While response may vary for different types of seizures, there are general guidelines on what to do. First aid steps can then be tailored to whether a person's awareness is affected during or after a seizure and other specific situations.
At times, ways to intervene and help stop or shorten seizures may be recommended by your doctor and other health care providers.
If you are a person with seizures, make sure you tell loved ones or people close to you what your seizures are usually like and what to do during a seizure. Remember to tell them how long your seizures usually last and when to call for help.
If you have a friend or loved one with seizures, or are frequently with a person who has seizures, talk to them. Ask them what to expect, what to do, and if there is anything special or different you should know ahead of time.

One of the problems of a seizure is that they sometimes just happen for no apparent reason. Seizures in adults and seniors can also be caused things like a head injury, a brain tumor, or from cerebral irritability resulting from infectious diseases e.g. meningitis, a stroke, high fevers or from toxic substances.
If you need to assist someone having a seizure here is what you need to do:

  • Always Stay With the Person Until the Seizure Is Over.
    Seizures can be unpredictable and it’s hard to tell how long they may last or what will occur during them. Some may start with minor symptoms, but progress to a loss of consciousness or fall. Other seizures may be brief and end in seconds. Injury can occur during or after a seizure, requiring help from other people.
  • Pay Attention to the Length of the Seizure.
    Look at your watch and time the seizure from beginning to the end of the active seizure. Then time how long it takes for the person to recover and return to their usual activity. If the active seizure lasts longer than the person’s typical events, call for help. Know when to give 'as needed' treatments, if prescribed, and when to call for emergency help.

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  • Stay Calm, Most Seizures Only Last a Few Minutes.
    A person’s response to seizures can influence how other people act. If the first person remains calm, it will help others stay calm too. Talk calmly and reassuringly to the person during and after the seizure – it will help them as they recover from the seizure.
  • Prevent Injury by Moving Nearby Objects Out of the Way. Remove sharp objects. If you can’t move surrounding objects or a person is wandering or confused, help steer them clear of dangerous situations, for example away from traffic, train or subway platforms, heights, or sharp objects.
  • Make the Person as Comfortable as Possible.
    Help them sit down in a safe place. If they are at risk of falling, call for help and lay them down on the floor. Support the person’s head to prevent it from hitting the floor.
  • Keep Onlookers Away.
    Once the situation is under control, encourage people to step back and give the person some room, but ask someone to stay nearby in case further help is needed. Waking up to a crowd can be embarrassing and confusing for a person recovering from a seizure.
  • Do Not Forcibly Hold the Person Down.
    Trying to stop movements or forcibly holding a person down doesn't’t stop a seizure. Restraining a person can lead to injuries and make the person more confused, agitated or aggressive. While people don’t fight on purpose during a seizure, in a confused state they may respond aggressively when restrained. If a person tries to walk around, let them walk in a safe, enclosed area if possible.

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  • Do Not Put Anything in the Person's Mouth!
    A person can’t swallow their tongue during a seizure. Jaw and face muscles may tighten, causing the person to bite down: if this happens when something is in the mouth the person may break and swallow the object or break their teeth. If the person is lying down, turn them on their side, with their mouth pointing to the ground. This prevents saliva from blocking their airway and helps the person breathe more easily.
    During a convulsive or Tonic-clonic seizure it may look like the person has stopped breathing. This happens when the chest muscles tighten during the tonic phase of a seizure. As this part of a seizure ends, the muscles will relax and breathing will resume normally. Rescue breathing or CPR is generally not needed during these seizure-induced changes in a person’s breathing.
  • Do not Give Water, Pills or Food by Mouth Unless the Person is Fully Alert.
    If a person is not fully awake or aware of what is going on, they might not swallow correctly and food, liquid or pills could go into the lungs instead of the stomach. If a person appears to be choking, turn them on their side and call for help. If they are not able to cough and clear their air passages on their own or are having breathing difficulties, call 911 immediately.

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  • Know When to Call for Emergency Medical Help.
    Most Epileptic seizures last 3 minutes or less and do not require emergency medical treatment. Unnecessary EMS response can result in embarassment to the person suffering the seizure at the least. However, there are some situations in which medical help IS necessary and should be called immediately:
  • The person having a seizure stops breathing for longer than 30 seconds. After calling 911 or other emergency services, begin rescue breathing.
  • The seizure lasts longer than 3 minutes. (The person may have entered a life-threatening state of prolonged seizure called status epilepticus.)
  • The person seizing is pregnant (no matter how long the seizure lasts). This could be a sign of preeclampsia.
  • More than one seizure occurs within 24 hours.
  • The person having a seizure does not respond normally within 1 hour after the seizure or has any of the following symptoms:

    Reduced awareness and wakefulness or is not fully awake
    Confusion Nausea or vomiting
    Dizziness
    Inability to walk or stand
    Fever

  • A seizure occurs after the person complains of a sudden, severe headache.
  • A seizure occurs with signs of a stroke, such as trouble speaking or understanding speech, loss of vision, and inability to move part or all of one side of the body.
  • A seizure follows a head injury.
  • A person with diabetes has a seizure. Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) or very high blood sugar (hyperglycemia) can cause seizures in a person with diabetes.
  • A seizure occurs after eating poison or breathing fumes.
  • The person complains of severe pain after waking up or develops a fever within 24 hours of the seizure.

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