This week, I want to get a little more personal about migraines, so I want to share a little of my own experiences.
When I first started suffering with migraines, I was 21. I had just had my first child. Since migraines “run in my family,” I guess it wasn’t surprising when I started getting them too.
When they first began, they were few and far between, and while I saw a doctor and did get some medication, at that point in time, it was more a nuisance-factor in my life. Don’t get me wrong. The pain was severe and they were miserable. I was under a doctor’s care and had to take medications fairly often. However, when I look back on where I eventually wound up, in comparison, my migraines were infrequent and more manageable during that time.
When our family moved out west while my husband was in the military, I didn’t have as many migraines. The weather and climate suited me out there. During that period of time, my husband had a very prolonged remote tour which led to a lot of stress for me. However, the stress I experienced had more of an effect on my emotional well-being than on my physical well-being. This is different to how my migraines evolved. Stress became a major trigger for me further doing the road.
However, when we moved to Florida, and I joined the work force again, I found my migraines becoming much more frequent and much more severe. There were so many days that I missed from work, and so many social events I had to miss out on because I was in bed in a dark room, praying and hoping that – yet another – migraine would hurry up and go away. My life was miserable and depressing. There seemed no way out.
I don’t have to tell you – the throwing up, the sensitivity to lights, sounds and smells, the flashing lights, and the severe pain. I’m sure you know what I mean when I say that I often felt that if I could hit my head against a brick wall, it would feel better. Then there were the many trips to the acute care or doctor’s office for pain shots that knocked me out; the constant fear and worry that another one was going to hit; and that feeling of despair that things just couldn’t change.
I did see a few different neurologists – trying to find one who could really help me – and I found little to no relief in the way of preventatives. The doctors tried anti-convulsive medications, anti-depressants, and all the other well-known drugs out there that supposedly prevent migraines. Unfortunately, they either didn’t help or the side effects were so severe, I couldn’t take the medications. That left only pain medications. Probably like you, I tried many of them before I found one that worked best for me. In my case, I did well with Imitrex, but even then, I went quickly from 25 mg. to 50 mg. and then to 100 mg., plus having the injectable for the most severe migraines. But as you know, the triptans are severely limited by the pharmaceutical and insurance companies for how many you can take per month – and by this time, I was suffering migraines more than half of the month. That was when I started taking narcotics to help with the pain.
As a side note, I have to say that at this point, I was pretty “ignorant” of my migraine triggers. My doctor wanted me to keep a diary, but that mostly let him know how many days a month I had migraines, and the severity of the pain. It didn’t give me insight into what might be making the migraines worse, or triggering a migraine for me.
I eventually got to the point where I was waking up with a headache every day – most of which turned into a migraine. As you can imagine, by this point, I had become quite desperate. I was taking so much pain medication in between the Imitrex that I knew by this point, I was definitely addicted to narcotics.
It was around this same time, I began to look into options for becoming a health coach. I was very interested in nutrition and health, and wanted to learn more about it and see what options were out there for finally being able to help not only myself health-wise and food-wise, but others as well. With that learning experience it was like a light bulb went off for me. I realized I had to find a solution to my constant problem (not just with migraines, but my health in general). I knew I couldn’t go on the way I was – in constant pain and fear.
I did find an avenue of help. I was very lucky and blessed to find someone in the migraine field who worked holistically with people to bring more lasting relief. I was accepted into the clinic’s program, and the doctors and staff helped me get off the narcotics, which was a huge thing for me. They educated me and taught me some important things about how to incorporate natural methods and remedies into my lifestyle to lessen the severity and frequency of migraines.
Since embarking on my “holistic” journey, things have not been the same. Armed with all the knowledge I obtained going through college to become a health coach, and with the additional holistic and natural methods I incorporated into my life (including learning all my migraine triggers), my migraines subsided and became much less severe and much less frequent.
Knowing my triggers, was a big factor, but knowing how to treat my body and change my lifestyle had the biggest effect. Today, I generally only suffer with a migraine when there is a barometric change or some type of weather event. Even then, the severity no longer is a 10+ but very manageable now. I know some “tricks” so I am more prepared for those events. I no longer throw up when I have a migraine – although I do often feel nauseated at time. However, that is quite easily remedies. I cannot believe how much better my life is now. There is no comparison.
This is why I am so passionate about helping people with their own migraine dilemma. I know that there are answers out there, and ways to help bring about migraine relief and even prevention. I have worked long and hard to create my “Migraine Immersion Program” to help people find their own road to recovery. It is possible, and it is attainable. You don’t have to stay in that cycle of pain and fear. This isn’t just for me, and this isn’t just about me. It is possible for you to find freedom and relief too.
If you are sick and tired of missing work, missing social engagements and being so discouraged by the merry-go-round of pain and misery, I have some solutions for you. Schedule a FREE call with me and get some clarity and help for finding relief! >>SCHEDULE HERE<<