Josie had seizure for 15 mins before EMT arrive- People Mag

[LennyLou]

Jana, and whoever else was involved, acted appropriately. First responder =/= doctor. As many of you have already stated, there is nothing to do for a seizure except make sure the person can not hurt themselves on anything around them and call 911.

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

Umm... maybe because they didn't have oxygen or other medical equipment on-hand?

And because being a first responder doesn't make you the same as an EMT. A first responder is someone with advanced first aid training who stays until a professional (like an EMT) gets to the scene.

[imsayin]

I wonder if Jana has medical power of attorney for Josie and the other minors.

[Jana814]

Did it say if Michelle & Jim-bob were at home when this happened.

[YourGodIsNotMine]

I work with children who have seizures. We typically wait for a seizure to go for 5 minutes before we call 9-1-1. Not all seizures are dangerous. There's no need for an ambulance for every one.

[YourGodIsNotMine]

I will add, that the seizure is also not a good sign for her developmental prognosis, unless she has epilepsy. Seizing can be a symptom or side effect of mental retardation and other neurological problems. She looks and acts delayed already. The seizure will not necessarily worsen that, but every mentally retarded (intellectually disabled) child I work with has some form of seizures.

[YourGodIsNotMine]

Wait!!! Aren't Jana AND JD first responders (maybe Jinger, too)???? So, why were they waiting for responders when they have a few family members who are "supposedly" trained to perform emergency medical assistance????

There was nothing for them to do but keep her from hitting her head and monitor her for breathing problems (which rarely happen.)

[SportsgalAnnie]

I will add, that the seizure is also not a good sign for her developmental prognosis, unless she has epilepsy. Seizing can be a symptom or side effect of mental retardation and other neurological problems. She looks and acts delayed already. The seizure will not necessarily worsen that, but every mentally retarded (intellectually disabled) child I work with has some form of seizures.

This is what worries me about it, bless you for doing that.

There is a day I remember clear as a bell from 4th grade, we had reading buddies in kindergarten. One day the boy I was reading to had a seizure, he has autism . I remember having the girl I was reading to him with run to get the teacher while I had to talk to him and try and keep him from hitting himself in the head. I really hope if this is recurring thing for Josie that Jim bob and Michelle get her tested to make sure nothing like that is wrong and if it is, she can receive the correct treatments.

[DaffyDill]

Just as an FYI...

I'm an epileptic who has Tonic Clonic (formerly known as Grand Mal) seizures, and have since I was 14, and have been on medication since then.

Epilepsy itself is not one single condition that manifests itself in different ways, it's actually a family of disorders and there are many different types.

Depending upon the circumstances, an ambulance does not necessarily need to be called for a seizure. An ambulance should be called in the following cases:

• the seizure activity lasts 5 or more minutes or a second seizure quickly follows.
  
  the person remains non-responsive for more than 5 minutes after the seizure stops.
  
  the person is having a greater number of seizures than is usual for them.
  
  the person is injured, goes blue in the face or has swallowed water.
  
  the person is pregnant.
  
  you know, or believe it to be, the person's first seizure.
  
  you feel uncomfortable dealing with the seizure at the time.

Medical treatment can be sought from a family doctor, who then, if the person is not a diagnosed epileptic, will refer them to a neurologist.

This may well have been Josie's first seizure, or it may have been a febrile convulsion as people have suggested. Most kids grow out of febrile convulsions, and rarely have more than one or two, and generally, these do no harm. Again, an ambulance only needs to be called in particular circumstances, and it appears that if Josie had a febrile convulsion, that the Duggars did do the right thing as I read Jana's comment as meaning Josie had a seizure, then when the paramedics arrived, she had another which lasted the duration of the ambulance ride.

Seizures of any kind are not to be taken lightly though. There is a condition called Status Epilepticus which refers to prolonged seizures which occur one after the other - this condition is serious and can cause brain damage. Additionally, there is also SUDEP - Sudden Unexplained Death in Epilepsy which is rare - but happened to the 19 year old niece of my husband.

