And for the final installment of easy-access info on febrile seizures ...

here's what they look like:

The child having a febrile seizure may:

Have a fever — usually higher than 102 F Lose consciousness Shake or jerk the arms and legs on both sides of the body Roll his or her eyes back in the head Have trouble breathing Lose urine Vomit Cry or moan

And here's what to do:

Place your child on his or her side, somewhere where he or she won't fall. Stay close to watch and comfort your child. Remove any hard or sharp objects near your child. Loosen any tight or... more

The vast majority of febrile seizures are harmless. There is no evidence that febrile seizures cause brain damage.

But ... A history of the cause of fever (eg, viral illnesses, gastroenteritis) should be established. Recent antibiotic use is particularly important because partially treated meningitis must be considered. A history of seizures, neurologic problems, developmental delay, or other potential causes of seizure (eg, trauma, ingestion) should be taken.

In the US between 2% and 5% of kids will have febrile seizures before their fifth birthday. The numbers are about the same for Western Europe. As many of us have kids from other places, it's important... more

I've been writing about febrile seizures ... in general, Sam's and the chances of other parents having kids that have this frightening reaction to fever.

The next three posts consist of the basics. My sources are the NIH, and the Mayo Clinic, although all other information I can find agrees with both of these organizations. I'm publishing this information in back-to-back posts to make it easy to... more

I was writing yesterday about Sam's second febrile seizure and posted info on them from the NIH and the Mayo Clinic.

It was armed with a stack of printouts of such information that I addressed the issues of these seizures and how they are treated here.

Sam... more

As I was saying...

Sam had his first febrile seizure at eighteen months of age, scared the beegeezus out of his father and me, then recovered. The tonsillitis that brought it on was treated with antibiotics and he responded well and quickly.

Mark and I took longer. When I started researching the condition, that set me back even more:

About a third of children who have a febrile seizure will have another one with... more

Continuing on about febrile seizures ...

There's a genetic component to convulsions that come with fever, so someone in Sam's bio background must have been familiar with them. Mark and I were not, so were completely unprepared for what was the most frightening moment of our lives.

Somewhere in the back of my mind there was a flicker of awareness, but the sight of our then 18-month old son going rigid, then twitching spasmodically, then turning blue as his breathing stopped completely... more

What a weekend! And I don't mean that in any gee-whiz-we-sure-had-a-blast kind of way. It was awful. And what can shoot a perfectly good couple of days all to pieces faster than anything? Having a sick kid.

Now, I'm well aware that the usual healthy state of my children is a blessing I can never repay and that other families deal with some truly devastating circumstances I don't even want to begin to contemplate. Even more reason, I suppose, that illness makes us a little crazy around here ... we're just not in shape for it.

Saturday was rolling along pretty well, with Dad and his... more

I'm still on my sibling soliloquy ...

Not only have my brothers not met some of my children, some of my children have not met my children.

With such a huge gap between my first set of kids and my second ... a chronological space of thirty-two years and a physical distance of more than 10,000 miles ... I've never imagined the four of them growing close.

My oldest daughter's daughter is a year older than Sam, so it's not likely... more

Still on topic of siblings ...

From the article in Time ...

One of the greatest gifts of the sibling tie is that while warmth grows over time, the conflicts often fade. After the shooting stops, even the fiercest sibling wars leave little lasting damage. Indeed, siblings who battled a lot as kids may become closer as adults--and more emotionally skilled... more

Following up on the sibling article I posted about yesterday ... I've always been happy about being the oldest child, although not always so pleased with having nothing but brothers. Turns out, however, that the fact that my brothers had an older sister could have given them a real advantage:

Last year William Ickes, a psychologist... more