Preparing for Pregnancy

In the United States, epilepsy affects nearly one million women of childbearing potential. Nevertheless, most women with epilepsy can and do have normal pregnancies.

• Some well-documented risks are associated with taking anti-seizure medication (ASM) while pregnant, but the answer usually is not to stop taking the medication.
• Seizures in the mother can also cause risks to mom and baby. For instance, what if you had a seizure and fell and injured yourself? A mother falling on her abdomen could injure the fetus. In addition, a generalized tonic clonic seizure may actually induce premature labor and a miscarriage.
• Women with epilepsy should follow the traditional rules for having a healthy pregnancy. People who have the most successful pregnancies are the people who are healthiest when they're not pregnant.