Yoga has been shown in a recent study by Delhi AIIMS to be beneficial in lowering anxiety, the frequency of seizures, and the stigma associated with having epilepsy. The journal of medical research, Neurology, has published it. According to Dr. Manjari Tripathy, Head of the Neurology Department at AIIMS, says the stigma surrounding epilepsy patients can make them feel different from others, which can negatively affect their quality of life.
She was quoted in a report as saying, “This stigma can affect a person’s life in many ways including treatment, emergency department visits, and poor mental health. Our study showed that doing yoga can alleviate the burden of epilepsy and improve the overall quality of life by reducing this perceived stigma.”
160 persons that fit the description of stigmatised individuals were found by the researchers. Individuals had one seizure on average every week and took at least two anti-seizure drugs on average. They were given the option of receiving sham yoga therapy or yoga instruction at random. It comprised breathing techniques, yoga poses, affirmations, and meditation.
Dr Tripathy said, “We also discovered that people who did yoga were more than four times as likely to have more than a 50 per cent reduction in their seizure frequency after six months than the people who did sham yoga. There was also a significant decrease in anxiety symptoms for those who did yoga compared to people who did not. We saw improvements in the quality of life measures and mindfulness.”
