What should I do if I recognize a seizure or a seizure aura? When a seizure or aura of seizure is detected, immediately place the patient on the ground to avoid falling. Adopt the position of lying down or lying on the side, with the head tilted to one side, so as to facilitate the flow of oral secretions. Promptly clean up oral and nasal secretions or vomit to keep the airway open; remove glasses and dentures, loosen collars and trouser belts, and remove dangerous objects around you. Can I take emergency medication during a seizure? It is not advisable to feed water, food and medication during a seizure to avoid choking and suffocation. And oral medications are slow to absorb and difficult to take effect quickly, giving medications to patients during a seizure should be avoided. How to prevent choking caused by seizures? Vomiting and aspiration can lead to asphyxiation during a seizure. Difficulty in breathing, rapid heart rate, panicked expression and grasping of hands are often signs of asphyxia. In case of asphyxia, immediately take the head down position, use the hand or suction to take out the foreign body or secretion from the oropharynx, or slap the patient’s back or press the abdomen quickly to squeeze out the foreign body that causes asphyxia. Oxygen may be administered if available, while medical units are contacted urgently. Should I place dental pads on my epileptic patient during a seizure? Seizures are often characterized by clenching of the teeth, etc. Some patients may suffer from tongue biting. However, forcibly prying open the patient’s mouth may lead to risks such as gum damage, loose or even dislodged teeth. Therefore, placing dental pads for patients is not advocated. What can I do to shorten or end the course of a seizure? Once a seizure has begun, family members generally do not need to, and cannot, intervene in the patient’s seizure process, except to keep the airway open and prevent injury. During a convulsive seizure, do not forcefully press on the limb to prevent fractures and dislocation symptoms; painful stimulation of acupoints such as pinch and tiger’s mouth does not terminate the seizure. How can family members observe the patient’s seizure symptoms? Seizure symptoms are important for the diagnosis of epilepsy. Family members should remain calm and not panic during a seizure. While doing a good job of safety and first aid, they should pay attention to observing and recording the whole process of the seizure, observing the onset of seizure symptoms, the site where the convulsions start, whether the head, eyes and body are tilted to the side, whether there is symmetry between the tonicity and the convulsions, whether there is a loss of consciousness, and the duration of the seizure, etc. and record them in a timely manner, which is of great value in the diagnosis and categorization of epilepsy as well as in the subsequent treatment. How to deal with the seizure of epilepsy with mental disorder? Patients with epilepsy accompanied by mental disorder or those with mental disorder as the manifestation of seizure may have psychomotor excitement: for example, going out suddenly and aimlessly, making unreasonable noise, undressing and nudity, climbing walls and jumping from buildings, or even hurting people and destroying things, or setting fires, and so on. It can also be accompanied by fear, anger, depression, joy and other emotional reactions and hallucinations and illusions. Family members should closely observe the patient’s condition, whether there are the above clinical manifestations, and contact the doctor in time to obtain professional guidance. Do a good job of monitoring the patient to prevent accidents. Stabilize the patient’s mood, provide psychological guidance and counseling to prevent and stop the patient from engaging in aggressive behavior. How to deal with status epilepticus? If a grand mal seizure lasts for more than 5 minutes, or if the patient’s consciousness does not return to normal between seizures, the patient should be sent to the hospital immediately to terminate the seizure as soon as possible to avoid the emergence of severe conditions such as status epilepticus. The persistent epileptic status epilepticus has a greater impact on the patient, and even life-threatening, and the general home first aid measures can not be effective, must be as soon as possible to the conditions of the medical unit for resuscitation.