Are you or a loved one suffering from seizure disorder? It can be incredibly difficult to cope with this debilitating neurological condition, and there are few resources available to help understand exactly what is happening inside your brain. With this article, I hope to provide a laymans guide to seizure disorders, how they are triggered, and what can be done to mitigate their effects.
Seizure disorder is defined as a neurological condition in which the electrical activity of the brain is disrupted, resulting in a number of symptoms. There are two basic types of seizures epileptic and nonepileptic. Nonepileptic seizures are triggered by external conditions most commonly fevers. Epileptic seizures are more difficult. When a patient is young, there are a number of understandable causes that can result in the development of seizure disorders, including hereditary metabolic abnormalities or blood disorders. But the onset of the condition later in life is more difficult to explain. External traumas, brain injuries and tumors can all be held responsible for seizure disorder, but fully half of adult sufferers have an unknown cause at the root of their condition.
The public perception of seizure sufferers is not entirely accurate movies and TV show seizing as uncontrollable twitching, drooling and intense movements, but many seizure sufferers react in a different way, with the body literally "seizing" up and becoming unable to move for the duration of the attack. Many people feel some precursor symptoms before the onset of a seizure, from light-headedness to visual hallucinations. Seizures can be triggered by external stimuli as well as internal, and are relatively brief, lasting from a few seconds to a few minutes.
Managing seizure disorder can be a complex task while a number of medications exist for mitigating the adverse effects of a seizure, the root cause is not primarily treatable. One of the most important things to keep in mind for treating seizure disorder is making sure that the sufferer is accompanied by people trained to help them if a seizure happens, protecting them from injuring themselves if they fall, loosening their clothing, and placing a pillow or soft object under their head.
Many seizure disorder sufferers are prescribed a regular treatment of anticonvulsants to prevent further occurrence. There are many different such products on the market, and it may take time before the most effective one is identified for the patient. In addition, regular exercise, good sleep habits and a proper diet can mitigate the frequency of seizures in many patients. An estimated 10% of sufferers, unfortunately, do not respond to anticonvulsants and require hospitalization in a seizure center.
Seizure disorder is defined as a neurological condition in which the electrical activity of the brain is disrupted, resulting in a number of symptoms. There are two basic types of seizures epileptic and nonepileptic. Nonepileptic seizures are triggered by external conditions most commonly fevers. Epileptic seizures are more difficult. When a patient is young, there are a number of understandable causes that can result in the development of seizure disorders, including hereditary metabolic abnormalities or blood disorders. But the onset of the condition later in life is more difficult to explain. External traumas, brain injuries and tumors can all be held responsible for seizure disorder, but fully half of adult sufferers have an unknown cause at the root of their condition.
The public perception of seizure sufferers is not entirely accurate movies and TV show seizing as uncontrollable twitching, drooling and intense movements, but many seizure sufferers react in a different way, with the body literally "seizing" up and becoming unable to move for the duration of the attack. Many people feel some precursor symptoms before the onset of a seizure, from light-headedness to visual hallucinations. Seizures can be triggered by external stimuli as well as internal, and are relatively brief, lasting from a few seconds to a few minutes.
Managing seizure disorder can be a complex task while a number of medications exist for mitigating the adverse effects of a seizure, the root cause is not primarily treatable. One of the most important things to keep in mind for treating seizure disorder is making sure that the sufferer is accompanied by people trained to help them if a seizure happens, protecting them from injuring themselves if they fall, loosening their clothing, and placing a pillow or soft object under their head.
Many seizure disorder sufferers are prescribed a regular treatment of anticonvulsants to prevent further occurrence. There are many different such products on the market, and it may take time before the most effective one is identified for the patient. In addition, regular exercise, good sleep habits and a proper diet can mitigate the frequency of seizures in many patients. An estimated 10% of sufferers, unfortunately, do not respond to anticonvulsants and require hospitalization in a seizure center.