First aid & safety
Seizure First Aid: What to Do and Free Printables
You can help someone through a seizure by staying with them, making the space safer, and keeping track of time. These steps are for adults and children. Save the one-page guide now, or use the instructions below.
Free guide · No signup required
Choose a useful starting point
Help during a seizure
Stay, time the seizure, and protect the person from injury.
Know when to call 911
Check emergency situations and the person’s written action plan.
Keep a guide nearby
Free color and black-and-white PDFs. No email address needed.
Download the free one-page guide
No signup is required. Both PDFs have the same instructions: version 2026.10, updated October 4, 2026. Keep a copy with the person’s seizure action plan, at home, school, or work.
What to do during a seizure
- Stay and time. Stay with the person, keep yourself and others calm, and start timing the seizure.
- Protect from injury. Clear nearby hazards. If they are falling, ease them to the ground if you can. Cushion the head with something soft and flat, remove glasses, and loosen tight neckwear.
- Turn gently onto the side. If the person is lying down, turn them onto one side, with the mouth pointing toward the ground, when it can be done safely. If vigorous movement makes turning unsafe, protect the area and turn them as movements ease.
- Keep watching. Check breathing and recovery, and look for medical identification or a written action plan.
Keep these precautions in mind
Do not restrain the person or put anything in their mouth. Do not offer food, water, or pills until they are fully awake and able to swallow. Do not give mouth-to-mouth breaths during an active seizure.
Some seizures involve staring, confusion, or wandering instead of shaking. Stay nearby, speak calmly, and guide the person away from hazards.
When to call 911
Call 911, or your local emergency number, if:
- The seizure reaches 5 minutes, or the person’s action plan gives an earlier emergency threshold.
- Another seizure starts soon after, especially without recovery.
- The person has trouble breathing or waking up, is injured, or has a seizure in water.
- It is a first known seizure, or you do not know their seizure history.
- The person is pregnant, or has diabetes and loses consciousness.
If movements have stopped and the person is unresponsive and not breathing normally, call emergency services, begin CPR according to your training or the dispatcher’s instructions, and use an AED if available.
After the seizure
Stay until the person is awake, alert, and safe. Keep checking breathing. Offer reassurance, explain what happened when they are ready, and ask what help they want. Note the seizure’s duration, recovery, injuries, and any rescue medicine given.
If rescue medicine is prescribed, a trained helper should follow the person’s written seizure action plan for the medicine, route, dose, timing, and emergency instructions. Do not guess when to give or repeat a dose. Rescue medicine does not replace emergency care.
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Sources and page information
Web guidance checked October 5, 2026. Both printable versions match version 2026.10, updated October 4, 2026.
- CDC seizure first aid
- Epilepsy Foundation first aid
- seizure emergencies
- rescue therapies
- American Red Cross seizure first aid
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