staring spell
Brief conscious lapse
A staring spell is a brief episode where someone becomes unresponsive and gazes blankly into space, typically lasting a few seconds.
The term appears most often in medical contexts describing absence seizures, a form of epilepsy common in children: The teacher noticed the student having staring spells during class.
Parents and doctors distinguish these from ordinary daydreaming by their abrupt onset and the person's inability to respond when addressed.
- lookDirect one's gaze
- glaze overBecome blank, inattentive
- zoned outMentally checked out
- gazeFixed, intent look
- petit malBrief epileptic consciousness lapse
automatism · watch · trance · checking out · derealization · reverie · zoning out · gawking · epilepsy · immobility · unresponsiveness · postictal · vacancy · gazing · dissociation · eye lock · aura · fugue state
staring spellrapt attention
active listening · full attention · focused attention · alertness · attentiveness
staring, spell, stare, stares, stared, starer, starers, spells, spelled