Definition
Epilepsy is a neurological condition, also known as a seizure disorder. The seizures in epilepsy may be related to a brain injury or a family tendency, but most of the time the cause is unknown. The word “epilepsy” does not indicate anything about the cause of the person’s seizures, what type they are, or how severe they are.
Symptoms of Epilepsy
Most seizures can be divided into three periods: a beginning, middle and an end.
Early seizure symptoms (warnings) include:
- Deja vu
- Smell, Sound, Taste
- Visual loss or blurring
- Racing thoughts
- Strange feelings
- Tingling feeling
- Fear/Panic, or pleasant feelings
- Dizziness or Lightheadednes
- Headache
- Nausea
- Numbness
- Sometimes there is no warning
During-Seizure symptoms include:
- Black out
- Confusion
- Deafness/Sounds
- Electric Shock Feeling
- Loss of consciousness
- Smell
- Spacing out
- Out of body experience
- Visual loss or blurring
- Fear/Panic
- Chewing movements
- Convulsion
- Difficulty talking
- Drooling
- Eyelid fluttering
- Eyes rolling up
- Falling down
- Foot stomping
- Hand waving
- Inability to move
- Incontinence
- Lip smacking
- Making sounds
- Shaking
- Staring
- Stiffening
- Swallowing
- Sweating
- Teeth clenching/grinding
- Tongue biting
- Tremors
- Twitching movements
- Breathing difficulty
- Heart racing
After-seizure symptoms include:
- Memory loss
- Writing difficulty
- Confusion
- Depression and sadness
- Fear
- Frustration
- Shame/Embarrassment
- Bruising
- Difficulty talking
- Injuries
- Sleeping
- Exhaustion
- Headache
- Nausea
- Pain
- Thirst
- Weakness
- Urge to urinate/defecate
Treatment of Epilepsy
- Seizure medications
- Ketogenic diet
- Vagus nerve stimulation
- Brain surgery
- Investigational treatments/clinical trials