Epilepsy: What Actually Happens?

What is a seizure and what actually happens? What is epilepsy? What are the different types of seizures? What is an EEG?

Neurologist Dr. Karen Parko answers questions that many patients and their family members have but are afraid to ask about epilepsy.

Dr. Parko is Assistant Professor of Clinical Neurology at UCSF and Chair of the Professional Advisory Board for the Epilepsy Foundation of Northern California.

Please forward this video to others if you find it useful. Part of the "Epilepsy: Knowledge is Power" series d by the Epilepsy Foundation of Northern California.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Epilepsy
• EFNC
• seizure
• complex partial
• UCSF
• questions
• EEG
• neurologist

[Kristiniskool]

When my mom comes out of a seizure, she has amnesia for a few minutes. Do you know what's happening in the brain during amnesia??

[EFNC11]

Can't claim that I know what's happening during amnesia per se.  Depending on what type of seizure it is, though, it is not uncommon for the person to have some immediate memory problems after a seizure. Those will gradually clear up as the person recovers.

[muun50]

i have a question sometimes when i sit down my head starts to go left really fast i have no idea why i do it but does this problem has something to do with seizure?

[EFNC11]

Yes. If you're having a tonic clonic (gran mal) seizure, it is not uncommon for the head to tilt to one side or the other just before you lose consciousness going into the seizure. The tricky part is which way. Most patients always go to one side or the other, but testing has shown that only 60% of the time does your head lean to the same side of the brain that the seizure is happening on. Bottom line is yes, it's part of the seizure.

[RiftRaft123]

When I have a seizure its kind of a sleeping feeling like dreamy and I barely remember it. Mine was shaking and foaming at the mouth and grinding my teeth. But they don't know for sure if I have epoliepsy.

[EFNC11]

Hard to tell from that as it sounds a little like a complex partial (petit mal) seizure, but symptoms like grinding and certainly foaming are a little unusual.

[XBOX36035]

this helps alot years ago i used to have them was horrible never knew where i was my eyes were all over place apparently 

[667Atlas]

Can you sue a cop for turning on the cop lights and making you have a seizure but if there isn't an emergency

[clifgreen3]

when i have seizures i wake up and dont know who i am or anything. i stop breathing and start choking on throw up. i went on my EEG and they said i had adolesense epilepsy. I now take 3 pills a day for about 4 years when im 21

[Billyboi44501]

My dad had a seizure coming home from work on the train station platform 2 days ago and he has a massive bruise from whacking his head, glad to say I am visiting him daily and he is gradually getting better

[cbsteffen]

I want to say to all of you epileptics out there, take my advice and don't live on land built for cars if you can't control your seizures. It's too painful to live without a car there.

[MsMotif6]

I have complex partial but had Absence seizures as I was younger. Absence/petit mal and complex partial seizures are totally different. Absence is considered a generalized seizure ( all over the brain) while a complex partial seizure is a partial seizure (one side of the brain.)

EEG pattern/waveform is different for each.

[yd2kc]

This is a great video I am glad to have seen it. Thank you for the posting. I suffer from complex Partial and tonic clonic seizures the larger one only happening at night. I was in Seizure monitoring for 3 weeks where they triggered Psychogenic Seizures. Now that I am not in that small room the Sudo seizures have now stopped I do not under stand why they happened or the cause of them but they mimicked my seizures to a tee even to the point of me not remembering. Best to everyone :) smiles

[Kristiniskool]

Yeah, it's pretty bad when she first comes out of her seizures.... She doesn't know where she is, who her children are, who her husband is, and she doesn't even know who she is for a few minutes. It's scary....