What is the purpose of this conference?
 
  What exactly is the Andrews-Reiter approach to epilepsy?
 
  Is the Andrews-Reiter approach some kind of spiritual, alternative treatment to epilepsy?
 
  Who will be speaking at this conference?
 
Who is this conference for?
 
  Is the Andrews-Reiter Epilepsy Research Center sponsoring this conference?
 
  If the A-R approach is so successful at treating epilepsy, why haven't I heard about it?
 
Is the A-R approach some kind of cure for epilepsy?
 
  Can anyone with seizures learn to stop their seizures through the A-R approach?
 
  I'm interested in attending the conference. Where is it and what time?
 
  Do I have to register for the conference?
 
  How much does the conference cost?
 
  Who is organizing this conference?
 
  I'm a member of the media interested in attending the conference, interviewing the conference organizers and speakers, and would like to learn more about the A-R approach. Whom should I contact?
 
  I'm very interested in this conference but will not be able to attend. Will the conference be recorded for me to watch?
 
  How can I stay up-to-date with developments in the conference and new information about the Andrews-Reiter approach?
 
  My question wasn't answered here.



Q:        
What is the purpose of this conference?
A:        
This conference is designed to bring together families, patients, neurologists and medical professionals concerned about epilepsy and interested in the Andrews-Reiter behavioral approach to treating the condition.


Q:        
What exactly is the Andrews-Reiter approach to epilepsy?
A:        
The A-R approach is a clinically tested medical treatment for epilepsy that has proved remarkably successful at stopping patients' seizures. The approach is part neurology, part psychology and part commonsense. It is the life's work of neuropsychologist Donna Andrews and Harvard-trained neurologist Joel Reiter.

The Andrews-Reiter methods help patients become aware of their auras (the early signs of an oncoming seizure) and figure out their triggers (the physical and psychological pressures that trigger seizures in epileptics). A-R patients learn how to use focused relaxation to shut down their brains' electrical misfirings before those misfirings become seizures.

You can get detailed information about the A-R approach on this website, in the About A-R section. There you can read a first-person piece by investigative reporter Joshua Kors, laying out his experience with the Andrews-Reiter approach. The section also contains a step-by-step description of how the A-R program operates from author and former A-R patient Megan Kennedy.

Of course, additional information will be available at the conference.


Q:        
Is the Andrews-Reiter approach some kind of spiritual, alternative treatment to epilepsy?
A:        
Absolutely not. The A-R approach was designed by two internationally distinguished doctors, neuropsychologist Donna Andrews and neurologist Joel Reiter. Their methods have been analyzed in peer-reviewed medical studies, and their techniques have no spiritual component.


Q:        
Who will be speaking at this conference?
A:        
We have six excellent speakers lined up:

Donna Andrews, Ph.D., the neuropsychologist who pioneered the Andrews-Reiter approach to epilepsy

Joel Reiter, M.D., neurologist and co-founder of the Andrews-Reiter Epilepsy Research Center

Siegward Elsas, M.D., neurologist and internationally recognized expert in the treatment of epilepsy. Dr. Elsas has had remarkable success treating patients with the A-R approach.

Rosa Michaelis, medical student at Witten/Herdecke University in Germany, where she conducted a peer-reviewed study examining the success of the Andrews-Reiter approach

Joshua Kors, award-winning investigative reporter and former patient of Dr. Andrews and Dr. Reiter

John Park, conference director

For full biographies on each of these speakers, visit our Speakers section.


Q:         
Who is this conference for?
A:     
The conference is for families, patients, neurologists and medical professionals concerned about epilepsy.

To better address this diverse group, we are separating the conference into two days. Friday, October 14, will be exclusively for medical professionals. Saturday, October 15, will be open to all attendees: families, patients, friends, students—anyone interested in learning more about the Andrews-Reiter approach.


Q:        
Is the Andrews-Reiter Epilepsy Research Center sponsoring this conference?
A:        
Absolutely not. This conference is not a commercial for the research center, the center is not sponsoring the conference, and the center will receive no revenue from the event. Likewise, the conference is not sponsored by any pharmaceutical companies and is not designed to push their products.

This conference is the work of John Park and Ellen Novack, parents of young Trevor Park, who has epilepsy and whose health greatly improved due to the A-R treatment. The event is an effort to spark discussion about the A-R approach and spread information about this highly effective but relatively little known treatment for epilepsy.


Q:        
If the A-R approach is so successful at treating epilepsy, why haven't I heard about it?
A:        
That's a great question, and after learning about the A-R approach ourselves, we wondered the same thing: after dealing with epilepsy for so many years, why had we just learned about this treatment?

There are a few good answers to this question. First, while Dr. Andrews and Dr. Reiter by no means reject medication as a treatment for epilepsy, medication is not the focus of the A-R approach. That means pharmaceutical companies, who have a large voice in national discussions about health, have no reason to spotlight the A-R approach and its extraordinary success rate. You won't see any 30-second commercials during the Super Bowl trumpeting the A-R approach.

