What Every Mom Should Know About Febrile Seizures
Even though summer is here, that doesn’t mean that the cold, flu, COVID, and other illnesses disappear. In fact, with so many kids out of school now frequenting local parks, splash pads, and other events, you may find yourself sick at some point this summer. Being sick during hot weather is never easy, especially if you have a child under the age of five. Febrile seizures are a very common side effect of having a fever, and it is important for parents to know the signs and what to do if they find themselves in this situation. Keep reading to learn more about febrile seizures, what to do, how to prepare, and how to comfort your child afterwards.
What Are Febrile Seizures?
A febrile seizure is a seizure caused by a fever in healthy infants and young children. Any fever may cause a febrile seizure. These seizures may happen when a child has an illness such as a cold, the flu, roseola, chickenpox, COVID-19, RSV (respiratory syncytial virus), or an ear infection. Most febrile seizures occur within 24 hours of a child getting sick. Sometimes, a child may have a seizure before developing a fever.
Having a febrile seizure does not mean a child has epilepsy. Epilepsy involves repeated seizures caused by abnormal electrical signals in the brain that aren’t caused by a trigger such as fever.
[source: https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/disorders/febrile-seizures ]
Symptoms of febrile seizures may include:
- Loss of consciousness or passing out
- Uncontrollable shaking, jerking, or stiffening in the arms or legs (may be the whole body or only part of the body)
- Eye rolling
- Loss of bodily control (such as drooling, vomiting, urinating, or having a bowel movement)
Simple febrile seizures are the most common type. They last a few seconds up to 15 minutes, and happen only once in 24 hours.
Complex febrile seizures either last longer than 15 minutes, happen more than once in 24 hours, or happen only on one part of a child’s body. They may also be a combination of these.
What to Do and How to Prepare
Febrile seizures can be scary for parents, caregivers, and especially for the child experiencing them. Whether your child has had a febrile seizure before, or you want to know the signs in case your child may have one, being prepared will give you the best peace of mind.
Here are some tips:
| Get your child in a safe position. | As soon as your child starts showing signs of a seizure, put your child on their side and preferably on the ground. Do not restrain or hold your child; just make sure they are in a safe space. |
| Note the time. | Check what time it is so that you can see how long the seizure is. If longer than five minutes, or shorter than five minutes but your child is still not recovered, call an ambulance. |
| Do not put anything in your child’s mouth. |
The rumors are not true: You are not supposed to put anything in someone’s mouth while they are having a seizure. It could block their airway and cause more complications. |
| Stay calm. | Many children lose consciousness; however, it is important to assume that your child can hear you even though they are seizing. Stay calm and talk to your child in a soothing voice. Let them know that they are okay, they are safe, and that it will be over soon. |
Interesting facts about febrile seizures include:
- Your child can have a seizure even if they are on a drug that lowers fevers, such as Tylenol. These medications, even though they lower fevers, do not prevent febrile seizures from happening.
- Seizures can often be the first sign of your child being sick.
- Febrile seizures do not typically happen to small babies under the age of six months.
Comforting Your Child After a Febrile Seizure
Once your child has recovered from their seizure, they may appear disoriented, confused, and distressed. This is called the postictal phase of the seizure, when the body is recovering. They may also be feeling fatigued, tired, sore, or weak. If your child has been hospitalized, their anxiety and fear may be at an all-time high.
It is extremely important to give your child plenty of love and comfort during this time, rather than brushing off the incident and encouraging them to return to normal activities.
Your child may become more clingy, tired, and just want snuggles. Provide plenty of love and comfort for your child by giving them their favorite meals, allowing for a lazy day on the couch or in bed, and putting on their favorite movie to relax for the rest of the day.
Bubble Therapy
If your child has just experienced a febrile seizure and you’re looking for a way to de-stress them, bubble therapy is a wonderful tool.
Bubbles are also mesmerizing to watch, which causes relaxing and therapeutic side effects.
Innobaby’s Sensory Bubble Play Skin Happy Botanical Bubbles & Blower Set can be used both indoors and outdoors to help cheer up your little one from the scary experience they just had.
Plus: Seeing them laugh and smile will bring a huge relief, too.
For more parenting tips and fun stuff your kids will love, head to Innobaby.com!