Epilepsy awareness: How religion affects the treatment of epilepsy

Africa is on the rise to driving the epilepsy awareness agenda beyond borders. This is evidenced by the consistency with which health professionals and stakeholders come together in Congresses to discuss issues regarding epilepsy in Africa. The most recent one was the 4th African Epilepsy Congress in Entebbe-Uganda. I was honoured to participate fully as one of the speakers presenting on the topic “Innovative Solutions for Epilepsy Awareness in Africa”.

As many issues of concern emerged during the congress, a couple of them, got me thinking. For instance, the relationship between epilepsy and religion.

Revered in some cultures but persecuted by most others, epilepsy patients have, throughout history, been linked with the divine, demonic and supernatural.

There is a wide variety of influences on people's beliefs about illness and treatments, including culture and religion. Religious beliefs can exert positive influences on health by acting as a source of inspiration. On the contrary, they can have negative influences when they are linked with guilt and punishment. Religious beliefs can also engender a sense of fatalism, a belief that someone or something is in control. This identification of an external locus of control can impact on health behaviour. Beliefs about health and illness affect people's decisions regarding their choice of treatments.  Religious and complementary therapies are commonly used among communities in Africa.

Religion plays an important role for many individuals from Africa’s majority ethnic groups in coping with, and understanding, their illness. Religious and traditional therapies are commonly used in African communities. Little is known about how these traditional and religious forms of therapy are used in relation to conventional medicine. Although many people of African origin attribute their illness to the will of God or see it as punishment for sins of a past life.  People often turn to spiritual and other traditional healing in desperation and as a result of family pressure, although some have doubts about its effectiveness. Religious and traditional therapies are used as an adjunct to, rather than a substitute for conventional medical therapy.

However, details about the type of therapies and how they are used in relation to conventional medicine are scarce; in particular, little is known about alternative treatments for epilepsy. It is important that health professionals are aware of their patients' lay beliefs about illness and the alternative treatments that they may choose.