Rating: 
Summary: Deja Vu
Review: A friend from church loaned me this video to watch this weekend. She said when she saw it, it reminded her of us. I have a 5 year old son that has a seizure disorder (never diagnosed as epilepsy) yet no doctor has ever been able to figure out the cause. When he was 3 he went over 15 months without a seizure and was even taken off all seizure medication then almost 1 year later he started having multiple seizures of all types. He was hospitalized quite a bit within a 30 day period. He had all sorts of tests and they still couldn't figure anything out. One visit landed him in the PICU because he was having a focal seizure and quit breathing. Our lives were turned upside down.Watching this movie was like watching re-runs of that time. The behavior issues from the new meds (which kept getting him sent home from school). He use to be in regular room Kindergarten and now he is in Special Ed full time. He was also taking 7 different prescriptions a day (this also because he is ADHD on top of this). 2 meds for seizures, 3 meds for ADHD and 2 meds to offset the affects of all of the other meds (way too many for liking) so we took him off of the 2 meds for the side affects. My son was watching the part of the movie when the wheeled in the bed with the bubble top and he said "that's my bed!" Our hospital visits were nightmares because they had to pump him full of a valuum to stop the seizures but then he would be physically and verbally out of control for atleast 24 consecutive hours after he pulled out of his Postictal stage. I just have to commend the producer of this movie for the work done because those who have never experienced this will never understand. This movie was more real than anyone will know. It not only addresses the medical part but the home environment and how hard it is. I have 2 daughters whose ages are comparable to Robbie's brother and sister and, yes, it was vey hard on them because everything we did from that point on revolved around my son. We are one of the luckier ones because we have managed to get the worse seizures under control. He still has partials that cause him headaches, drowsiness, nauseousness, tremors and in a few cases his legs refused to hold him. I still don't think he is on the right medication and I don't know if the Ketogenic diet would be right for him, but for now he back at school and has a great teacher who works with him when he has his "episodes" and has to sleep for over an hour to recover during class. What I appreciate is the knowing that there is an alternative if the medications don't work, because I know my Pedicatric Neuroligst hasn't said a word to us about it. My hat is off to you! Thank you.
Rating:
Summary: Deja Vu
Review: A friend from church loaned me this video to watch this weekend. She said when she saw it, it reminded her of us. I have a 5 year old son that has a seizure disorder (never diagnosed as epilepsy) yet no doctor has ever been able to figure out the cause. When he was 3 he went over 15 months without a seizure and was even taken off all seizure medication then almost 1 year later he started having multiple seizures of all types. He was hospitalized quite a bit within a 30 day period. He had all sorts of tests and they still couldn't figure anything out. One visit landed him in the PICU because he was having a focal seizure and quit breathing. Our lives were turned upside down. Watching this movie was like watching re-runs of that time. The behavior issues from the new meds (which kept getting him sent home from school). He use to be in regular room Kindergarten and now he is in Special Ed full time. He was also taking 7 different prescriptions a day (this also because he is ADHD on top of this). 2 meds for seizures, 3 meds for ADHD and 2 meds to offset the affects of all of the other meds (way too many for liking) so we took him off of the 2 meds for the side affects. My son was watching the part of the movie when the wheeled in the bed with the bubble top and he said "that's my bed!" Our hospital visits were nightmares because they had to pump him full of a valuum to stop the seizures but then he would be physically and verbally out of control for atleast 24 consecutive hours after he pulled out of his Postictal stage. I just have to commend the producer of this movie for the work done because those who have never experienced this will never understand. This movie was more real than anyone will know. It not only addresses the medical part but the home environment and how hard it is. I have 2 daughters whose ages are comparable to Robbie's brother and sister and, yes, it was vey hard on them because everything we did from that point on revolved around my son. We are one of the luckier ones because we have managed to get the worse seizures under control. He still has partials that cause him headaches, drowsiness, nauseousness, tremors and in a few cases his legs refused to hold him. I still don't think he is on the right medication and I don't know if the Ketogenic diet would be right for him, but for now he back at school and has a great teacher who works with him when he has his "episodes" and has to sleep for over an hour to recover during class. What I appreciate is the knowing that there is an alternative if the medications don't work, because I know my Pedicatric Neuroligst hasn't said a word to us about it. My hat is off to you! Thank you.
Rating:
Summary: You should see this film
Review: After reading the above review from the medical student, I feel even more compelled to encourage people to see this film. The lesson taught by this film is simple - educate yourself and your family on health. Medicine has helped millions of people and will continue to do so. However, prescription medication is not the only solution! This film was disturbing, thought-provoking and emotional. It will make you smile, cry and get angry as hell.
Rating:
Summary: You should see this film
Review: After reading the above review from the medical student, I feel even more compelled to encourage people to see this film. The lesson taught by this film is simple - educate yourself and your family on health. Medicine has helped millions of people and will continue to do so. However, prescription medication is not the only solution! This film was disturbing, thought-provoking and emotional. It will make you smile, cry and get angry as hell.
