Epilepsy stigma: Moving from a global problem to a global solution

After thinking long and hard aboutwhat to include in this piece, I felt it was important to start with some examples of the negative attitudes and sometimes unbelievable ignorance that has and still does exist towards epilepsy. People are often unwilling to acknowledge the stigma that still exists towards one of the world’s most commonneurological conditions, one that can affect anyone of anyage, shapeor size. Epilepsy isnota single condition, nor ishaving epilepsy the same experience for all, but sadly, throughout the ages, it has caused much heartache for many of those affected by it. Fortunately, things are now a lot better, but if we look at epilepsy across the ages and throughout the world, we can appreciate both the progress that has been made and what still needs to change. First, then, some anecdotes from history. In ancient Rome, if a person with epilepsy touched you, you were considered unclean, and had to spit to cleanse yourself of the demons that were transferred to you. In Babylon, according to their ancient text book, Sakkiku, written around 500BC, epilepsy was thought to be caused by ghosts and demons, and the Babylonians used exorcism, enemas, and amulets to cleanse the body. Likewise, in India in 1500–800BC, treatment was directed at cleansing the body, using enemas, purges, and vomitations. In 1770, a group of Chinese physicians composed a book ‘‘Huang De Nei Ching’’ which first documented information on epilepsy referring to it as a psychosis and a form of mania. They classified the severity of the seizure according to whichever animal sound they thought emitted by the person having it, i.e. horse, chicken, pig and so on. It was, however, Hippocrates the Greek physician, who wrote the first book on epilepsy, entitled ‘‘The Sacred Disease’’ in around 400BC. Hippocrates recognised that epilepsy was a brain disorder and was one of the first to speak out against beliefs that seizures were a curse from the gods and that PWE held the power of prophecy. Sadly, many people and cultures held onto very negative beliefs about epilepsy, so that in 1494 two Dominican friars wrote ‘‘Malleus Maleficarum’’ a hand book on witch-hunting, in which they claimed that one way to identify a witch was by the presence of seizures. With regard to treatments for epilepsy, coal was long thought to have healing properties, as was coral, rubbed onto the gums, and hung around children’s necks. Elder and mistletoe were also thought to have healing properties. My favourite old fashioned remedy goes back to the 17th century, when you were counselled to take a livemole, prick itwith a pin, and sprinkle a fewdrops of its blood into a wineglass full of water. The Navajo Indians in the US