Carla Huelsmann

Carla Huelsmann was diagnosed with epilepsy when she was 2 years old. As she grew, she learned how to manage her disease and the seizures that came with it. But when she was a young adult, her seizures began to grow worse and threatened to take over her daily activities; she realized it was time to find a new approach. That's when Carla turned to Mayo Clinic. The help she received not only gave her relief from seizures; it gave her a new outlook.

"I have the confidence and capabilities to pursue goals that I had always dreamed about," she says, "but never thought possible, until now."

Managing the disease

Throughout Carla's childhood and into her early adult years, she experienced mainly petit mal seizures — involving a brief, sudden lapse of conscious activity. The seizures would cause her to stare off into space, a state she describes as "daydreamlike." Occasionally, she experienced slurred speech and lost her train of thought.

Carla recalls that having epilepsy made her school years challenging. "I was self-conscious about having seizures at school or in public. I did not want others to see me as being different."

Although she disliked having the disease, medication helped her keep seizures to a minimum. After high school, she attended college and got married. She had to consistently deal with her epilepsy, but the condition was manageable.

Losing control

In 1993, Carla and her husband, Scott, celebrated the birth of their first child, a healthy baby girl. But pregnancy brought with it unforeseen problems. After her daughter Kelsey was born, the hormone levels in Carla's body changed. These changes made controlling her seizures more difficult.

For six years, Carla's doctors worked to find the right medications and dosages that her body needed to control her epilepsy. Despite their efforts, her seizures became more frequent and more intense.

"By the year 2000, my body was out of control. I was having seizures on a daily basis," says Carla. "I truly felt that my life was coming to a halt and the seizures were taking over. Desperate for answers to help my seizure problem, my daughter Kelsey and I prayed to God for help in dealing with seizures. In July 2000, Jesus answered my prayers when my sister-in-law and I were searching the Internet."

Discovering a new option

Searching for information about epilepsy treatment on the Internet, Carla found details about epilepsy surgery being done at Mayo Clinic for people whose seizures couldn't be controlled with medications or other techniques. She and Scott decided to travel to Rochester, Minn., to find out more.

After several appointments and a thorough evaluation of her condition, neurologists at Mayo Clinic determined that Carla's seizures could be pinpointed to one area of her brain, the left temporal lobe, and it was very likely that surgery could correct the problem.

"During my initial consultations, Scott and I felt comfortable and confident that we made the right choice to come to Mayo Clinic," says Carla. "My first impression was that the patient's interests and medical needs were the doctors' first priority."

Living a full life

On Nov. 7, 2000, Carla underwent surgery to remove scar tissue from the left temporal lobe of her brain that her physicians at Mayo believed was causing the seizures.

"That was a day to cherish for me and my family because it was an opportunity to have my life back," says Carla.

Since that day, Carla has been seizure-free. In November 2002, she passed the two-year anniversary of her successful surgery.

"The past three years since having epilepsy surgery have been the best for me. I feel like a new person," says Carla. "The freedom from having seizures has allowed me to live my life to the fullest."