My Daughter’s Seizures

Siezures Wisdom

GENERALIZED TONIC-CLONIC - (also called Grand Mal)

Sudden cry, fall, rigidity, followed by muscle jerks, shallow breathing or temporarily suspended breathing, bluish skin, possible loss of bladder or bowel control, usually lasts a couple of minutes. Normal breathing then starts again. There may be some confusion and/or fatigue, followed by return to full consciousness.

Comments:

Protect head from injury.

Turn on side to keep airway clear.

Don't restrain

ABSENCE - (also called Petit Mal)

A blank stare, beginning and ending abruptly, lasting only a few seconds, most common in children. May be chewing movement of the mouth. Child is unaware of what's going on during the seizure but quickly returns to full awareness once it has stopped. May result in learning difficulties if not recognized and treated.

Comments:

No first aid necessary

Daydreaming

Lack of attention

SIMPLE PARTIAL

Jerking may begin in one area of body, arm, leg or face. Can't be stopped but patient stays awake. Jerking may proceed from one area of the body to another, and sometimes spreads to become a convulsive seizure.

Partial sensory seizure may not be obvious to an onlooker. Patient experiences a distorted environment. May see or hear things that aren't there, may feel unexplained fear, sadness, anger or joy. May have nausea, experience odd smells, and have a generally "funny" feeling in the stomach.

Comments:

Acting out bizarre behavior

Hysteria

COMPLEX PARTIAL - (also called Psychomotor or Temporal Lobe)

Usually starts with blank stare, followed by chewing followed by random activity. Person appears unaware of surroundings. May seem dazed and mumble. Unresponsive. Actions clumsy, not directed. May pick at clothing, pick up objects, try to take clothes off. May run, appear afraid. May struggle. Once pattern established same set of actions usually occur with each seizure. Lasts a few minutes, but post-seizure confusion can last substantially longer. No memory of what happened during seizure period.

Comments:

Drunkenness

Guide gently away from obvious hazards

Don't shout

Don't restrain

ATONIC SEIZURES - (also called Drop Attacks)

A child or adult suddenly collapses and falls, after ten seconds to a minute recovers, regains consciousness and can stand and walk again.

Comments:

Clumsiness

Normal childhood "stages"

In a child, lack of good walking skills

MYOCLONIC SEIZURES

Sudden brief, massive muscle jerks that may involve the whole body or parts of the body. May cause person to spill what they were holding or fall off a chair.

Comments:

Clumsiness

Poor coordination

INFANTILE SPASMS

These are clusters of quick, sudden movement that start between three months and two years. If a child is sitting up, the head will fall forward, and the arms will flex forward. If laying down, the knees will be drawn up, with arms and head flexed forward as if the baby is reaching for support.

Comments:

Normal movements of the baby

Colic

Your daughter either needs more tegretal or a supplement or replacement w/ another drug. My daughter has been on phenobarbital for over 6 years. She got pretty good control but it required humongous amounts of the drug (about 130 mg per ml each night). It became apparent to us last year that the phenobarbital was delaying her developmental progress. She is now on lamictal & we are in the process of slowly weaning her off the phenobarbital. Already she is starting to become more alert. For us personally, breakthrough seizures are not acceptable, especially since it usually means Angel lands in the hospital. She is on 2 tablets in the a.m.