by Dr. Fred Barge
My first encounter with epilepsy came in my first two weeks at The Palmer School of Chiropractic, April 1951. I had just turned 18 that January and I was a very young and green Fred Barge that entered P.S.C.
I obtained a room in a rooming house and the person in the room next to mine, was a man of about 35 years of age, his name was Bob, a patient at the B.J. Palmer Research Clinic. Bob stood about 6 foot and 3 inches and weighed in at least 225 pounds, a towering figure indeed. One evening I was studying at my desk in my room, door open, I began to feel a presence behind me, I turned and there stood Bob, a vacant look on his face. I spoke to him and received no reply but in an instance he fell to the floor in a violent grand mal seizure, with loss of bladder and fecal control. I did what I could to move things so he would not hurt himself as he thrashed around, it seemed an eternity but he quieted down and an exhausted embarrassed man lie before me on my apartment floor soiled by his incontinent condition. Thus my introduction to epilepsy.
I helped him to the bathroom we shared and then into his room where he reclined and fell into a deep sleep. I did not see Bob until the next evening when his story unfolded. Some years ago, he was referred by a chiropractor to the B.J. Palmer Research Clinic for his epilepsy. After about 6 to 8 months care, he was in complete remission and he returned to his home state, Texas, to the care of his local chiropractor. He stated to me that he was completely free of the problem for over six years. He owned a bar in Texas and in a scuffle with a besotted patron he was struck on the head and the seizures returned. I don’t know if the epilepsy was ever brought under control again as I moved to a boarding house with some friends and lost track of Bob. However, in the B.J. Palmer Research Clinic, where I interned, a goodly number of epileptics were cared for, and in talking with my Father, Aunts, Uncles and Cousins, success stories in the care of children with epileptic seizures were common.
Coincidentally my first case in practice was an epileptic boy named Bob. He had the same massive grand mal seizures and as I recall he had two to three seizures a week. He was about 8 years of age, embarrassed by his problem, he was often truant from school and his parents had to literally force him to go. The drugs also made him lethargic and somewhat retarded acting and even on drugs he had seizures every week. After taking cervical and full spine x-rays of Bob, the young Barge, Neurocolometer, chirometer and portable toggle table in hand made house calls to care for the young man.
Soon after I cleared his Atlas (within the first two months of care) Bob ceased having seizures in the day time hours, he had them only at night. Once fully aware that he was free of them in the day a new boy blossomed forth, his parents cut down the drugs and he was soon drug free and going to school regularly. I even introduced him to my favorite hobby, fishing. There was a slough off the Mississippi River about 2 miles form his home and he became an avid fisherman. Yes, he still had a few spells at night, but by the time he was 16 he had been free of spells for 3 years, and was able to get his drivers license.
Today Bob still occasionally sees one of my associates and to my knowledge he is completely free of his problem. From this one case the word got out that Dr. Barge through chiropractic care, helped in epilepsy. And thus in my practice, I cared for many an epileptic patient with good and sometimes complete results. I even adjusted some epileptic dogs, one Cocker Spaniel named Susie. She ran freely in rural farm area near Lacrosse, most everyone in the farm community saw Susie have one of her frequent “fits”. Her master called and asked if I could help an epileptic dog, I stated chiropractic could help any creature with a backbone and I began adjusting Susie. When she subsequently recovered, the word again spread. I even had a gruff old male patient sign the referral space on my clinic entrance form saying “Susie Sent Me”.
Upon my questioning he said “if you fixed that dog you must be able to fix anything”. I have seen them all, Grand Mal, Petite Mal, the so called epileptic equivalent, psychomotor epilepsy, behavioral seizure (out bursts of foul words, spitting, etc.) Did I help them all, I believe so, and they all received some relief. Did some completely respond? Yes many. I had a farm boy who could drive a tractor again and work the farm, I had two brothers with 250 to 300 petite mal seizures a day, they wore football helmets as the seizures combined to make them lose their balance and fall. They both responded and finally had only 5-6 spells a day with just momentary blinking. Oh yes, I had results with epileptics.
Good Things To Do in Patient Management:
Stop high energy foods, care for them like diabetics, I’d say to their parents, no sugar, watch the sugar content of all foods, like catsup. Have the child get adequate rest, no exhaustion!
Upper Cervical Care
Correct the Occipital Atlanto Axial Subluxation (head/neck misalignment).
Most cases of Idiopathic Epilepsy have an upper cervical subluxation and if caught early on, the adjustment solves the problem. Clear the subluxation and leave it alone!
“Enuf” Said
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