THE Prepping thread - a new beginning :)

Elona wrote: »

I have just been listening to the weather guru Dave King who believes the snow could come back on the 17th of this month for about five days.

He has a good track record so thought I would share this.

Bingo!

Met Office now forecasting another Beast from the East to hit this weekend, though they can't say yet whether the snow will be heavy and settling anywhere

Intriguingly, 1% of the population has epilepsy.

Here's my tuppenceworth.
If you've never seen one before, it can look like demonic possession or whatever horror movies you've seen - or just someone hitting the floor, flailing, grunting, & generally not being their usual chipper self. (Unless theirs is the more subtle "absence" sort which is a sight trickier to identify from outside.) Me, I watch the body flail, knowing the soul will return, but that right now, it's my job to defend the body.

They aren't mad, they aren't witches etc, this is not demonic possession, and it isn't (usually) fatal - they just need someone to watch over them whist leaving them as much dignity as you can. If you've ever woken to find a stranger looming over you, you have a clue as to how the seizing stranger may respond. Your role as angel of mercy may not be obvious to them.

So.

First of all, make darn sure this is an epileptic fit & not an electrocution - do not go near them if you aren't reasonably sure the place is safe.

Second, if you can, remember what time you find them & what time they stop physically flailing. (They may just roll over & sleep. They may nap & then start flailing again - this *definitely* needs an ambulance as repeated seizures can kill people.) Of course get someone to call an ambulance, but also set someone timekeeping. If appropriate, get any glasses to a place of safety. I'm thinking optical, not beer etc.

All of that is second to the fact they may be in a dumb location & headbutting a stair, at which point, I do recommend stepping in & trying to lug a flailing person around. (One son had a fit face down beside an open fire - his brother hauled the flailing body away from the flames but didn't try to do a controlled lowering - just went to the head & cradled it so he couldn't clobber his head any worse). If they are in water, just hold the face out of the water. Safest to be up at the head end but you can be accidentally clobbered at almost every point on the compass. Game plan is to ensure they can breathe all the way through & try not to get clobbered.

So. If you can, "manage" an airway, keep an eye on the time, mind the glasses & get an ambulance. [Oh yes, and tell anyone with a phone "taping" to stop. It is a gross humiliation - being taped when you seriously cannot consent. It is not "just a prank" or joke or laugh or banter. It is bullying and you need to set every authority going onto the would-be perpetrator. Office, police, whomever.]

Do Not Put ANYTHING in the mouth. Not a hymnbook, not a wooden spoon - not Any Bit of you. Some sorts of seizure work out every single muscle group & you do not need to loose a thumb when the jaw muscle locks shut. Not least as the airway becomes compromised, and also you now have two casualties for the price of one.

If you can get a blanket sorted (keeps would-be gawkers busy) splendid - it screens the individual, it can keep the recovering casualty warm as they rest after & it provides a decency covering later if needed.

If they are coherent enough once the flailing has eased off to know what has happened, they may be coherent enough to guide you helping them.

Not every seizure includes pee & poo but some can. Most folk recovering will want to sort that with all the decency you can supply. Some will have twisted their insides & need to throw up. Again, all the decency you can supply.

I've never met an ambulance crew rock up & grouse. Epileptics, plenty, but unconsciousness is not something to shrug off unless you know *exactly* what happened & the observers simply haven't that information. Get the professional help - you can always let the patient tell them to go away, but you may want reassurance they're OK that a uniformed professional can provide.

Hand the individual off to someone else, a medic or someone the patient recognises. Family, spouse, that grade of accepting backup with the capability to boss the casualty. They may be adamant they can go back to controlling power tools. In a few cases they might be right. Most are better taking the rest of the day off. Hopefully, they will not be allowed to drive home.

Beside which, who is going to complete the accident book? Not an accident? Nope, act of mischievous deity, but better logged than not. Cleanup - head injuries bleed grotesquely, and a bitten tongue can mean just dribble is bloodstained. In my office, the first aiders can call in cleaners within 60 minutes (as bodily fluid spills rate faster cleanup than a dropped coffee). It also soothes the rest of the office staff.

Finally, self care. If anyone offered to make a cup of tea, now is the time to accept gratefully!