Posts Tagged ‘migraine’
How Do You Live Your Dash?
My favorite place to take my puppy for a walk is the cemetery. It is just a calming place to me. I love to read the headstones and think about the life each person lived; how they “lived their dash.” While we can learn from our past we should never dwell on it. And we gain nothing but stress if we worry about our future. But we can think about how we live our dash; our present life.
Read MoreLiving with the Migraine Monster
Looking at ways that people with migraine depict this disease, one of the terms I see often is the “migraine monster.” It’s a term that particularly resonates with me for many reasons. After all, migraine can be scary, and it’s often hard to know how to fight it. More so, it seems to lurk in…
Read MoreChocolate Does NOT Trigger My Migraine Attacks
Please, please stop telling me to stop eating chocolate! I wish it were that simple to make my migraine stop, but migraine triggers never are. I still remember being an inpatient for three weeks of intensive migraine treatment and being “banned” from the hospital store! However, one good thing that came out of it was…
Read MoreCOVID COVID Go Away – A Test in Self Advocacy!
As it turned out, self-advocacy really was the key. Learning to advocate for myself made all the difference as I faced the unknown. Self-advocacy is such an important part of chronic illness, but one that sadly we often set aside. Remember, your healthcare is about YOU, and your relationship with your doctor is a PARTNERSHIP. You have a right to speak up. You have a right to be heard and taken seriously. You have a right to be involved at every level!
Read MoreWhen the Guilt of Migraine Gets to be Too Much
If I were to be honest, for decades I wore guilt like a well-worn coat. Guilt that I couldn’t hang out with my friends. Guilt of not being the wife I thought I should be. Guilt about not being there for my children like other mothers. Even guilt that the things my doctors suggested weren’t helping.…
Read MoreMigraine Is Invisible – But We Are Not
Migraine is invisible but we are not and this is our voice. The voice of 40 million in the USA and 1 billion worldwide.
Read MoreWhat’s In Your Toolbox? Migraine Friendly Products
With an often overwhelming array of “products” that either claim to help migraine or make life more manageable, it can be hard to know where to start. In fact, it’s easy to throw our hands up and say, “This is simply too much” and end up relying only on pharmaceutical options. However, with a disease…
Read MoreWhat’s In Your Toolbox? Migraine and Cannabinoids
It is interesting that with the rise in migraine research and FDA approval of multiple new treatments, there is a corresponding rise in interest in alternative treatments. Possibly seen most clearly in the area of cannabinoids, there is a growing awareness of the need for options that work but which also have few or no…
Read More5 Reasons to Join An Online Headache Community
Online groups have evolved over the years, but one thing has not changed – their ability to bring people who have something in common together, even though they are miles apart. They have served people for some time now, and have their own niche, a niche that is essential for connection and creating community.
Read MoreWhen the Migraine Monster Touches Your Child: Part 2
One of the saddest aspects about migraine from my perspective is that it doesn’t discriminate when it comes to age. I recently sat down with my oldest son, Joel, and talked about how migraine has impacted his life. What it was like growing up not only watching me in pain, but then dealing with it himself.
Read MoreBuilding A Sense of Community – A Daunting Task?
Migraine can be a rough disease to live with and learn to manage. One that can easily leave any of us feeling emotionally and socially isolated. I can finally say that the migraine community has become an important part of my life, but it has been quite a journey. For many of you the pressing question may be: How do I even begin to get connected?
Read MoreWhen the Migraine Monster Touches Your Child: Part 1
I will never forget the day that my oldest son, Joel, called me into his room and said: “Flashy lights, mommy! I see flashy lights!” He was not quite 9 years old and my heart sank. At that time, I knew little about the hereditary risk of migraine but quickly found myself on a steep learning curve. Less than two years later, I went through the same heartbreak with my second son. The disease took on a new face, a more personal and challenging face.
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