Dealing with Seizures

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Dealing with Seizures
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Seizures

• Seizures occur due to mixed electrical signals in
  the brain.
• Causes may be unknown, or could be due to a head
  injury, epilepsy, poisoning, electric shock, drug
  withdrawal, brain tumor, bite from a poisonous
  insect or snake, or a high fever (especially in
  young children).

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• Seizure disorders do not affect intelligence,
  creativity, judgment, or mental health.
• Symptoms of seizures can range from brief periods
  of blank staring to involuntary jerking or
  convulsions.
• Behavior changes are usually abrupt in nature.
• Students may have an aura or feel a seizure
  coming on.

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• Partial or absence seizures may include behavior
  such as
• Fluttering eyelids
• Loss of awareness for a short period of time
  (i.e. staring episodes)
• Continuance of activity without awareness
• Brief muscle jerks or twitching
• See, smell, or hear things that arent there

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• General or complete seizures involve an abrupt
  loss of consciousness.
• The student may fall to the ground, stiffen, and
  begin to jerk.
• They may make snoring sounds, turn blue, or have
  saliva drain from their mouthsthis is normal
  seizure activity.

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Steps to Take in the Event of a Seizure

• REMAIN CALM! Your reaction will directly affect
  the reaction of the by-standers.
• Ask by-standers not to crowd around.
• Protect the student from injury by gently helping
  him/her to the floor if possible.
• Prevent them from hitting hard/sharp
  objects(move objects out of the way if possible
  do not move the student unless he/she is in
  danger).

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• Turn them on their side to aide in draining
  secretions.
• Place something soft under the students head
  (i.e. jacket, soft book bag, or folded blanket).
• DO NOT TRY TO HOLD OR RESTRAIN!
• NEVER PUT ANYTHING IN THE STUDENTS MOUTH OR TRY
  TO HOLD TONGUE!
• Time the seizure and document (also note
  movements and consciousness).

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• After a period of time, the student will relax
  and regain consciousness.
• Do not leave a student alone after a seizure
  until complete recovery.
• They may be sleepy or confused afterwards. After
  awakening, they should be assured that they are
  o.k. They should be allowed time to rest and
  reorient. They may need assistance with walking.
• Loss of bowel/bladder could happen. In this
  event, try to protect them from embarrassment.

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• Always call the parents to notify them of any
  seizure activity.
• The parents may need to pick the child up from
  school.
• If close to the end of the school day, do not
  send a child home on the bus until they are
  fully-recovered, you have spoken to the parent,
  and instructed the bus driver/aide to observe for
  possible seizures.

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When to Call EMS/911

• Call for emergency help if
• The student has never had a seizure before.
• The seizure activity lasts gt5 minutes.
• The student is pregnant.
• The seizure follows a head injury.
• Student has more than 1 seizure.