Similarly, the A-R approach did not spring from a major medical clinic, the type of high-profile facility that network reporters keep an eye on. Dr. Andrews and Dr. Reiter, while widely respected today for their medical discoveries, essentially ran the Andrews-Reiter Clinic for decades as a small-town doctor's office. Their treatment for epilepsy has helped thousands of families, been analyzed in peer-reviewed studies and been the subject of international conferences on the neurological disorder. The fact that it hasn't received coverage from the leading newspapers and television networks represents a stunning failure of the national media.

Because it has received little media attention, few neurologists know about the A-R approach. And because patients get most of their treatment information from their doctors, few patients, in turn, have heard about the A-R treatments.


Q:        
Is the A-R approach some kind of cure for epilepsy?
A:    
No. Of course not. Patients with epilepsy have damaged neurons that leave the epileptic's brain prone to overfiring, causing a seizure. The A-R treatment focuses on teaching patients how to halt seizures by preventing their brains from overfiring and shutting down that electrical surge if it begins.

The idea, then, is that with dramatically fewer seizures, epilepsy can simply become a detail in the patient's life instead of the defining factor—a factoid rather than the central fact.

What makes the A-R approach remarkable is that patients who learn the approach are far more successful at controling their seizures—and have far fewer of them—than patients who receive treatment through medication alone. At the conference, doctors Andrews, Reiter and Elsas will discuss how the A-R approach works and provide a statistical analysis of its success.


Q:        
Can anyone learn to stop their seizures through the A-R approach?
A:        
Virtually anyone can learn. Over the last 30 years, patients of all types, with seizures due to all kinds of causes—from those born with neurological damage to those who suffered a traumatic brain injury—have been able to learn the A-R techniques. At the conference, you'll be able to meet many of these patients, each with a unique medical background.


Q:        
I'm interested in attending the conference. Where is it and what time?
A:        
The conference will be held Friday, October 14, and Saturday, October 15, at the University of Toronto, Medical Science Building, Room 2172 (1 King's College Circle, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A8).

We are dividing the event into two days to better address our diverse attendees. The first day, October 14, is exclusively for medical professionals. The second day, October 15, is open to all attendees.

On October 14, the conference will run from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. On October 15, it will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

For any easy graphic with all the date, time and location details, click here. For a printable sheet with the conference's date, time and location, click here.


Q:        
Do I have to register for the conference?
A:        
Yes. If you are a medical professional, register by sending an email to info@epilepsyconference.com. All other attendees, register by clicking here.


Q:        
How much does the conference cost?
A:    

   
Registration is $20 per attendee, a nominal fee to cover a portion of the speakers' traveling expenses and other costs. The registration fee can be paid here.

If you're interested in helping us further in defraying the cost of the conference, we invite you to donate to the Bernard Novack Trust Fund, which is helping to fund Epilepsy Conference Toronto.

To donate, send a check to Bernard Novack Trust Fund, c/o Epilepsy Ontario, 1 Promenade Circle, Suite 308, Thornhill, Ontario, L4J 4P8.


Q:   
Who is organizing this conference?
A:    
This conference is the work of John Park and Ellen Novack, parents of young Trevor Park, who has epilepsy and whose health greatly improved due to the A-R treatment. The event is an effort to spark discussion about the A-R approach and spread information about this highly effective but relatively little known treatment for epilepsy.


Q:        
I'm a member of the media interested in attending the conference, interviewing the conference organizers and speakers, and would like to learn more about the A-R approach. Whom should I contact?
A:        
We welcome media participation in the conference and will be available before, during and after the event for interviews and to provide more information.

To begin, here are two contacts: John Park (416-559-4333, info@epilepsyconference.com), the conference director, and Joshua Kors (646-456-7738, joshua@joshuakors.com), a featured speaker at the conference and former Andrews-Reiter patient.


Q:        
I'm very interested in this conference but will not be able to attend. Will the conference be recorded for me to watch?
A:        
We hope everyone interested in the conference makes their very best effort to be there for this special event.

For those who cannot attend, yes, we will be videorecording the entire conference and will place videos of every speaker on this website and on YouTube, with links to the videos on our Facebook and Twitter pages.


Q:        
How can I stay up-to-date with developments in the conference and new information about the Andrews-Reiter approach?
A:        
We'd recommend three approaches: our Facebook page, our Twitter page, and our blog, "On Epilepsy," a growing resource of reflections and information about the A-R approach and the treatment of epilepsy.


Q:        
My question wasn't answered here.
A:        
Not a problem. We welcome any questions you may have about the conference, about epilepsy and about the Andrews-Reiter treatment. Feel free to call to conference director John Park at 416-559-4333 or email us at info@epilepsyconference.com.