These seizures are caused by abnormal activity across your entire brain; they include:
Absence seizures
Formerly known as petit mal seizures, these seizures tend to affect children. They involve slipping into a trance-like state for up to 15 seconds with a loss of awareness and subtle repetitive body movements, such as eye blinking and lip-smacking. They can occur in clusters.
Atonic seizures
Atonic seizures cause all of your muscles to suddenly relax. You may therefore lose your balance and collapse but as these seizures are very brief, you will usually be able to get straight back up after falling.
Complex partial seizure
Complex partial seizures cause you to lose awareness and have random, erratic body movements.
Clonic seizures
Clonic seizures cause repetitive or rhythmic jerking of your body parts, usually affecting your arms, face and neck.
Myoclonic seizures
Myoclonic seizures cause the sudden and brief jerking or twitching of your arms and legs.
Simple partial seizure (aura)
You remain conscious but with a strange out-of-body experience which may include feelings of déjà vu.
Tonic seizures
Tonic seizures cause all of your muscles to suddenly stiffen. You may therefore lose your balance and collapse.
Tonic-clonic seizures
Formerly known as grand mal seizures and often referred to as an epileptic fit, these seizures cause you to lose consciousness and collapse, with your body stiffening and legs and arms jerking. You may also bite your tongue and urinate.