Valentine’s Day: Not Just For Lovers!
As Valentine’s Day approaches, remember that this special day
is not just for lovers, it’s for people with epilepsy too. While most people associate St. Valentine with
being the saint of lovers, he actually was also the patron saint of people with
epilepsy.
How St. Valentine became the patron saint of choice is
uncertain. Epilepsy was once known as
the “falling sickness” because some seizures cause a person to lose
consciousness and fall down. One
theorist points out that Valentine sounds much like the German word for
“fallen”. Still other legends propose
that a 3rd century bishop named Valentine von Terni freed the son of
a Roman orator from an epileptic seizure.
Because many people in ancient times believed their medical symptoms
were due to spiritual forces, it made sense for them to combat these perceived
forces with saints. Patron saints in
particular were believed to have restorative abilities for specific conditions.
Today, medical research and an increasing variety of
scientifically proven therapies have helped bring relief to the lives of over
30,000 people living with epilepsy in British Columbia. Valentine’s Day can be looked as a reminder
of this progress, and also highlight the critical need for more awareness,
support, and understanding to improve the day to day lives of individuals and
families affected by seizures.
Posted by Elvira Balakshin at February 1, 2008 2:00 PM
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