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According to a recent study that was written up in the medical journal Neurology, yoga may help epileptics experience fewer seizures per seizure and feel less anxious.
In addition, by lessening the stigma associated with the illness, the practise may enhance the general quality of life for patients. The study evaluated Indian individuals with epilepsy who were 30 years old on average. It measured participant stigma by asking them a series of questions, including “Do you feel other people discriminate against you?” “Do you feel that you have nothing to offer society?” and “Do you feel that you are unique from other people?” The investigators determined that 160 individuals matched the description of stigmatised individuals.
A group of patients was randomised at random to undergo yoga therapy, which comprised breathing exercises, affirmations, meditation, and muscle-loosening exercises. An identical set of exercises were given to a different group of patients as part of a sham therapy, but this time there were no instructions on slow, synchronised breathing or paying attention to body sensations and movements. Over the course of three months, each group attended seven 45–60 minute supervised group sessions.
Following their initial three months of therapy, participants were followed for a further three months. After six months, the frequency of seizures was more than halved in more than four times as many people who practised yoga as in people who practised sham yoga. Participants who practised yoga were more likely to feel less stigmatised by the illness than those who performed the sham exercise.
Researchers also found that yoga practitioners had significantly fewer symptoms of anxiety than non-practitioners. By the end of the follow-up period, the intervention group had significantly improved over the control group in terms of quality of life, mindfulness, cognitive impairment, and anxiety symptoms.
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