# When Someone is Having a Seizure, Don't Touch Them **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 17, 2014, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-someone-is-having-a-seizure-dont-touch-them/695765 "2014-08-17T17:48:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![AnaMen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dfb087/32.png) [@AnaMen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AnaMen)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-someone-is-having-a-seizure-dont-touch-them/695765/41 "2014-08-21T02:00:52Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > What part of > > do you not understand? I’ve bitten my tongue, my mouth, my cheek, my lips, and on one occassion, my arm when I had a seizure in my sleep. That’s much, MUCH preferable to having my jaw broken. > > I’m going to say this very bluntly: DON’T FUCKING PUT ANYTHING IN ANYONE’S MOUTH IF THEY’RE HAVING A SEIZURE!!! > **Anaman** , if you insist on calling an ambulance, okay fine, it’s obviously futile to continue arguing with you. But do NOT just stand there. Set the person on the floor, and turn them on their side. You also need to slightly elevate their head and place something soft under it. You don’t want to restrain someone’s who’s seizure, but you do need to help them. > **Iggy** , do you know of any services that will at least help pay these bills? The first time I landed in the hospital (that time I was undiagnosed) I qualified for a temporary program from Medicaid. Do they offer similiar things in your experience? You’re the one who should hope someone calls emergency services and does what they are told instead of shoving things in your mouth or some other idiocy. There is no third option where people all become capable, calm, and well-informed. I know how to behave in the presence of a seizure, but many people do not. If you have frequent seizures, prepare people in advance as to what to expect and what you want them to do. ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-someone-is-having-a-seizure-dont-touch-them/695765/42 "2014-08-21T10:46:35Z")
Advice in the UK, where we don’t charge for emergency care, is also to time the seizure and only call 999 if it lasts over 5 minutes. Regardless of if there’s a charge or not, calling an ambulance for a non-emergency is a waste of limiter resources that could seriously harm or kill someone else, and a seizure is not an emergency most of the time. I went on a course with a guy who had almost daily epileptic seizures- imagine how much ambulance time he could take up if one got called every time. And I’m sure most people who have regular seizures do in fact already tell friends and family the best way to deal with them, but short of having a full time minder, there’s not always going to be a friend or family member around. ---
**Author:** ![Hermitian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hermitian/32/470_2.png) [@Hermitian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hermitian)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-someone-is-having-a-seizure-dont-touch-them/695765/43 "2014-08-21T13:12:33Z")
One of my coworkers is supposedly an epileptic (although she has never had a seizure at work). At some point a group of coworkers them decided that if she ever has a seizure that they should beat her with a stick to help her. 😕 So she now has a labeled “seizure stick” in her office. Are you telling me I shouldn’t get medical advice from coworkers? ---
**Author:** ![JustinC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justinc/32/8083_2.png) [@JustinC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JustinC)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-someone-is-having-a-seizure-dont-touch-them/695765/44 "2014-08-21T13:41:43Z")
> [@Private\_Bin](#): > > \*\*Jack Handey - If I am outdoors under a hot sun, do not allow children near me with a magnifying glass. Even if they are on leashes, do not allow monkeys near me. Do not allow others to make fun of me, poke me with sticks, or, if an anthill is nearby, pour honey on me. Do not allow onlookers to pose with me for “funny” photos. \*\* Very good advice 😃 which also works for when paralytically drunk. Personal anecdote: I had the first of two seizures (after a brain op) in a cinema, whilst watching _Shaun of the Dead_. Apparently the (full) audience thought I was jokingly moaning and thrashing around at first. I woke up in the ambulance which was called, with four free cinema tickets in my pocket. I didn’t get to apologise to the audience who’d had their film interrupted. Another, seizure-related, trip to an ambulance was accompanying my then girlfriend. She’d fell and cut her eyelid/brow on a sharp surface. We were staying at a small, family-run hotel in Cambodia, I was outside talking with other guests and having a beer, when 6 staff came out, carrying my girlfriend who was having a seizure at the time. They were freaked out, I was startled as it was the only time she’d had an attack (she was taking medication for it) when we were together. We put her in the back of a car, me resting her head on my lap, and shot off to a hospital. She had to have 4 stitches and I put it on my credit card - she later claimed it back on her insurance. Both times a hospital was involved but no wooden spoon. It was pure luck there were no permanent injuries. Fortunately all parties were insured, I guess in a country without free healthcare and when you aren’t insured, you should really prepare if you have an ongoing medical condition. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-someone-is-having-a-seizure-dont-touch-them/695765/45 "2014-08-22T04:31:41Z")
