Epilepsy still carries a stigma, and the public needs to know more about the condition. Doctors and patients agreed on that at a seminar for journalists on how the media cover the disease.

Around 50 million people worldwide had epilepsy in 2024, and the lifetime risk of developing it is about 1 in 26. Nearly 25-30% of cases don't respond to treatment. The disease strikes most often in young children and in people over 65.

Dr Petya Dimova, a neurologist at St Ivan Rilski Hospital in Sofia, said the stigma goes back to ancient times, when people knew little about the disease. Even then they called it hereditary, spotted it in animals too, and linked it to mental and physical disabilities.

Epilepsy is not contagious, and how severe it gets varies widely, Dimova said. The type of epilepsy, the patient and the symptoms all differ from case to case. Poorly treated epilepsy takes a heavy toll on both the patient and their family, she said.

Bulgarian pharmacies don't stock drugs that are both cheap and effective, she added, so patients' families often buy medicine from abroad.

During a seizure, don't hold the person down or put a spoon or anything else in their mouth, Dimova said, explaining basic first aid.

Veska Sabeva, head of the Association of Parents of Children with Epilepsy, said international forums are also debating the language used to talk and write about the disease.

The association is continuing a project, funded by the Agency for People with Disabilities, on how the media portray epilepsy.