Epilepsy is a neurological disorder that is characterized by re-occurring seizures. There are over 56 million people in the world with epilepsy and about 3 million in the United States. Some epilepsy organizations have put the worldwide numbers as high as 100 million or up. The numbers of people diagnosed over the years are climbing quickly. It is becoming more and more common. EVERYONE is at risk of developing epilepsy. It is one of those disorders that DOES NOT discriminate(In fact, you have a 1 in 10 chance that you will have a single seizure in your lifetime.) Does not matter your gender, your age, your race, your ethnic background, your social standing, your previous medical history, anything. It spreads itself all over. Seizures are a symptom of epilepsy, but not everybody that has seizures have epilepsy. There are many medical conditions, temporary and chronic, that can cause someone to have a seizure or seizures. Most of the time, when someone has a seizure, it is a one time event. But not always...A seizure is an abnormal outburst of the electrical activity of the brain. There are over 20 different types of seizures. Some are very common, some are rare, some are very rare.
The following are some of the more common seizure types:**Myoclonic seizure: brief, massive muscle jerks that can be strong enough to cause someone to fall or drop something..frequently, there will be some muscle weakness afterward.**Tonic-Clonic seizure: (also known as a grand mal seizure, convulsions) During this seizure, a person will fall to the ground unconscious and their muscles will jerk violently. A grand mal seizure usually lasts between 2-5 minutes, but can go much longer. A grand mal is frequently followed by confusion, extreme fatigue and short term memory loss. The person will frequently have a bad headache and may be nauseas, dizzy and may vomit. Depending on what the person is doing at the time the seizure occurs, they may be injured. This seizure type can occur when one is awake AND asleep. Though it is rare, this seizure type may be fatal(This is the type of seizure associated with S.U.D.E.P.( Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy). There is no memory of this seizure type.**Abscense seizure: A blank stare lasting from a few seconds to half a minute. When a person has this type of seizure, they will be unaware of their surroundings and will not respond to external stimuli. They may appear to be daydreaming.**Complex Partial Seizure: A blank stare, random spontaneous activity, and a chewing motion are very common with this seizure type. There is no memory with this seizure type. One may be dazed and unaware of their surroundings, and may act oddly. Auras( warning sign that a seizure may be about to occur) are common with complex partials. Auras can range any where from a tingling sensation to seeing squiggly lines to a butterfly feeling in the stomach to a strange smell to a strange sound, and everything in between.**Simple partial seizure( sensory): During this seizure, a person may see, hear or sense things that do not exist. This seizure type may be a pre-cursor to other seizure types.**Simple partial seizure( Jacksonian): Jerking begins in the fingers and toes and progresses throughout the body. The person remains conscious.** Atonic seizure: loss of muscle tone, causing a person to fall down (sometimes called a drop seizure)** Akinetic seizure: loss of movement, causing a person to drop objects**Photosensitive seizures: tonic-clonic, absence or myoclonic seizures occuring in response to flashing or flickering lights( sometimes referred to as reflex epilepsy)***There are many causes for epilepsy, such as a brain tumor, encephalitis( inflammation of the brain tissues, many things can cause this), meningitis( infection of the tissues surrounding the brain), head injury, drug and/or alcohol abuse, stroke, blood vessel malformation of the brain, certain genetic factors such as a family history of epilepsy( though this only accounts for a small percentage of epilepsy), other neurological disorders such as cerebral palsy, Alzheimer’s, and others, autoimmune disorders like lupus, etc. Often, a cause for epilepsy is never found. 70% of the cases of epilepsy are idiopathic( no known cause is found).***If someone is having a grand mal seizure(convulsions)....DO NOT TRY TO RESTRAIN THE PERSON. IT WILL NOT STOP THE SEIZURE!!!!!!!!!!!!! It could cause them injury, and I have heard/seen plenty of horror stories of people responding incorrectly to someone having a seizure and it resulting in death.If possible, get the person onto their side. Contrary to “popular belief,†it is NOT possible for someone having convulsions to swallow their tongue. Instead, you want them on their side so that an airway can be created and so that if they bite their tongue, blood can flow freely from their mouth so they do not choke.Loosen any tight clothing around the person’s neck. Move any objects nearby that could cause injury.NEVER, EVER place anything into the mouth of a person having a seizure. I do not know how that “myth†started that you should to keep them from biting their tongue, but it could cause someone to choke. DO NOT DO THIS!!!If the person knows they are about to have a seizure, try to restrain their fall so that they do not get hurt on the way down.STAY with the person until the seizure stops.If they have repeated seizures( one followed by another), or they are diabetic or hypoglycemic, or they are a young child or baby, or this is the person's first seizure, or the seizure lasts more than 5 minutes, CALL 911 IMMEDIATELY!!***These are known seizure triggers for people with epilepsy. AVOID THEM!! Not everyone will have the same triggers, it varies from person to person, but here are examples of what to avoid..( Thank you Diane)*CAFFEINE*EXCESSIVE ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION*LACK OF SLEEP*MISSED ANTI-SEIZURE MEDICATION(S)*ILLNESS*ILLEGAL DRUGS*OVER THE COUNTER MEDICATION*PRESCRIPTION MEDICATION*PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL STRESS*ASPARTAME( ARTIFICIAL SWEETENER, PRESENT IN A LOT OF FOOD/DRINKS LABELED SUGAR FREE)
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