Adapting First Aid Plans
Responding to Seizures: Tailoring Seizure First Aid
In this video, learn how to tailor seizure first aid based on consciousness level, age, action plans and more.
First Aid for Seizure Types
What happens during a seizure may vary from one person to the next. Most of the time, following STAY- SAFE- SIDE are all that is needed. If the person has a Seizure Action Plan, use it. This plan may include when to give rescue medicine and when to get medical help. It may also provide first aid for the specific seizure type the person experiences.
Some seizures may cause unusual behaviors like yelling, kicking, or confusion. These can be upsetting to see, but they are usually not dangerous.
General tips for most seizures:
- Follow the person’s Seizure Action Plan
- Give rescue medicine if instructed
- Get medical help as directed
- If the person has a vagus nerve stimulator (VNS), use the magnet if you’ve been trained
Seizure first aid training helps you know what to do in the event of any type of seizure.
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Sign Up for a TrainingAtonic and Tonic Seizures
Both atonic and tonic seizures can result in falls and other injuries. Since there is usually no warning, there is often no time to protect the person from injury.
What to do:
If there is warning (like other small seizures), help the person sit or lie down.
Consider safety options if seizures happen often:
- Helmet or protective headgear
- Face protection for forward falls
- Gait belt when walking
- Wheelchair for long distances or high-risk situations
- Other protective padding, like elbow or knee pads
First Aid for Focal Preserved Consciousness (simple partial) Seizures
During focal preserved consciousness (previously called focal aware) seizures, the person is awake and aware. First aid is usually not needed.
What to do:
- Help them stop activities that could be unsafe
- Encourage sitting if they feel unsteady
- Move harmful objects away
- Guide them away from fire, water, or other hazards
- Use a VNS magnet if instructed
Some people find that deep breathing or focusing on a task can help.
Get more help if seizures come in clusters or change into a different type.
First Aid for Focal Impaired Consciousness (previously called complex partial) Seizures
During focal impaired consciousness seizures, the person may seem awake but confused and may not respond. They may have automatic movements they are unaware of (like picking at clothes, lip smacking, or wandering).
What to do:
- Speak calmly and reassure them
- Do not restrain unless needed for safety
- Guide them away from danger:
- Hot surfaces or fire
- Traffic
- Unsafe areas like open water
- Stay with them until awareness returns
- Use a VNS magnet if instructed
Unusual behaviors (like yelling or undressing) may happen. Stay calm and protect the person’s safety and privacy.
Get emergency help if:
- The seizure lasts more than 5 minutes
- Seizures repeat without a return of consciousness between them
- The person is injured
- The seizure occurred in water
- The person does not return to normal
Tonic-Clonic Seizures
Generalized tonic-clonic seizures involve loss of consciousness, stiffening, and jerking movements. They can look frightening, but the person is not aware during the seizure.
What to do during the seizure:
- Stay with the person and stay calm
- Time the seizure
- Gently help them to the ground
- Place something soft under their head
- Move hard or sharp objects away
- Loosen tight clothing
- Turn them onto their side to help breathing and keep airway clear
- Keep the area clear of onlookers
- Use a VNS magnet if instructed
- Use rescue medicine if instructed
Do NOT:
- Do not hold them down
- Do not put anything in their mouth
- Do not try to remove contact lenses
After the seizure:
- Stay with them until fully awake
- Keep them in a safe place but do not restrain them
- Do not give food, drink, or pills until alert
- Offer reassurance, they may be confused or tired
- Ask simple questions to check awareness
- Write down what happened if possible
For soreness, acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil) can help.
Call a doctor if:
- There is severe head or back pain
- They have a fever that:
- Goes above 102°F
- Lasts more than 6 hours
- Starts more than 3 hours after the seizure
Sometimes, breathing problems or pneumonia can develop if fluids enter the lungs. Get medical care if there is coughing, chest pain, or trouble breathing.
When to call emergency services:
- First tonic-clonic seizure
- Seizure lasts longer than 5 minutes
- Repeated seizures without recovery
- Injury or possible injury
- Person does not return to normal
- Seizure happens in water
- Person is pregnant
- You don’t know the person or they are alone
- They ask for help
Absence Seizures
Absence seizures are brief and usually do not cause falls or injury. First aid is often not needed unless the seizures occur close together.
What to do:
- Keep the person safe if they seem confused
- Remove dangerous objects
- Guide them away from risky activities like swimming or sports
If seizures happen close together, stay with them and follow their seizure action plan.
First Aid in Special Conditions
Resources
Epilepsy Centers
Epilepsy centers provide you with a team of specialists to help you diagnose your epilepsy and explore treatment options.
Epilepsy Medication
Find in-depth information on anti-seizure medications so you know what to ask your doctor.
Epilepsy and Seizures Helpline
Call our Epilepsy and Seizures Helpline and talk with an epilepsy information specialist or submit a question online.
Tools & Resources
Get information, tips, and more to help you manage your epilepsy.
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