Did you know that November is National Epilepsy Awareness Month? In 2003, Congress passed a formal resolution declaring the month of November as National Epilepsy Awareness Month.
Some facts about epilepsy:
- 3.5 million Americans, 470,000 of them children, have been diagnosed with epilepsy
- There is a wide spectrum of severity, ranging from a minimal impact on daily life to seizures that cannot be controlled with existing treatments
- Epilepsy impacts 43% more people than Parkinson’s, Multiple Sclerosis, Muscular Dystrophy, and Cerebral Palsy combined
- Despite this, National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding is 60% less than funding for these other neurological diseases*
This year, in recognition of National Epilepsy Awareness Month, there is a “My Shot at Epilepsy” Challenge, designed to raise awareness for epilepsy research. The inspiration for this challenge is a song from the hit musical Hamilton, and was created by a star of the Chicago production of Hamilton and his wife, Miguel and Kelly Cervantes.
For more information, check out the Epilepsy Foundation’s website: Epilepsy Foundation
*Data secured from the Epilepsy Foundation