Seizure Discharge Information

What is a seizure?

The brain has millions of nerve cells that pass signals back and forth to help the brain and body work normally. Seizures happen when the signals in the brain do not pass back and forth like they should. A seizure is a symptom, not a disease. There are different types of seizures, depending on the cause and the area of the brain that is affected. The types of seizures look and feel very different, such as:

• A seizure that starts with a loss of consciousness and falling down, followed by body stiffening, shaking, or jerking. The seizure may last a few minutes. Then you go into a deep sleep for a few minutes. When you wake up, you will probably not remember the seizure. You may be drowsy for hours after the seizure. This is called a grand mal or tonic-clonic seizure.
• A seizure that involves a short loss of consciousness, staring, fluttering eyelids, or twitching in your face. You are awake but not aware of what is going on around you. You will probably not remember the seizure. Each seizure may last only 10 to 30 seconds, but hundreds may happen each day. This is called an absence or petit mal seizure.
• A seizure that causes numbness or jerking of the limbs. You may be awake and remember what happened, or you may lose consciousness for a short time. This is called a focal or partial seizure.

Having one seizure right after another or one very long seizure is a medical emergency because it can keep you from getting enough oxygen.

If you have had several seizures and no cause can be found, your healthcare provider may diagnose a seizure disorder, which is also called epilepsy. People with epilepsy may have a seizure every day, but most have them less often and some people only have a seizure once every few years. If you have epilepsy, there are many medicines to help prevent seizures and allow you to work, drive a car, and be active.

How can I take care of myself when I go home?

How long it takes to get better depends on the cause of your seizure, your treatment, your overall health, and any complications you may have. It is not possible to know how long seizures will be a problem for any one person. Absence seizures often stop by the time you are an adult. You may continue to have other types of seizures. Depending on the type of seizures you have and how often you have them, you may need to make lifestyle changes to help prevent them in the future.

Management

• Your provider will give you a list of your medicines when you leave the hospital.
  • Know your medicines. Know what they look like, how much you should take each time, how often you should take them, and why you take each one.
  • Take your medicines exactly as your provider tells you to. Never stop taking your medicine without first checking with your provider.
  • Carry a list of your medicines in your wallet or purse. Include any nonprescription medicines and supplements on the list.
  • Talk to your provider before you use any other medicines, including nonprescription medicines.
• Depending on the cause of your seizure, your provider may prescribe medicines to:
  • Prevent seizures
  • Treat or prevent an infection
  • Reduce fever
  • Control your blood sugar
  • Decrease swelling in the brain and around the spinal cord
• Your provider may recommend other types of therapy to help relieve pain, other symptoms, or side effects of treatment.

Appointments

• Follow your provider's instructions for follow-up appointments.
• Keep appointments for any testing you may need.
• Talk to your provider about any special considerations if you are a woman who takes medicines to prevent seizures and you get pregnant.

Talk with your provider about any questions or concerns you have.

Diet, Exercise, and Other Lifestyle Changes

• Follow the treatment plan your healthcare provider prescribes.
• To help prevent further seizures:
  • Get plenty of rest while you’re recovering. Try to get at least 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night. Getting too little sleep can be a major cause of seizures if you have a seizure disorder.
  • Avoid alcohol.
  • Avoid mood-altering drugs, including stimulants and sedatives.
  • If you start to develop a fever, treat it right away as recommended by your provider.
• Eat a healthy diet.
• Exercise as your provider recommends.
• Find ways to make your life less stressful.
• Carry an ID card or bracelet that says you have seizures, in case of an emergency.
• If your seizures are not well controlled, avoid high-risk sports such as skiing and scuba diving. Ask your healthcare provider which sports are safe for you.
• Avoid high-risk jobs that involve heavy or fast-moving equipment, heights, bodies of water, or other situations where you or others might be injured if you have a seizure.
• Ask your healthcare provider if or when you may safely drive a car. Check with your state's Department of Motor Vehicles for rules about reporting a history of seizures.
• Tell your family, friends, and coworkers what they should do if you have a seizure. This includes:
  • Loosening clothing around your neck
  • Moving things away from you to avoid injury
  • Not holding you down. If possible, they should roll you onto your left side and gently hold you there.
  • Not putting anything in your mouth. They should check to make sure you are breathing.
  • Not moving you during a seizure, unless there is danger of injury
  • After the seizure is over, letting you rest while you wake up

Call emergency medical services or 911 if you have new or worsening:

• Seizure that lasts more than 5 minutes or you have one seizure after another
• Trouble waking up after a seizure has stopped
• Severe headache
• Trouble breathing
• Seizure after a head injury
• Slurred speech
• Loss of bladder or bowel control

Call your healthcare provider if you have new or worsening:

• Side effects from your medicine, such as nausea, dizziness, and mental changes, such as hallucinations
• Seizures that are different, such as happening more often or lasting longer
• Seizures that continue to happen even when you are taking your medicine correctly
• Hallucinations, which may be visual or involve other senses such as hearing, touching, tasting or seeing something that is not really there
• Intense feelings of fear or déjà vu (the feeling that what you are experiencing has happened before even though you know it hasn't)
• Loss of consciousness
• Confusion

Ask your healthcare provider about any medicine, treatment, or information that you do not understand.