Epilepsy

Generalised seizures affect your whole brain

There are six types of generalised seizures.

1. Absence seizures
   • This seizure type causes a blank stare (a brief loss of awareness). Absence seizures are more common in children, last for only seconds (usually less than 10 seconds) and are commonly mistaken for daydreaming
   • There may be minute muscle movements, including eye blinking, lip-smacking or chewing motions, hand motions or rubbing fingers.
2. Atonic seizures
   • An atonic seizure means you’ve lost muscle control or your muscles are weak during your seizure. Atonic means “without tone.”
   • Parts of your body may droop or drop such as your eyelids or head, or you may fall to the ground during this short seizure (usually less than 15 seconds).
3. Tonic seizures
   • A tonic seizure means your muscle tone has greatly increased. Tonic means “with tone.”
   • Your arms, legs, back or whole body may be tense or stiff, causing you to fall.
   • You may be aware or have a small change in awareness during this short seizure (usually less than 20 seconds).
4. Clonic seizures
   • A clonic seizure happens when muscles continuously jerk for seconds to a minute or muscles stiffen followed by jerking for seconds up to two minutes.
5. Tonic-clonic seizures
   • This seizure type is a combination of muscle stiffness (tonic) and repeated, rhythmic muscle jerking (clonic).
   • Tonic-clonic seizures are what most people think of when they hear the word “seizure.”
   • You lose consciousness, fall to the ground, your muscles stiffen and jerk for one to five minutes.
   • You may bite your tongue, drool and lose muscle control of bowels or bladder, making you pass stool and urine.

Focal seizures-Focal, or partial seizures, affect only one part of your brain.

There are two types of focal seizures:

1. Focal onset aware seizure
   • Means you’re awake and aware during the seizure Symptoms are like changes in your senses — how things taste, smell or sound, Changes in your emotions, Uncontrolled muscle jerking, usually in arms or legs, Seeing flashing lights, feeling dizzy, having a tingling sensation.
2. Focal onset impaired awareness seizure
   • Means you’re confused or have lost awareness or consciousness during the seizure. This seizure type used to be called complex partial seizure. Symptoms are like Blank stare, Repetitive movements like eye blinking, lip-smacking or chewing motion, hand rubbing or finger motions.

• Cicuta is one of the best medicines for Epilepsy where the attacks of convulsion are marked by violent, distorted body shape, the distortions are most frightful.
• Opisthotonus position of the body is seen where the spine bends backward with the head and heels touching the ground. The person is totally unconscious, the face looks blue and the jaw appears locked.
• Epilepsy following head injury is the main indication. The fit is worse by slightest touch or jar, the patient remembers nothing after the attack.
• The epileptic fits come with swelling of the stomach.
• Fingers clenched. The head, neck and spine bend backwards like an arch. There is moaning and howling. Fearful distortion of eyes
• Cicuta can be used for convulsions occurring in children during dentition (development of teeth and their arrangement in the mouth), in women during and after delivery and also for convulsions due to worms.

• Cuprum met is an excellent remedy for epilepsy where the aura begins in the lower extremities and ascends to the hypogastrium, followed by unconsciousness, foaming at the mouth and falling.
• Another important feature is the patient continuously protrudes and retracts the tongue during the attack.
• There is severe headache after the attack, complaints worse in a warm room.
• The Aura for Seizure Attack is felt in Knees
• The symptoms marked during the attack are clonic spasms that usually begin in the finger or toes and soon cover the entire body. From periphery to centre.
• Jerking of muscles is also noticed. The triggering factors for the attack include fright and anger.
• In females, Cuprum Met is used for the treatment of convulsion during pregnancy, after delivery and around the menstrual period
• The face and lips are very blue, the eyeballs are rotated, there is frothing at the mouth and violent contractions of the flexors.
• The attacks are usually ushered in by a shrill cry and the cases are most violent and continued. It is also a remedy for nocturnal epilepsy when the fits occur at regular intervals, such as the menstrual periods.

• Artemisia vulgaris is best for epilepsy without an aura. Any subjective feeling predictive of the onset of a seizure prior to an attack is absent.
• Epilepsy which are characterised by staring into space, leaning forwards or backwards and stopping a sentence abruptly.
• Artemisia is effective for epilepsy of childhood in girls at puberty. Here the fits are caused by violent emotions, fear. The convulsions come close together and then follows a long interval of rest.
• Also occur after fright and after masturbation.
• The main symptom is frequent brief episodes of seizures in a short time period.

• Belladonna is especially a remedy for acute epilepsies, when the cerebral symptoms are prominent, where the face is flushed and the whole trouble seems to picture cerebral irritation, and more especially if the patient is young.
• There is an aura as if a mouse were running over an extremity, or of heat rising from the stomach. There are illusions of sight and hearing, and the convulsions are apt to commence in the upper extremity and extend to the mouth, face and eyes.
• The great irritability of the nervous system, the easily disturbed sleep, the starting, the tremors and twitching and the general Belladonna symptoms will render the choice easy.
• Atropine, the alkaloid of Belladonna, has also been used successfully in the treatment of epilepsy.
• Belladonna is best for febrile convulsions. There is spasm followed by nausea and vomiting. The face flushed and skin is hot.

• Stramonium is the most suitable natural medicine where the convulsion arises after exposure to bright light or shining objects.
• The consciousness is preserved and jerking of muscles of the upper body part is experienced by the patient.
• Epilepsy occurs in stammering people on account of fright.
• The patient raises head frequently from the pillow.

• Bufo Rana is a natural medicine of great help in providing a cure for Epilepsy seizures where the attacks are present during sleep.
• The aura is felt in the genital area. It also works well for females who have attacks of seizures during menses
• In cases of epilepsy when due to masturbation or sexual excesses; the fit may return during coition.
• An awful sensation of anxiety in the abdomen and then there is sudden loss of consciousness. Pupils largely dilated and unaffected by light before the attack.
• Aura starts from sexual organs or abdomen or from the solar plexus. Mouth wide open before an attack and dropping g of the jaw after the attack; Urine passes involuntarily after the attack or epilepsy occurs during sleep.

• In epileptic convulsions Hyoscyamus is a most valuable remedy. There is hunger previous to attack
• Before the attack there is vertigo, ringing in the ears, spark before the eyes and gnawing hunger. During the fit face is purple , eyes protruding , shrieks , grinding of teeth and enuresis followed by deep sleep and snoring
• There is much twitching and jerking and hunger previous to the attack, there is frothing at the mouth and biting of the tongue.
• A violent fright will produce an attack that will call for Hyoscyamus.
• The convulsions seem to have more of a hysterical nature, and there are illusions of sight and hearing.
• Epilepsy from suppressed chicken pox.
• For Deep Sleep following Epileptic Attack