Welcome to my website for ANP 204!
Here I will be looking at Epilepsy through the different approaches in Medical Anthropology !
A Short Introduction:
I chose epilepsy because a close family member of mine has had a seizure disorder since she has been very young. The WHO describes Epilepsy as "a chronic disorder characterized by recurrent seizures, which may vary from a brief lapse of attention or muscle jerks, to severe and prolonged convulsions." The reoccurrence of seizures can vary from multiple episodes in a day to as little as one per year. The severity of the seizure can vary as well. Some can involve involuntary shaking of one part of the body while others could include involuntary shaking of the whole body as well as loss of consciousness. With epilepsy affecting approximately 50 million people worldwide (“Epilepsy”, WHO) it is very important to consider non-medical factors while studying an illness such as epilepsy.
Over the course of history the way we view different illnesses has changed. “Epilepsy is one of the world’s oldest recognized conditions” and still holds a stigma in some cultures and societies (“Epilepsy”, WHO). Social stigmas can have a broad range of effects on not only the person who has epilepsy, but their family as well. In some cultures people with epilepsy are revered and considered to be shamans or hold the possibility of becoming a shaman. In cultures that practice shamanism, the shaman is a highly respected member of society. Treatment is not always available in cultures that practice shamanism, and sometimes treatment is not well received as it would hinder a shaman’s ability to have visions or seek communication with spirits (note: not all cultures that practice shamanism see epilepsy as meaning a person could become a shaman, in some cultures that practice shamanism witchcraft is thought to be the cause of epilepsy and is an illness treated by shamans). In many western societies though epilepsy is a treatable illness, but this does not mean it is still not stigmatized. Restrictions can be placed on what people with epilepsy can do. An example of this would be driving. Depending on where they live, local laws can prohibit or restrict the operation of vehicles by people who have epilepsy.
By briefly looking at some of these non-medical factors (such as culture and social stigmas) I am already divulging into a part of this illness that an anthropologist might be interested in. The way an anthropologist might study epilepsy differently from a medical doctor would be by using anthropological methods to try and answer cultural questions of health, healing, illness, and disease. For example, an anthropologist might study and research the role the environment plays in epilepsy or the historical context of the illness and how it affects the way we view it today. This website will provide a look into how an anthropologist could use some of the conceptual approaches to medical anthropology (bio/ecological, ethnomedical, experimental, critical, applied) to understand and study epilepsy.
Citations:
“Epilepsy,” WHO, last modified October 2012, accessed August 5, 2014. http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs999/en/
“Health topics: Epilepsy,” WHO, accessed August 5, 2014. http://www.who.int/topics/epilepsy/en/
Karim, Taz, “Week 1: Lecture 1,” ANP 204: Introduction to Medical Anthropology. http://anthropology.msu.edu/anp204-us14/schedule/week-1-lecture-1/
Banner Citation:
“Health topics: Epilepsy,” WHO, accessed August 5, 2014. http://www.who.int/topics/epilepsy/en/
Over the course of history the way we view different illnesses has changed. “Epilepsy is one of the world’s oldest recognized conditions” and still holds a stigma in some cultures and societies (“Epilepsy”, WHO). Social stigmas can have a broad range of effects on not only the person who has epilepsy, but their family as well. In some cultures people with epilepsy are revered and considered to be shamans or hold the possibility of becoming a shaman. In cultures that practice shamanism, the shaman is a highly respected member of society. Treatment is not always available in cultures that practice shamanism, and sometimes treatment is not well received as it would hinder a shaman’s ability to have visions or seek communication with spirits (note: not all cultures that practice shamanism see epilepsy as meaning a person could become a shaman, in some cultures that practice shamanism witchcraft is thought to be the cause of epilepsy and is an illness treated by shamans). In many western societies though epilepsy is a treatable illness, but this does not mean it is still not stigmatized. Restrictions can be placed on what people with epilepsy can do. An example of this would be driving. Depending on where they live, local laws can prohibit or restrict the operation of vehicles by people who have epilepsy.
By briefly looking at some of these non-medical factors (such as culture and social stigmas) I am already divulging into a part of this illness that an anthropologist might be interested in. The way an anthropologist might study epilepsy differently from a medical doctor would be by using anthropological methods to try and answer cultural questions of health, healing, illness, and disease. For example, an anthropologist might study and research the role the environment plays in epilepsy or the historical context of the illness and how it affects the way we view it today. This website will provide a look into how an anthropologist could use some of the conceptual approaches to medical anthropology (bio/ecological, ethnomedical, experimental, critical, applied) to understand and study epilepsy.
Citations:
“Epilepsy,” WHO, last modified October 2012, accessed August 5, 2014. http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs999/en/
“Health topics: Epilepsy,” WHO, accessed August 5, 2014. http://www.who.int/topics/epilepsy/en/
Karim, Taz, “Week 1: Lecture 1,” ANP 204: Introduction to Medical Anthropology. http://anthropology.msu.edu/anp204-us14/schedule/week-1-lecture-1/
Banner Citation:
“Health topics: Epilepsy,” WHO, accessed August 5, 2014. http://www.who.int/topics/epilepsy/en/