Entitled to Respect

What is Entitled to Respect?

Entitled to Respect (E2R) is a national campaign to educate teens about the realities of epilepsy. The program was originally launched in 2001 when a survey of nearly 20,000 teens across the nation revealed that social stigma and unawareness are problems for teens with epilepsy. In Kentuckiana, special classes called "Take Charge of the Facts" is educating junior and high school age students.

Why Entitled to Respect?

Everyone is entitled to respect. Respecting each other's talents and differences makes a school a good place to be. Teens with epilepsy are also entitled to respect-just like everyone else. Name-calling and making fun of a health condition is unfair and unacceptable. Teens with seizures need their friends and peers to understand what they go through. And they deserve respect for the courage and spirit they show every day.

E2R On the Web

The Epilepsy Foundation has a page for teens with epilepsy, teens with friends and family who have epilepsy, or for teens who just want to learn more about epilepsy. The page features a message board where teens can "shout out," answers to common teen questions about epilepsy, and a place to submit personal stories. Link the teen in your life with the website designed especially for them.

Survey Results

Lack of Knowledge

• 93% don't know the cause of epilepsy.
• 51% do not know that epilepsy is not contagious.
• 73% do not know that epilepsy is not a form of mental illness.
• 45% are not sure if people with epilepsy are dangerous.
• 51% are not sure if people with epilepsy should have children.
• 53% think it might be possible to tell if a person has epilepsy just by looking at them.
• 44% are not sure if epilepsy can affect anyone at any age.

Social Stigmas and Lifestyle Impact

• 47% would tell a friend if they had epilepsy, but 53% either aren't sure or would not tell.
• 44% think having epilepsy would not make them unpopular, but 56% either think it would or don't know enough to say.
• 36% say kids with epilepsy would be bullied more than others and another 64% are not sure if that would be the case.
• 30% would date a person with epilepsy, but 70% either aren't sure or would not.
• 45% think kids with epilepsy attend regular schools, yet 55% either don't know or think they should go to special schools.
• 38% believe people with epilepsy are able to work, but 62% either are not sure or say they can't usually work.
• 31% say people with epilepsy can drive a car, but 69% either do not know or believe they can not drive.
• 34% believe they know what to do when someone has a seizure, but 66% do not know or are not sure they know what to do in that event. Some of those who say they do not know what to do when someone has a seizure may hold misconceptions about appropriate actions.

The majority of teens do not know about the specific nature of epilepsy. For example, they do not know if it is contagious, if it is a mental illness, whether doctors know its cause, or if people die from seizures.

Teens with epilepsy are afraid to tell friends because they are afraid they will be picked on, made fun of, or bullied. Because of fear of communication, friends may not know what to do if a seizure occurs or that their false ideas about epilepsy are not true.