-life application,” he said. “They ask how it’s
done, experiences I have had, and about the surgery, and what to
expect afterward.”

He said families interested can get his contact information from
the Cyberonics company and call him with their questions.

In his personal life, Saxman is due to graduate from the
University of Pittsburgh at Bradford with an administration of
justice degree in December. Over the summer, he attended a police
academy training in Maryland, but had to leave early due to
problems he had with his knee.

Of this experience, he described the necessity of telling people
about his seizure disorder, particularly on physical examination
forms.

“It’s a big thing when you tell someone you have seizures,” he
said. “But when you tell them you don’t take medications and have
this device, it sounds a little more reassuring.”

He describes the device as a system that works to block the
misfires that cause the seizures – “it keeps the brain from getting
bored.”

The implant sends a pulse every five minutes that lasts 30
seconds, and sometimes while he is talking, his voice will sound
shaky, which means the device is working.

Saxman said he is very happy to have had the procedure done and
to feel his new independence.

“After watching my dad have seizures as long as I can remember .
. . I used to have to move things out of his way, make sure he
didn’t bite his tongue – I don’t have to go through that with my
family now,” he said of Jim Saxman. “They don’t have to go through
the whole cycle with me.”