Don’t gag me with a spoon! If you see someone having a convulsive seizure, NEVER put anything in their mouth. You may damage the person’s teeth or jaw, or risk injury to yourself. The best way to help someone having a seizure is to stay with them, make sure they are comfortable – loosen any tight clothing like a necktie – and make sure they are safe, mostly by removing any nearby objects that could cause injury. If possible, cushion their head with a jacket or a pillow. Putting a spoon in someone’s mouth is a myth, and not the right thing to do. Learn more about seizure first aid . Now you know what to do. Please, Talk About It! | Get Badges Now

You can’t catch it! Epilepsy is not contagious. You can’t catch it from anyone else. This we know for a fact. You can potentially inherit epilepsy if someone else in your family has had seizures. You can start having seizures as a result of a head injury. You can get epilepsy from a brain tumor or a stroke or a sickness like Alzheimer’s disease or cerebral palsy. And, you can start having seizures at any time of your life. But, most cases of epilepsy start in the very young or when you are a senior. So, while you can’t catch it, knowing about epilepsy is very important, because seizures can happen to anyone at any time of their life. That’s why it’s so important to know about epilepsy and seizures . Talk About It! | Get Badges Now

Cure it! Epilepsy is one of the oldest known medical conditions. In fact, epilepsy was mentioned in the earliest medical texts by Hippocrates, the Greek doctor who is the namesake of the physician’s Hippocratic Oath. And yet, for as long as we’ve known about it, there is still no cure for epilepsy. But we are getting much closer, as modern medical science is slowly unlocking the secrets of the brain and how it works. The Epilepsy Foundation is one of leading non-government organizations funding new and breakthrough research for curing epilepsy. One of the best ways to help raise money and awareness toward a cure is to Talk About It! | Get Badges Now

It’s Electric! A seizure happens in the brain. Of all the parts of the body, the brain is the least understood. What we do know is that the brain is the body’s computer and, like a computer, the brain runs on electricity. Electricity fires over neurons which tell the body how to move, react, feel, how to do everything we do every day. When a seizure happens in the brain, the electricity starts firing in an unexpected sequence, like a powerful pulse that temporarily overwhelms part of the brain. What happens to a person during a seizure depends on what part of the brain is being overwhelmed. If only part of the brain is overwhelmed, they may stare off into space or their arms or legs may twitch. If the entire brain is overwhelmed by this pulsating electricity, they may fall on the ground and their whole body may shake. Fortunately, in the vast majority of cases, within a few minutes the unusual electrical pulsing will stop, and the brain’s functioning – and the person – will return to normal. Now that you know why it’s electric , Talk About It! | Get Badges Now

What’s it to you? Learning about epilepsy is very important, because someone you know and love may have epilepsy and seizures, but may not be telling their story because they are afraid of how you will react. Talking about it is the best way to begin to understand what epilepsy is and what it’s not. Then, maybe, no one will be afraid of it anymore. Epilepsy is a medical condition, like asthma. It deserves to be talked about and better understood -- for the people who have it, and for the people who care about them; and also for all of us, since epilepsy can potentially begin in anyone at any time of their life. Tell the world what it means to you, and together we may end the mystery and misunderstanding, and potentially change the world for the over 50 million people living with epilepsy. Talk About It! | Get Badges Now