What is epilepsy?

[Music] our brains are made up of billions of tiny brain cells which communicate by swapping chemicals with each other [Music] when the brain cells do this they generate electricity a seizure is a sudden burst of that electrical activity which can cause a person to experience new sensations or movements simply put epilepsy is a condition that causes people to have seizures which affects around one in every hundred people one of the most common types of seizure is called a tonic clonic seizure where the person falls to the floor and their whole body jerks this is the

type you usually see in films or tv shows this isn't the only type of seizure though another common type is called a focal seizure where only one part of the brain is affected this can cause lots of different things to happen depending on which part of the brain is affected for example someone might feel strange sensations or start repeating a movement like tugging at their clothes there are also absence seizures where a person might seem distant for a moment absent seizures commonly start in school-aged children when they happen so quickly they can be hard to

spot myoclonic seizures can cause one part of the body to suddenly jerk tonic seizures are where the person will become suddenly very stiff [Music] and the opposite atonic seizures are when all their muscles relax at once [Music] it can be scary and distressing to see someone have a seizure but there are simple things you can do to help both during the seizure and as they recover afterwards the best way to help depends on the type of seizure epilepsy action has loads of information about first aid for different types of seizures epilepsy is such a varied

condition in fact there are dozens of types of seizure some people with epilepsy only have one type of seizure while others will experience more than one type the type of seizures someone has tends to remain the same over their lifetime epilepsy can affect anyone and there isn't always a clear answer as to why it can be caused by a head injury rarely some types of epilepsy can run in families or be caused by a new genetic change it can be very confusing and worrying to be diagnosed with epilepsy epilepsy can be about more than just

seizures and can affect all aspects of life including work education driving and even relationships but for many people epilepsy can be well managed with medication and other treatments meaning few if any seizures at all with the right treatment over 60 percent of people with epilepsy stop having seizures altogether another good way to manage seizures is to avoid triggers these don't cause epilepsy but they can make seizures more likely many things can trigger seizures one of the most familiar is flashing lights but actually this only affects a small number of people triggers are different for each

person but more common triggers include stress periods lack of sleep having a high temperature or too much alcohol having epilepsy can be difficult but there are lots of people out there including those who still have seizures who lead happy rewarding and successful lives in many ways epilepsy can be a complex condition but epilepsy action is committed to making it as well understood as possible and supporting people affected by the condition find out more head to epilepsy actions website or search epilepsy action on social media now you