How to Prevent Seizures: Proven Strategies for Success

by Staff

Before we begin, we should know what a seizure is. A seizure occurs when the brain’s electrical activity is disrupted, interrupting the brain cells’ activity from effectively sending messages to each other. There are other types of seizures, and each one of them has different symptoms.

For example, the most common seizure, a generalized tonic-clonic seizure, is more commonly known as a convulsion, which, as the name suggests, is a generalized type of convulsion, complete with stiff movement, eyeballs going upwards, and foaming at the mouth. However, it’s still important to note that not all seizures have these symptoms.

Some are more subtle and hard to spot, and others, like the example we just gave you. Based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and most doctors, having two or more seizures just 24 hours apart, might indicate epilepsy.

A Few Things to Note

As mentioned earlier, there are different types of seizures, each affecting a different part of the brain. Not only that, but experiences may vary in each person. If you have had an unprovoked seizure before, your chances of getting another one will increase. Preventing a seizure is key to avoiding specific complications that seizures bring, like:

  • Injuries
  • Difficulty with thinking
  • Death

Luckily, there are a lot of things that you can do to reduce the chances of having another seizure. However, if you had a seizure in the past, it’s always recommended to talk to a healthcare professional about what happened, your current condition, and what to do. Here are some tips on reducing the chances of you having another seizure in the future.

Take Your Medication as Prescribed

Anti-epileptic medications are designed to help your brain prevent another seizure. Usually, a doctor would prescribe how much you should take, when, and how long you should take it, depending on your condition. If you’re prone to seizures, you should expect to take more of the medication.

That said, you should always take them as prescribed, even if you notice that your condition is improving. Withdrawal seizures can occur if you stop drinking your meds. On the other hand, medication toxicity can happen if you take more than what’s prescribed.

Nowadays, anti-epileptic and other anti-seizure medications are expensive. Luckily, if you want to save money on your medication, you can usually talk to your doctor about it. They can even give you coupons if you want to Save on Gabapentin and other medications.

Get More Sleep

One of the factors that can make you vulnerable to seizure attacks is lacking sleep. Without sleep, our brains are vulnerable since it’s running low on their much-needed rest. You will be more vulnerable to seizures if you take your meds. This is especially true for kids since they’re more likely active enough to stay up later. Enforcing an early bedtime should do the trick.

Eat Regular Meals

Skipping meals can lead to hypoglycemia, which increases your chances of having another seizure. It would help if you also practiced eating a balanced diet to make your body much healthier, especially your brain, which is where seizures happen.

Avoid Drugs and Alcohol

It’s quite obvious that when it comes to health, it’s common advice that you should avoid drinking alcohol or at least be moderate about it and completely forsaking drugs, especially if you mix it with alcohol abuse. However, if you have a teenager, you’re afraid of having a seizure again; it might be more challenging than you think.

Teenagers tend to rebel, so they usually do what their parents don’t want them to do, like drugs, alcohol, etc. Of course, we don’t want to tell you how to parent your children, but you should note that drugs and alcohol will increase their chances of getting another seizure. These substances will make their brains vulnerable and prone to electrical disruptions. Of course, even for most adults, this can be a hard thing to do, but if you don’t want another seizure to happen, then it’s a wise decision to do so.

Pay Attention to Fevers

Fevers make out bodies vulnerable to complications. It also makes our brains vulnerable to seizures, especially in children. Note that the higher the fever, the higher the chances of the kid having another seizure again. You can ask a healthcare professional how to lower the child’s temperature and what to do next. It would help if you also took note that this can also happen to an adult.

Final Words

Seizures are scary. If you neglect a person having a seizure, they will have more complications with their brains and, worst case scenario, death. Luckily for us, there are many things that we can do to reduce the chances of having another seizure. Always remember the healthier you are, the less likely you’ll experience another seizure.

About the Author/s

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The New Jersey Digest is a new jersey magazine that has chronicled daily life in the Garden State for over 10 years.

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