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Vicki Kopplin and Tess Sierzant

60,000 Minnesotans have seizures; coach just happened to have one on TV

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Vicki Kopplin
Vicki Kopplin is executive director of the Epilepsy Foundation of Minnesota.
Courtesy of Vicki Kopplin

Coach Jerry Kill had a seizure at TCF Bank Stadium on Saturday. The footage of his collapse is alarming and unsettling for the coach, his team and spectators. But the fact is, epilepsy is more common than you think.

Three million Americans and 60,000 Minnesotans live with a seizure disorder, also known as epilepsy. When a person has two or more unprovoked seizures, he has epilepsy. Seizures can happen to anyone at any time.

As evidenced at the Gopher game, seizures can be disruptive in a person's life. Having epilepsy affects a person's ability to drive. It can lead to discrimination in the workplace. Not knowing when a seizure will occur can leave people fearful to travel or take part in everyday activities.

Coach Kill was fortunate to be surrounded by people who knew how to respond to his seizure. There are over 20 different types of seizures, ranging from something as minor-looking as an eye twitch to the full collapse we saw on Saturday. Most seizures last between one and two minutes.

Many people still think holding someone down or putting something in his mouth is an appropriate response to a seizure. It isn't. When a seizure happens, others should stay calm, clear the area of any dangerous objects, reassure the person and call 911 if the seizure lasts more than five minutes (or is known to be a first seizure).

We wish Coach Kill the very best and believe that this event can help our community better support people with seizures and help erase the stigma associated with epilepsy.

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Vicki Kopplin is executive director of the Epilepsy Foundation of Minnesota. Tess Sierzant serves as chair of the foundation's professional advisory board. The Epilepsy Foundation offers free seizure response trainings and educational resources at www.efmn.org.

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Vicki Kopplin
Vicki Kopplin is executive director of the Epilepsy Foundation of Minnesota.
Courtesy of Vicki Kopplin
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Tess Sierzant
Tess Sierzant serves as chair of the professional advisory board for the Epilepsy Foundation of Minnesota.
Courtesy of Tess Sierzant