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The Epilepsy Foundation of Minnesota Blog

Pharmacy Closures and What This Means for the Epilepsy Community

- Clinician's Corner

By: Jeannine Conway, PharmD, BCPS You may have seen news stories of pharmacy staff walking out of the pharmacy due to a stressful environment and unsafe understaffing. You may have also experienced finding your pharmacy closed due to short-staffing. Why is this happening?Community pharmacy is not immune to the challenges

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An Essential Vitamin for Women of Childbearing Age: The Folate/Folic Acid Story

- Clinician's Corner

By: Dr. Patricia Penovich, EFMN Professional Advisory Board Chair This story is for all women who have the potential to conceive and bear a child, whether she has epilepsy or not. The special emphasis for women with epilepsy is because these young women are usually taking anti-seizure medications (ASMs) to aid

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Sleep and Seizures

- Clinician's Corner

By Kathleen Rieke, MD – CentraCare, Member of Professional Advisory Board at EFMN Sleep is an essential activity that supports healthy brain functioning and allows one to maintain physical health. During sleep, the electrical and hormonal activity in the brain change. These changes reduce stress, improve concentration, help regulate mood,

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Camp Oz Day 5 – Slip Slidin’, Thursday Smilin’

- Updates from Camp

It is hard to say, but this Day 5 recap will be the last one of 2023’s Camp Oz. With action, movement, play and laughter squeezed into every second of the day, the week flew by. For you new Camp Oz families out there, the pictures that I’ve packed into

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Camp Oz Day 4 – Wednesday Was Wonderful

- Updates from Camp

Today the dining hall bell rang out across Camp Oz at 8:00 am sharp and our morning was off and running. Or maybe “sleepily walking” is more appropriate after a couple of loaded days so far! It doesn’t take much time and/or food though before they start animatedly chit-chatting away

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Camp Oz Day 3 – Tuesday Tidbits

- Updates from Camp

Our Tuesday began tastily as the campers couldn’t get enough of the french toast breakfast. Seconds and thirds were the common theme for each table and the syrup flowed freely. With full bellies, campers slathered up in sunscreen, filled up their water bottles and headed out for the day’s adventures.

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Camp Oz Day 2 – Monday Funday

- Updates from Camp

We opened up our first full day of Camp Oz with beautiful clear skies and enthusiastic campers as they rolled into breakfast. Eggs, sausage, hash browns and cereal powered everyone up for a big day of activities spread all across the camp. But first in order to continue to respect

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Camp Oz Day 1 – Cracking Open Camp

- Updates from Camp

Welcome to 2023 Camp Oz! After planning for well over 6 months we are so excited to have all of our campers here for the 40th anniversary of the Epilepsy Foundation of Minnesota’s Camp Oz. As part of the Sunday recap, I want to share some key stats for the

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Developmental and Epileptic Encephalopathies

- More You Know Series Sponsored

Developmental and epileptic encephalopathies, or DEEs, refer to a group of severe epilepsies that typically begin early in life, are rare and are refractory. In children with DEEs, getting an accurate and timely diagnosis is important for a number of reasons: developing a proper treatment plan, understanding outcomes and managing

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Sports Participation in Children and Teens with Epilepsy

- More You Know Series Sponsored

Unfortunately, people with epilepsy (PWEs) are often advised against participating in sports due to fear the activity will worsen seizures or cause injury. We asked students at elementary, high school and university levels about their experiences with having epilepsy and participating in individual and team sports. Why should people with

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