Nurse practitioner Jody Anderson at Intermountain Medical Center's Epilepsy Clinic in Murray on Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2012.
Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News
SALT LAKE CITY It can come without warning, beginning with a feeling of dj vu or even dizziness. It usually ends after 30 to 90 seconds of mind-numbing and sometimes exhausting convulsions, and the victim rarely remembers a thing.
A seizure can be a frightening experience for the person having it or for onlookers. There are even statewide laws prohibiting anyone who has seizures within a three-month period from driving or operating heavy machinery.
But knowing what to do and learning to manage recurring convulsions can help make life easier and more fulfilling for everyone.
"A lot of people are scared," said Dr. Jeffrey Bigelow, a neurologist at Intermountain Medical Center's Epilepsy Clinic. "It's a period of time where they can lose control. They become anxious and nervous to have another one, and they live in the fear of it.
"Treating it and not having to deal with the fear can bring back someone's confidence," he said.
Bigelow is a trained epileptologist and often visits Haiti and various countries in Africa to offer epilepsy patients there a low-cost treatment for their recurring seizures and a better quality of life.
"Epilepsy is more common than people think, and it is treatable," he said.
Bigelow estimates that up to 50,000 Utahns, 1 percent to 2 percent of the population, have epilepsy. And up to 10 percent of all Americans will suffer at least one seizure during their lives.
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Doctors to answer questions on epilepsy, seizures