Oh, another thing: contrary to popular belief, photosensitive epilepsy (seizures triggered by flashing lights) only make up about, 30% of all epilepsy sufferers. The vast majority are not affected by flashing lights. (I myself am not) > [@Filbert](#): > > Advice in the UK, where we don’t charge for emergency care, is also to time the seizure and only call 999 if it lasts over 5 minutes. Sadly, that’s not the case here in the US. ☹ > [@](#): > > Regardless of if there’s a charge or not, calling an ambulance for a non-emergency is a waste of limiter resources that could seriously harm or kill someone else, and a seizure is not an emergency most of the time. I went on a course with a guy who had almost daily epileptic seizures- imagine how much ambulance time he could take up if one got called every time. > > And I’m sure most people who have regular seizures do in fact already tell friends and family the best way to deal with them, but short of having a full time minder, there’s not always going to be a friend or family member around. And that’s what I tell my friends and family as well. Strangers, however… ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-someone-is-having-a-seizure-dont-touch-them/695765/46 "2014-08-22T22:01:37Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > … > **Iggy** , do you know of any services that will at least help pay these bills? The first time I landed in the hospital (that time I was undiagnosed) I qualified for a temporary program from Medicaid. Do they offer similiar things in your experience? I’m not in the United States. Where I am there is zero charge if the ambulance does not transport the patient. Further there is no charge for for certain categories of patients (mostly very young or the elderly), as far as I am aware. Costs of medical care here is generally split between mandatory employer provided insurance and a few government programs. I would be surprised if anyone with such a chronic condition is uncovered. ---
**Author:** ![PorchePine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/94ad74/32.png) [@PorchePine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PorchePine)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-someone-is-having-a-seizure-dont-touch-them/695765/47 "2014-08-22T22:26:33Z")
> [@Iggy](#): > > I’m not in the United States. Where I am there is zero charge if the ambulance does not transport the patient. Further there is no charge for for certain categories of patients (mostly very young or the elderly), as far as I am aware. > > Costs of medical care here is generally split between mandatory employer provided insurance and a few government programs. I would be surprised if anyone with such a chronic condition is uncovered. The the ACA, the following is most likely thrown out the window, but: 1. Most government programs (Medicaid) only cover those at or near the poverty level. 2. Even the most low-paying job will disqualify a single, childless person from thigs like Medicaid. Those shouldn’t be affected by ACA * * * These probably are affected by the ACA, they were true years ago, but now that I’m on an employer-sponsored group plan, and have been for almost a decade, I’m not sure… 1. Most employers don’t offer a group plan. 2. If you have a pre-existing condition, you can’t get insurance without a group plan. \<–this one was particularly true for me, before I got a job with insurance, I was uninsurable because of my condition (even though I had been off medication and seizure free for at least ten years prior, no insurance company would touch me with a ten foot pole.)\* Before the ACA it would be more surprising if they were covered for such expenses than if the weren’t. With the ACA it is possible to get insurance now, but many of us with pre-existing conditions are still trained to be in the mindset of not having insurance, or having almost worthless insurance with such high deductibles that it wouldn’t pay for your first trip in an Ambulance. \*I was able to get into a state-sponsored high risk group, with almost prohibitedly high premiums and very little coverage. I was living with my parents at the time. If I had even the expense of rent, I would not have been able to continue payments. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2014, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-someone-is-having-a-seizure-dont-touch-them/695765/48 "2014-08-24T04:12:10Z")
> [@Iggy](#): > > I’m not in the United States. Where I am there is zero charge if the ambulance does not transport the patient. Further there is no charge for for certain categories of patients (mostly very young or the elderly), as far as I am aware. > > Costs of medical care here is generally split between mandatory employer provided insurance and a few government programs. I would be surprised if anyone with such a chronic condition is uncovered. Ah. Yeah, here, if you don’t have insurance, you’re fucked. And up until recently, if you had a pre-existing condition, you were REALLY fucked. In fact, those with chronic conditions were even less likely to have coverage. Disgusting, isn’t it – those who needed health insurance the most were usually the ones denied. (Best healthcare system in the world my ass) ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2014, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-someone-is-having-a-seizure-dont-touch-them/695765/49 "2014-08-24T19:12:07Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Common sense is important - put something soft between the head and hard stuff. When I was witnessing a person having a seizure on a Chicago El platform a couple of us dragged him away from the edge of the platform to keep him from falling on the tracks but otherwise didn’t restrain him. Common sense is important. I once saw a guy collapse on an NYC subway staircase. His girlfriend stood and looked horrified. I tried not to restrain him and tried to place something between his epileptic head and the concrete staircase. He then bashed his upper eye socket. So I cradled his head with my hands and let the back of my hands bump against staircase now and then. (No it didn’t hurt at all.) That seemed to work, though it wasn’t exactly by the book. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2014, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-someone-is-having-a-seizure-dont-touch-them/695765/50 "2014-08-25T03:59:31Z")
Ouch, poor guy. You did a really good thing. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-someone-is-having-a-seizure-dont-touch-them/695765.md?page=2)