There are even more differentiations to be made, but for the purposes of this article, these are the key types, and they can happen during the day or as sleep seizures. Simple partial seizure (partial or focal) : Symptoms include muscle contractions or jerking movements only in limited locations across the body while fully conscious, with numbness or tingling, nausea, sweating, and dilated pupils.Ĭomplex partial seizure (partial or focal) : Symptoms include automatic behavior (physical movement without purpose), a loss of consciousness that can still include a blank stare, communicative unresponsiveness, the expression of inappropriate emotions, and strange smell or taste hallucinations. They can happen several times a day over the course of several days. Symptoms include quick, sudden jerking movements occurring in clusters across a muscle group. Grand mal seizure (generalized) : Symptoms include violent involuntary muscular contractions across the whole body, loss of consciousness, pauses in breathing, urinary incontinence, tongue or cheek biting, and confusion or weakness following the event.Ītonic seizure (generalized): Also called a “drop attack,” this sudden loss of muscle toneresembles the cataplexy of narcolepsy. Petit mal seizure (generalized): Symptoms include little or no movement, a brief loss of consciousness, and a blank stare. These seizure varieties further differentiate the condition. The person having a partial seizure might experience a warning sensation prior to their events. Partial (or focal) seizures take place in one or more areas across one side of the brain. Generalized seizures affect both sides of the brain and lead to post-seizure fatigue (called the postictal state ). This may be why seizures in sleep are so difficult to detect there is no conscious warning to heed, since the epileptic is not conscious.Įpileptic seizures are either categorized as generalized or partial seizures. The lobes most commonly impacted by seizures are the temporal lobe and the frontal lobe, though the occipital lobe is also affected, though less commonly.Ī typical seizure lasts under a couple of minutes and is often preceded by an aura or other sensation several minutes prior to the actual event. Some people have their first and only seizures after an ‘all-nighter’ at college or after not sleeping well for long periods.” The most common triggers for epileptic seizure include emotional stress, sleep deprivation, and chronic fatigue.Īccording to the Epilepsy Foundation, “Seizures are very sensitive to sleep patterns. The type of seizures that people with epilepsy experience are defined by the convulsion’s trigger and the point of origin for the seizure activity. What is a seizure?Ī seizure is a sudden change in brain activity caused by increased electrical activity.Īlso known as a convulsion, this increase in electrical activity can lead to something as simple as a silent period of staring or something more dramatic, including violent involuntary muscular contractions and/or unconsciousness. Thankfully epilepsy is not considered degenerative and is, for the most part, a manageable condition, with pharmaceutical and alternative treatments available. People with epilepsy also suffer varying degrees of seizure activity and may not share common symptoms with others who also have epilepsy. Not all seizures are caused by epilepsy, but for those who do have epilepsy, their seizure activity leads to a number of challenges that are cognitive, medical, and social. Researchers still don’t know what causes epilepsy, though certain factors may predict its onset, such as tumors, strokes, concussions, even a genetic predisposition. What is epilepsy and why does it share such common ground with sleep disorders? Types of epilepsyĮpilepsy is a neurological condition characterized by patterns, or random activation, of seizure activity. Its 2-way relationship with the sleep-wake cycle makes it difficult to diagnose, especially for those who only have epileptic seizures at night (nocturnal seizures). Epilepsy and sleep: The silent struggle with nighttime seizuresĮpilepsy is a complex neurological condition with well-established ties to sleep health.
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