The truth is people with epilepsy are just like everyone else. It is only in the brief moments when a seizure hits that the disorder is apparent. The negative attitude that many people still have towards the disorder causes many epileptics to have increased social or psychological problems. Millions of people have epilepsy and millions more know someone who does. The more people know about it, less scared they will be and the more likely people who suffer from it will be able to live more comfortably with who they are.  

Epilepsy is a brain disorder which causes a person to suffer from chronic seizures. A seizure is caused by an overload of neuron activity in the brain.  Normally, neurons- brain cells- communicate with other cells and the rest of the body through electrical impulses. It’s like a little current of energy sending a message across your brain. A seizure is caused when too many of these electrical impulses are sent out all at once- causing the “overload” of activity.

The physical result of a seizure may be convulsions, distorted sensory information, loss of control over movement, and periods of unconsciousness.  The type of seizure which a person is struck by will depend on the area of the brain that is having the overload. Seizures usually only last for a minute or less- at most they will continue for a couple minutes.