Tonic-clonic (or grand mal) seizures: A seizure begins suddenly. Without warning, the person loses consciousness and experiences the following symptoms:
Becomes rigid (extends the arms and legs, arches the back) and falls down
Utters a cry (the "epileptic cry") as the diaphragm contracts and forces air out between the contracted vocal cords
Has jerking movements of the arms, legs, and trunk muscles
Involuntarily passes urine and sometimes feces
The seizure usually subsides within two minutes or less, leaving the person confused and sleepy. Over the following 24 hours, he or she may complain of sore muscles, headache, fatigue and difficulty concentrating.
Audrey bit her tongue pretty hard yesterday when she experienced another seizure. Unfortunately or fortunately, I can now recognize when one starts. I was able to grab her before she fell off the kitchen chair. I wrapped my arms around her, kicked the chair away and was able to lower her on the ground with further injuries. Her jaw locked and she bit her tongue pretty good. I held her there on the ground rolled to the side because I didn’t know if she had any food in her mouth. It lasted no more than 2 or 3 minutes before her muscles began relaxing again. But then comes the calling out for me, the confusion and garbled language. And then she just cries. She kept asking “what if I can’t breath?” “Am I going to be ok?” “Promise I’m going to be ok.”
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