Spells that mimic focal seizures but not

Well that must be frightening. Is there any alteration in his state of consciousness in that 10 second event?

If you can video record a spell, it might be beneficial to show the doctors. My dad has episodes or spells as you call them. His symptoms are different from what you describe, but in some ways similar. With his episodes, we ruled out heart and epilepsy. Ended up with psychiatrist who diagnosed Conversion Disorder, now called Functional Neurological System Disorder. It’s treated with meds and has improved over the years.

I hope they can figure out what’s going on with your husband’s situation. Those type of things can be quite scary.

When your doctors say these "spells" are not seizures it can be that they have not captured them on an EEG. Last year after nearly 30 years of having seizures and having gone before to ERs because my daughter saw me staring out the window, yet when I got there they could not find anything; I was in the ER after a staring spell & they did an EEG and they recorded a nearly 2-hour long seizure. At many times I was conversant, others not, I did not have a grand mal but I was shaking, not becoming rigid I could almost tell them well this is about to happen but not quit. My neurologist ( a professor at a major medical school where this hospital was located) who has known me for 15 years said I was a puzzle he sees me every 6 mos before 9 mos to a year. Nothing with me falls exactly as you would think it should and they had done everything right - the 24-hour 5-day testing and it never showed up anything of great concern. My purpose in saying this? Well, while looking into other things still do not count out seizures. Keep on looking for answers and it's not that what the doctors have said should be discounted they are the trained ones, but when you are not comfortable with something it is still OK to wonder. Well, I hope someone else has something perhaps more definitive.