Life with Migraine
Lesser-Known Migraine Symptoms: Yawning, Thirst, Tinnitus
By now this Migraine Symptoms blog series has proven that migraine goes far beyond head pain. However, in addition to some of the more common symptoms, many people with migraine also experience a set of symptoms that is lesser known—yawning, thirst/dry mouth and tinnitus to name just a few. These symptoms can vary from being mildly annoying to having an intensely negative impact on quality of life.
Read MoreMedical Gaslighting and Migraine: It’s Not All in Your Head
Medical gaslighting happens when healthcare providers dismiss, explain away, or don’t believe a patient’s symptoms. While this can happen to anyone, it’s especially common for women, and those struggling with invisible illnesses like migraine. It’s a dangerous practice that often results in misdiagnosis and/or the inability to receive appropriate and timely treatment and care.
Read MoreNavigating Insurance With Migraine
With more migraine treatments available than ever before, people with migraine can feel hopeful that they may find an option that brings them relief. Unfortunately, this process is not always as simple as it may sound. Insurance companies frequently construct barriers to treatment.
Read MoreThe Squeaky Wheel Gets the Oil
One of the most challenging things many of us with chronic illnesses have to face is trying to advocate for ourselves in the healthcare system. Somehow, it just seems wrong that when we are the sickest, we often have to push the hardest. Timely and appropriate medical care should not be such a challenge, yet… sadly, it…
Read MoreMigraine Symptoms: Brain Fog
Brain fog is another common and often debilitating migraine symptom. Like fatigue, brain fog can occur at any phase of a migraine attack. In the prodrome and aura phases, brain fog can be an early warning sign that an attack is beginning. It can last through the attack stage and continue on through the postdrome phase, lasting for hours or even days. In fact, some people experience varying levels of brain fog all the time. Brain fog is a challenging and invisible migraine symptom.
Read MoreAttack-based Care: Responsibilities
Throughout our Attack-Based Care series we have looked at several different approaches to treating different migraine attacks. We started off by looking at what the “Stoplight Theory” is (how to rate our pain) and the Migraine Toolbox we need to build to better manage this disease. Then we looked at different aspects that might guide us in deciding how to treat each migraine attack focusing on timing, pain level, symptoms and triggers. Today we are going to wrap up the series by looking at the tough topic of responsibility. This asks the difficult question about what treatments are actually FEASIBLE to take based on our responsibilities during any given attack.
Read MoreThe Four Phases of Migraine Attacks
Did you know there are four phases to migraine attacks? Did you know that each “phase” comes with its own sweet set of symptoms? It’s not just nausea, vomiting and head pain—as if that isn’t enough by itself! We’re going to look at vision distortion, cravings, emotional changes, energy levels, and much more! And, we’re going to look at when each of these MIGHT occur during a migraine attack. Then of course, there’s the sweet “interictal period.” That time in between attacks when theoretically you are symptom-free, but in reality… that is often far from the truth! That’s a topic for another blog, but in short —migraine attacks are complex, unpredictable and debilitating, but being armed with information can help!
Read MoreAttack-Based Care: Triggers
Migraine triggers are that all elusive aspect of life with migraine. They’re something we have all heard of, and something we tend to talk a lot about. However, did you know that some triggers can result in more treatment resistant, faster escalating, or more debilitating attacks, while others seem to result in less severe attacks? So, how can we approach treating a migraine attack based on what triggered it? Knowing this can help you come up with an attack-based plan where you can quickly decide how to treat. For example, you will have a better idea of whether to start with an FDA-cleared medical device, rest and OTC medication, or jump straight into your full-strength rescue medication, a dark room, and the need to cancel all appointments or work.
Read MoreAttack-Based Care: Symptoms
Nausea? Head pain ? Vision distortion? What are your SYMPTOMS when a migraine attack hits? We know that no two people have the same migraine experience but did you know that even with the same person, attacks can have different symptoms. It’s really important to know what your symptoms are and how they affect you, because that will help you figure out what options you will use to treat different attacks!
Read MoreAttack-Based Care: Pain Level
Did you know some people who live with migraine disease experience attacks that go from level 1-10 in just minutes? What can you do when the pain level is already debilitating? What about those attacks that you can catch quickly while the pain level is very low – should there be a different approach to them? There are many abortive treatment options available, and knowing ahead of time which route to take when a migraine hits can be really difficult, but so important. Add in quantity limitations, and wanting to save certain medications for more severe attacks or special occasions you can’t miss, you may end up with a problematic delay in pain relief. Sadly, this sometimes results in more intense pain, or an attack that lasts longer and is more resistant to treatment. So, how can you plan ahead to know how best to treat an attack based on the level of pain experienced?
Read MoreAttack-Based Care: Timing
Have you ever woken up with a full-blown migraine attack? Sometimes I even dream that I am having a migraine, and then the pain gets so bad that it wakes me up and – voila! Sadly, it wasn’t a dream at all! Figuring out how to treat that monster, compared to treating an attack that you catch in the first few minutes, is a whole different animal. It’s a situation made more challenging by all the other symptoms that often go along with a full-blown attack such as vision impairment, dizziness, vertigo, vomiting, and more!
Read MoreThe Stoplight Theory and Migraine Attacks
How many times have you been asked to rate your pain on a scale of 0 – 10? If you’re like me, more times than you can count. But does it really convey the amount of pain AND discomfort we are experiencing? Our migraine treatment plan is often based on the number we assign to our pain, so we need to have a method of communicating that pain and discomfort, as well as how our quality of life is being affected.
Read More