The seizures I have are far worse for those watching I think, which is why most people tend to call an ambulance. I wake up groggy, realise what's happened, go back to sleep, wake up groggy, go back to sleep etc until I finally stay awake long enough to realise fully what has happened - usually the bitten tongue is what I notice first - the tongue thing is a bitch.

It's impossible to say what would cause Josie's seizures, although a lack of oxygen at birth can be one thing that leads to epilepsy, as can head traumas, but many cases of epilepsy are unexplained, as is mine. No one has been able to tell me why I have it, but I do, so I just down the meds and move along.

[HarleyQuinn]

I'm going to assume J'chelle isn't there because if she was she'd probably be trying to cover Josie up in that camera shot at the hospital. This is the same woman who practically wrestled a jacket back on her because her shoulders were showing.

Josie is lucky Jana was there. She's the most capable parent they have.

[silverspoons]

Sounds like she is really desperate. Also I thought those kits expired.

I was surprised to learn that sometimes menopause can cause false positives on pregnancy tests. While not often it can happen and I would suppose with Michelle's 1000 pack of amazon test strips, she tests often. I wonder if she has ever gotten a false positive?

As for Josie you would think with all the alert/first responder/midwife training in the house the buddies should know what to do in the event of a high fever and seizures. I wonder if Josie still gets them often and that is why Jana waited a few minutes thinking it was going to stop soon? Both my children were born early, not Josie early but before 34 weeks. Luckily neither had a seizure but I was always so careful with high fevers. I went to the doctor more then most moms would for fevers but rather be safe then sorry and get the underlying cause of the fever fixed asap. I really hope Jana isn't staying in the home out of guilt or feeling like she is needed for Josie's care since her parents are out on the ministry tours.

[eh02]

I personally don't think Josie seems developmentally behind. She still kind of has that premie "look," but most kids start to grow out of it around her age, and I think she seems to generally have been catching up pretty well considering her rough start.

That said, obviously the seizures are still concerning, whether they signify anything more serious going on or not. I would assume it is NOT something the doctors think is especially serious, judging by the way the news was shared.

[Alye]

Not all seizures cause muscle jerking , a child can go limp so it's not always obvious right away unless you know what to look for.

My sister has these types of seizures (called atonic seizures). She had them often when she was young. She was preemie but not micro preemie. It was thought she grew out of them as she entered puberty until she was very sick with Glandular Fever at 16 and she started having them again. We found out that she has slightly weird EEG readings. It wasn't bad enough that the doctor diagnosed her with epilepsy but she also has low blood pressure and these two conditions mixed with being underweight caused her seizures. A couple of times over the years she's had more when she loses weight for various reasons. She always knows when it's going to happen and can warn you a few seconds before to give someone close time to catch her. It's quite frightening.

[DaffyDill]

My sister has these types of seizures (called atonic seizures). She had them often when she was young. She was preemie but not micro preemie. It was thought she grew out of them as she entered puberty until she was very sick with Glandular Fever at 16 and she started having them again. We found out that she has slightly weird EEG readings. It wasn't bad enough that the doctor diagnosed her with epilepsy but she also has low blood pressure and these two conditions mixed with being underweight caused her seizures. A couple of times over the years she's had more when she loses weight for various reasons. She always knows when it's going to happen and can warn you a few seconds before to give someone close time to catch her. It's quite frightening.

Low blood sugar can trigger seizures in some people, as can caffeine.

If she has been ill with vomiting or diarrhoea, seizures can be triggered as the vomiting etc prevents her system from efficiently absorbing her medication.

[Toothfairy]

Again money is more important than their kids. Why film something like that

[DaffyDill]

Again money is more important than their kids. Why film something like that

Damn straight. I always feel kinda embarrassed after a seizure because it's really not the most dignified of things to have happen :? No one ever, ever, ever makes me feel that way, it's just not a good feeling knowing what a seizure is like.

If someone had filmed me? I don't think I could even watch it, and would be just mortified - let alone having it aired on television. That poor little girl, as much as it's frightening for those watching, she must be scared and confused too. She really doesn't need to have her seizure aired on TV - that is so cruel.

[Mitz_]

All we saw on the clip was 3 seconds of Josie being carried to the ambulance, she wasn't even facing the camera. Not the worst thing they have ever filmed.

