What happens after you have a seizure?

Let’s be honest; seizures are not funny. They’re scary, unpredictable, and can leave you feeling quite disoriented afterward. So why on earth would I write an article about what happens after you have one in a funny tone of voice? Because sometimes, humor is the best way to cope with the unknown. Plus, if you’ve already had a seizure and need some information on what comes next, laughing might help relieve some anxiety.

Before We Get Started…

Before diving into post-seizure recovery, let’s cover some basics for those who haven’t experienced one yet. Mayo Clinic defines a seizure as “a sudden surge of electrical activity in your brain.” This activity can cause involuntary movements (called convulsions), changes in behavior or unconsciousness.

There are different types of seizures linked with different parts or patterns of the brain activity making it possible to experience varying symptoms depending on how severe these irregularities might be.

Having said that:

  1. Epileptic seizures – this refers to having more than two unprovoked (not initiated by any cause) epileptic episodes
  2. Non-epileptic seizures – caused by factors other than abnormal fluctuations in brain activity like strokes/Blood Clots/infections among many others
  3. Reflex epilepsy – induced explicitly by stimuli involving sights/sounds such as loud music/strobe lights.
    4.Miscellaneous -classify all other forms of seizure disorders that do not fit according to numerical classification.

The Actual Seizure

Ok (I’ll stop being so flippant now) but seriously when people hear ‘seizure,’ they usually picture someone collapsing then shaking violently while biting down hard enough their teeth chop off half their tongue off which really isn’t helpful/accurate. But given there exist various types of seizure some may only manifest themselves as involuntary tics that result to seizure and it is also more commonly associated with repetitive movements such as hand clapping, lip-smacking or even fidgeting.

Regardless of which type you experience, a few things are consistent across the board:

  • Most seizures only last between 30 seconds to two minutes
  • They can often be predicted by a person’s aura. An aura might entail anxiety or difficulty speaking.
  • Seizures cause temporary memory loss in many cases

Additionally, those around an individual during a seizure may contribute to alleviating the effects by not panicking and following steps listed below;

  1. Cushion someone’s head
  2. Loosen any tight clothing on their neck area/upper body region for ease of breathing.
  3. Turn them onto their side till an ambulance shows up.

The Post-Seizure Period

Folks who have just had a seizure generally fall into one of four buckets after they’ve recovered consciousness:

1 — Instant Energy Boost

Contrary to popular belief being left zapped out post-seizure isn’t always permanent – in some cases people may feel reinvigorated energetic enough even ready for ice skating! Essentially what happens here is referred medically as “postictal” phase meaning an altered state overall physical weakness/unresponsiveness lasting anywhere from about five minutes up till hours depending upon intensity/severity/bodily-resilience level etcetera i.e., every case differs from another!

2 — Lethargy May Come Knocking’

Given how physically/emotionally taxing seizures outwardly prove themselves within most victims (Generally); there are quite startling statistics indicating fatigue taking over once they come round but this could last anything between mere moments and several days in others leading disorientation among other symptoms.

In Extreme conditions/eventualities severities There exist reports indicating hospitalization about continuous occurrence for days consecutively/requiring further medication interventions e.g injecting drugs/specially formulated pills to alleviate acuteness of caused by the seizure activity.

3 — ‘Who Are You and Why Am I Here?’

As stated earlier, post-seizure temporary memory loss is a general occurrence ( even if not experienced amongst many victims) but in other less common cases where it can lead to various accounts from amnesia spanning back days/months meaning they would not remember having experienced certain events/talks/having done anything during that period of time. It generally only lasts a few minutes – although sometimes, people may feel as though they’ve lost entire chunks of their life.

4 — Emotional RollercoasterAka Crash Landing

Unsurprisingly given how irregular brainwaves cause distortions within chemical imbalances leading one’s emotions/different States being weathered- expressing distress/overexcitement/fear depending on severity/time lapsed after seizure activity till point of recovery. This “emotional hangover,” almost certainly beings upon frustration due to buildup angst/knowledge that seizures are unpredictable & disrupt normal behaviours causing resentment thereafter.

What Should You Do?

Having gone through each possible scenario/victim individual reaction; what then do you take into consideration once the phase subsides?
Consider these below-stated tips in alleviating afterward effects:

  1. Resting: Depending upon previous medical history/professional advice for some victims resting proves extremely helpful especially due tenderness in body areas subjected to involuntary movements or bruising.
  2. Sticking To Daily Schedule: Odds are seizing episodes too happen with no warning prior creating further anomalies thereby inducing unnecessary pressure-filled situations resulting emotional turbulence.
    3 Recording Aspects Of The Episode: By noting down triggers/ any identified signs/alarming symptoms indicating an onset prematurely could be helpful when presenting this information later on Doctors’ visits / Profoundly decide a proactive approach towards minimizing future occurrence probability thereof.
    4.Dietary Concerns: Given how some medications interact with particular consumables – sodium among others, sticking to specific doctor or nutritional specialist prescribed diets shows significant improvement on the likelihood of future episodes.
  3. Professional Consultation: Educating yourself from Specialists about living/adjusting post-seizure and practicing a healthy self-care regimen proves quite essential.

In conclusion, while seizures themselves aren’t amusing by any stretch of the imagination realizing what comes next can be slightly bemusing if you use humor as your coping mechanism. Expect varying energies, memory lapses/temporary amnesia/bone tiredness & emotional instability amongst other options. The episode aftermath might vary between various individuals though similarities exist within them all when it comes to after-effects experienced/prolonged effects outcome possibly resulting in dire eventualities long-term such that medical attention may have to respond quickly!

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