Rating:
Summary: PASSIONATE AND EVOCATIVE
Review: Although one could dismiss this film as an extended commercial for the ketogenic diet, one also can't help but admit to the power the film contains. Buoyed by the incredible performance of Meryl Streep, FIRST DO NO HARM looks at our medical system and how it sometimes disregards the needs and desires of the patients and their families. Epilepsy is portrayed as a truly horrible disease, and when it attacks someone so young as little Robbie in this film, it only increases its destruction. How this affects a normal family and how they manage to cope with its repercussions is poignantly captured in this movie. Streep is brilliant as always and she is given good support from Fred Ward in one of his best performances and Allison Janney as the seemingly heartless doctor who negates the diet itself. Interspersed are "real" people who have benefitted from the diet in small roles. Little Seth Adkins is remarkable as Robbie, he truly makes us believe he has epilepsy. While it may be considered manipulative and one-sided, FIRST DO NO HARM is undeniably a powerful film.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent!
Review: Any person who has epilepsy or any other seizure disorder or loves someone that does should see it. The acting is fantastic and the story is eye opening. This movie moved me and changed the path I was on. It has deeply impacted my life for the better.
Rating: 
Summary: A diatribe based on a (incomplete) true story
Review: As a medical student working closely with pediatric and adult neurologists specializing in epilepsy, I felt like I needed to say something to level the thinking this movie seems to inspire in viewers. First, it is based on a true story. The true story, however, does not involve a family battling incredible odds and hardship in seeking treatment. It involves a wealthy Hollywood producer with no monetary restrictions and an epileptic child who was TEMPORARILY helped by the ketogenic diet. The movie doesn't go on to explain that after a time, his child regressed and suffered from more and more frequent seizures. The diet is not a cure-all that forever changed the child's life. The ketogenic diet is not an "alternative" therapy. It pre-dates current anticonvulsive drugs by decades, when it was noted that starvation prevents seizures. That is the key word: starvation. It is an extremely rigid and difficult diet to maintain, and even the sugar from a cookie or piece of cake sneaked at a birthday party or school can negate all positive effect. When medications were developed that were far safer than those previously available and easier to stick to than the rigorous ketogenic diet, it fell out of favor. Of the many drugs available now, the vast majority of epileptics benefit greatly from either one or a combination of them. This, without the great ordeal of maintaining the ketogenic diet. It does, however, work for many who are able to stick to it with the great support of family, school, physicians, etc. But as with ANY treatment, it isn't perfect. It's always important to approach these things with caution. From TV shows and movies, to books, even to scientific articles and texts, everything is colored by the creator's experiences and biases. This movie is one such example of artistic license and strong emotions clouding and distorting the portrayal of an important aspect of health care for individuals unfortunate enough to be affected with epilepsy.
Rating:
Summary: Changed My Life
Review: As I student studying to be a pediatric neurologist, this movie changed my life. I know that what I have seen in this film will change the way I think about what's really behind medicine. This was a great movie. I think I burst out crying every five minutes from beginning to end. Keep a box of tissues nearby! The acting was superb, so well done that it felt very real. And it is real--it's a true story, and the true story of many people in the world who are going through the same things that the characters in this film faced. This movie is an inspiration to all; to medical workers or families of children with handicaps, even to someone who just needs to see how courage, faith and love can make dreams come true.
Rating:
Summary: Bright Light
Review: Beautiful movie. Many people suffer from the disease described in this movie that is often ignored by both the sufferer and the general public. I only wish that I've known about it earlier in my life. I recommend this to any parent whose child is inflicted by this. It could bring a happy end to what may seem to be a deppressive future. After this movie I went online to check it's authenticity. I thought there was a ray of hope there for me. Like I said before, I only wish I knew earlier when this treatment would be able to help me.
Rating:
Summary: ...First Do No Harm...Humanity Lost To Science...
Review: Does the medical community have the right to censor information about alternative medical treatments that don't include drugs or surgery? Is the double-blind study the start-all and end-all in the world of medical research and technology? Are anecdotal studies to simply be dismissed? These questions are dealt with in a most sensitive manner in the film "...first do no harm." I found the plot to be very engrossing and the story absolutely heartbreaking. In the film "Robbie Reimuller" (Seth Adkins) is subjected to one drug after the other...each carrying devastating side effects. Each new drug meant another drug to treat side effects and no drug achieved cessation of Robbie's seizures. Desparate to rescue her son from a fate far worse than death, his mother (Merrill Streep) begins to research childhood epilepsy herself and comes across case study after case study that showed the success of the KETOGENIC DIET, which was being administered at the Johns Hopkins Medical Center (Baltimore, MD). When Robbie's mom confronted Dr. Avarsack (sp?)with the information, she was told the diet does not work and was politely escorted out of the doctor's office. However, the mother perseveres and gets her son enrolled in the Ketogenic Diet at Johns Hopkins Medical Center in Baltimore with the help of a doctor who was a friend of the family and the nurse that took care of Robbie and within a month, Robbie was seizure free. He was on the diet for three years and after that was returned to a normal diet. One thing that made this movie special is the fact that most of the actors had been on the Ketogenic Diet as children and were all leading normal, healthy, happy lives. It is my hope that this film will reach parents of children suffering from epilepsy and that it will save the child from being subjected to needless drugging and surgery. This is a must see movie that informs and shows the strong ties of love among a close-knit family. A five star film in every way.
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