Yoga for Patients With Epilepsy

Is Yoga Safe for Patients With Epilepsy?

To establish the safety and feasibility of having patients with epilepsy perform yoga.

Subjects will keep logs of seizure frequency prior to, during, and following training in a yoga regimen. Instruction in the yoga regimen will occur at BIDMC, and home practice following classroom instruction will occur as part of the study. Side effects, changes in seizure frequency, and quality of life assessments will be performed.

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Must be able to give full informed consent.
2. Must have one or more of the following seizure types: simple partial, complex partial, or secondarily generalized.
3. Age 18-64.
4. Must have 4-20 during the baseline phase.
5. Must have medical clearance from their primary care giver sufficient to allow for participation in yoga exercises.
6. Must be stable enough to allow for all anticonvulsant levels to remain constant for the duration of the study.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Having primary generalized epilepsy or atonic seizures.
2. Having a history of status epilepticus in the past two years.
3. Any medical problem that would preclude participation in a yoga class.
4. Nonepileptic or psychogenic seizures.
5. Pregnancy.