Partial seizures as the name implies start from a part of the brain, though they may also spread throughout the whole brain, becoming a secondary generalized seizure. Partial seizures may involve changes in awareness, movement or feeling, and, depending on whether awareness is affected, may be further subdivided into simple and complex.

Simple partial seizures affect a small area of the brain, starting from one of the four lobes in one hemisphere but do not affect a person’s consciousness or awareness. Although unable to control movements or to stop the seizure, the person remains conscious and may even be able to describe to someone else what is going on. Most simple partial seizures involve unusual sensations – the size or shape of things may look distorted, or the person may ’see’ people or things that are not there. He may hear strange sounds or have a feeling that what is happening around him has somehow happened before. On the other hand, familiar surroundings may suddenly seem unfamiliar. He or she may feel an odd sensation in the stomach or on the skin. A simple partial seizure can also affect feelings, for example causing fear, dread, a sense of impending doom, anger, or, on the other hand, joy or elation. These seizures are also sometimes called simple partial sensory seizures, and may also form the aura, or warning, of a further seizure, which happens if the seizure activity spreads over both halves of the brain (hemispheres) so that the person loses consciousness, when the seizure is known as a secondary generalized seizure. A simple partial seizure may also spread and become a complex partial seizure.

The reason for the sometimes frightening sensations involved in simple partial seizures (or auras) is that unusual electrical activity is taking place in parts of the brain that control seeing, hearing, memory or sensation. Seizures which start in the parietal lobe may produce brief tingling in the arms or legs, or pins and needles down one side of the body, while if the occipital lobe is involved, visual disturbances may result such as seeing flashing lights. Frontal lobe seizures may involve body movements such as sudden thrashing of the body, bicycling movements of the legs, sudden stiff extension of an arm, or even crying out and running.

Temporal lobe seizures are the most common kind and involve most of the intense and complex changes of consciousness, including fear, panic, hallucinations and intensification of everyday experiences. The often visionary nature of these experiences has led to some interest in the creative or spiritual side of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLB), and some of the literature looks at how these experiences have been expressed in poetry and painting by many people, some of them famous – Dostoevsky and Van Gogh are the classic examples.

Complex partial seizures do affect a person’s consciousness or awareness. Sometimes a simple partial seizure may spread quickly to the areas which affect consciousness and develop into a complex partial seizure; sometimes, complex partial seizures will happen without any warning or aura.

A complex partial seizure is one in which the electrical disturbance has spread far enough over the brain so that the person is unaware of events while the seizure is happening. They typically appear to be in a kind of trance or daze, or go through a series of movements over which they have no control, such as staring, chewing, pulling at clothing or walking around, looking confused or dazed; sometimes a person may mistakenly be thought drunk. Although the seizure lasts for only a minute or two, full awareness of the surroundings may not return for some time afterwards.

After a seizure ‘Automatisms’ (or ‘post-ictal automatisms’, meaning after a seizure) are sometimes used to describe behaviour after a seizure, such as taking a walk or going to bed – the person may look purposeful but has in fact no awareness of what they are doing, and will have no recollection of it afterwards.

Some people suffer confusion and irritability after seizures, together with memory loss not just for the seizure but sometimes for events just before. Headache and tiredness, sometimes extreme, are other common reactions. Some people may also experience weakness, especially down one side of the body.

Nocturnal seizures The brain is more susceptible to developing seizures during sleep, and some people only have seizures when asleep or dozing. Sometimes seizures in sleep may be reduced by increasing the evening dosage of anti-epileptic medication, though this should only be done under your doctor’s guidance.

Is online shopping too convenient for you to pass up? Does the idea of purchasing rare or designer jewelry online from all over the world make you dizzy with the possibilities? Today, thanks to the magic of the internet, you can buy rare, designer, or handmade jewelry from such far flung places as Pakistan, Ghana, Bali and France without to get a single stamp in your passport.

Before You Buy – Finding a Reputable Dealer

While there may be one of kind, unique jewelry on sale in your town in boutique style stores, to get truly special jewelry from all over the world, from the comfort of your couch, you need to turn to the internet. Of course, the internet brings with it the potential of being scammed, so it is important that you do a little research to make sure you are handing over your credit card number to a reputable dealer.

“Let the buyer beware” is a law that holds true on the internet, but it is possible to minimize your risk by doing business with a company that inspired trust. One of the best ways to shop for designer jewelry, be it a bracelet or that special engagement ring, online safely is to look for websites that are online store fronts for actual physical stores. One example is Mazel Tov! Jewelry Treasures, Massachusetts based company that has a booming online business. Another way to check up on internet companies before you do business with them is to check them out with the Better Business Bureau to see if they have a history of receiving customer complaints.

Sure, this may be quite a bit of legwork, but when you are spending a lot of money and giving your credit card account details, it pays to play it safe in this way, especially when you are doing business with a company in a foreign country where fraud protection laws may be not very stringent. You could have very little recourse if you end up having your credit card number stolen or if the product you end up with is a fake or of low quality, so protect yourself up front.

Ebay is another good choice for online jewelry shopping, because you can easily see what kind of record a seller has. If someone is on Ebay trying to sell fakes or poor quality jewelry, their feedback ratings will send up the red flags telling you to stay away.

The choices available online for jewelry are staggering and enough to make any jewelry buff happy. Just be sure you protect yourself so you don’t end up with a dud.