Abstract
Epilepsy is among the most burdensome neurological disorders worldwide, with an impact that extends far beyond seizure frequency alone. Depression, anxiety, cognitive impairment, and internalized stigma affect a substantial proportion of individuals with epilepsy, yet these comorbidities remain systematically undertreated in routine neurological care. Conventional psychoeducation, largely centered on passive information delivery, has shown limited effectiveness in addressing the psychological and social complexities of living with epilepsy. Neuroscience-Informed Psychoeducation for Epilepsy (NIPE) offers a fundamentally different approach: one that translates the neuroscience of seizure generation, network dysfunction, and neuroplasticity into accessible frameworks, shifting patients from passive recipients of information to active, metacognitively engaged participants in their own care.This chapter presents NIPE as both a clinical framework and an integrative layer across the continuum of epilepsy management. Beginning with the neurobiological mechanisms underlying seizures and epileptogenesis, it highlights how the same neural networks implicated in ictal activity also contribute to the psychiatric and cognitive comorbidities that shape patients’ daily experiences. It further examines how NIPE interfaces with evidence-based psychological interventions, pharmacologic education, neuromodulation, epilepsy surgery, and the management of refractory epilepsy, as well as the unique needs of women and other populations with distinct clinical considerations.In addition, the chapter explores the digital expansion of NIPE, including adaptive telehealth platforms, wearable biosensors, digital phenotyping, and the emerging role of artificial intelligence in tailoring psychoeducational delivery. Importantly, it addresses current limitations and ethical considerations with transparency, including the absence of standardized NIPE protocols and the relative scarcity of randomized controlled trials specifically within epilepsy populations.The chapter concludes with a forward-looking perspective on the infrastructure, research agenda, and cross-disciplinary collaboration required to embed NIPE into routine epileptology practice. NIPE is positioned not as an adjunct to epilepsy care, but as a unifying framework, a shared language that enables truly integrated, patient-centered care.