Josie definitely had a seizure when she was a baby that came on when she had a high fever. Boob and jchelle were out of the country and the sister moms, or Jill at least, took care of her.

[fabkiwi06]

Poor little bean. I used to work in a preschool and we had a little girl who was prone to seizures, but didn't have an epileptic diagnosis. She just tended to have massive quick fever spikes when she was sick. Eventually out grew it.

Praise Jana for being a good sister (and Jinger/Joy/whomever for taking over the house while Jana dealt with this all). Out of all the adults in that house, she's the one I would want in charge if I was sick. Seems calm, collected, soothing, and actually helpful in those situations. Michelle would just talk about blessings.

Also... good thing they didn't bring Josie with them on that mission trip. Intentional or not.. probably would have been way worse to be in a different country dealing with this.

[sorchah]

Am I the only one who noticed the spooked horse right before they carried Josie away? I think she either fell off the horse or got kicked by it. It is quite common for kids to have seizures after a concussion or traumatic brain injury.

[Ofglen]

I will add, that the seizure is also not a good sign for her developmental prognosis, unless she has epilepsy. Seizing can be a symptom or side effect of mental retardation and other neurological problems. She looks and acts delayed already. The seizure will not necessarily worsen that, but every mentally retarded (intellectually disabled) child I work with has some form of seizures.

There is no need to say "mentally re*arded". We know what you mean. You can just say intellectually disabled.

[ADoyle90815]

My sister has these types of seizures (called atonic seizures). She had them often when she was young. She was preemie but not micro preemie. It was thought she grew out of them as she entered puberty until she was very sick with Glandular Fever at 16 and she started having them again. We found out that she has slightly weird EEG readings. It wasn't bad enough that the doctor diagnosed her with epilepsy but she also has low blood pressure and these two conditions mixed with being underweight caused her seizures. A couple of times over the years she's had more when she loses weight for various reasons. She always knows when it's going to happen and can warn you a few seconds before to give someone close time to catch her. It's quite frightening.

Those are the type of seizures my brother had after a bad car accident, as one of the effects was epilepsy. Fortunately for him, his medication controls his seizures to the point where he can legally drive, and in the past, his neurologist did notify the DMV that he couldn't drive until he was seizure free for 6 months.

I've also mentioned before that my youngest cousin was a micropreemie and as a result of that, he was developmentally delayed. The thing is that I don't remember if he had seizures other than febrile seizures that many non-disabled kids get after a high fever. He and his family lived in a neighboring state when we were growing up, so I didn't really see him on a regular basis other than twice a year at most, and at weddings and funerals. I was aware of his developmental issues and that he almost died after birth, but that's it since he never had a seizure when visiting the grandparents.

[Fluffypaws]

Sorry if someone already mentioned this on another page, but is it possible that is why Josie was in the stroller that day in that picture not long ago? Perhaps that picture was taken right around or after her seizure?

[Lillybee]

I do wonder if Josie has had other medical issues during the times that the family was not being filmed. If she did, I can believe that the Duggars would try to keep it top secret as not to spoil the "Miracle Baby" thing that they got going.

[RosyDaisy]

I have to wonder if the episodes where Michelle and Josie go to Children's Hospital is more than just publicity? Maybe she has medical issues. I hope she's ok.

[Fundie Bunny]

I was surprised to learn that sometimes menopause can cause false positives on pregnancy tests. While not often it can happen and I would suppose with Michelle's 1000 pack of amazon test strips, she tests often. I wonder if she has ever gotten a false positive?

As for Josie you would think with all the alert/first responder/midwife training in the house the buddies should know what to do in the event of a high fever and seizures. I wonder if Josie still gets them often and that is why Jana waited a few minutes thinking it was going to stop soon? Both my children were born early, not Josie early but before 34 weeks. Luckily neither had a seizure but I was always so careful with high fevers. I went to the doctor more then most moms would for fevers but rather be safe then sorry and get the underlying cause of the fever fixed asap. I really hope Jana isn't staying in the home out of guilt or feeling like she is needed for Josie's care since her parents are out on the ministry tours.

if that happened, she would claim it's a miscarriage.