my-life-with-migraine

[my-life-with-migraine]

Headache.

[my-life-with-migraine]

[my-life-with-migraine]

Things to do when you have a headache

When I have a headache, I always get bored having nothing to do that won’t make it worse. So here’s a list of things to keep you busy when you have a headache:

first, try taking some OTC pain relievers

drink something

have a snack

snuggle your pet

walk around a bit, or do some stretches or squats (light exercise can sometimes help headaches!)

open a window and get some fresh air

find an easy chore to do (ex., throw some laundry in)

take a shower/bath

if you feel up to it, draw, color, or read something in print (avoid screens)

make a to-do list for when you feel better

hope these help for those boring headachey days!

[my-life-with-migraine]

[my-life-with-migraine]

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EMICRANIA

L'emicrania è la forma di mal di testa più comune. Si presenta con un dolore acuto o pulsante che solitamente inizia nella parte anteriore o su un lato della testa. L'attacco può salire di intensità, estendersi alla regione frontale, coinvolgendo la fronte e le tempie. Può durare poche ore o persino giorni, con sintomi variabili da soggetto a soggetto, che possono essere in molti casi insopportabili: dolore pulsante, nausea, vomito, sensibilità alla luce e ai suoni. Talvolta l'emicrania è preceduta da alcuni segnali, come lampi di luce o formicolio alla gamba o al braccio. Il soggetto colpito da emicrania deve spesso ricorrere al riposo completo in un ambiente tranquillo, isolato e buio. L'emicrania è definita cronica quando presenta sintomi per almeno 15 giorni al mese per tre mesi successivi. Le donne hanno tre volte più probabilità di avere emicranie. Nei casi di maggiore gravità è bene ricorrere alle cure del medico, evitando l'uso di farmaci in maniera incontrollata.

Che cos’è l’emicrania?

L'emicrania è una forma ricorrente di mal di testa. Si stima che in Italia 8 milioni di persone ne soffrano, in maniera episodica oppure ricorrente. Circa il 10-12% della popolazione in generale ha un attacco di emicrania almeno una volta nella vita. L'emicrania appartiene alla famiglia delle cefalee. Per riconoscerla si può far riferimento ad alcune caratteristiche: l'emicrania si presenta generalmente, ma non esclusivamente, a un solo lato della testa (unilateralità); produce dolore intenso, pulsante, inabilitante; peggiora con il movimento. L'emicrania può manifestarsi con o senz'aura. L'aura è un sintomo che precede o si associa all'attacco emicranico ed è caratterizzato da improvvisi lampi di luce (scotoma scintillante). Il paziente avverte dei flash di luce, annebbiamenti ad uno a o ad entrambi gli occhi, formicolio agli arti, rigidità del collo, difficoltà nel parlare.

Quali sono le cause dell’emicrania?

Le cause dell'emicrania non sono ancora del tutto chiare. È certo che più fattori giochino un ruolo determinante: predisposizione genetica, fattori esterni, patologie sistemiche, fattori ormonali. Studi scientifici hanno evidenziato la relazione tra questa tipologia di mal di testa e alterazioni biochimiche a carico del cervello, che interferiscono con i meccanismi di trasmissione dei segnali nervosi. Talvolta è stata segnalata la correlazione tra emicrania è il consumo di alcuni alimenti o bevande. Sicuramente c'è un legame con stress, disturbi del sonno, cambiamenti climatici, uso di alcuni farmaci, problemi fisici. Generalmente viene valutata la familiarità del problema: se in famiglia ci sono casi di emicrania ricorrente le probabilità che il disturbo si presenti aumentano.

Quali sono i sintomi dell’emicrania?

I sintomi dell'emicrania possono dividersi in due categorie. Quelli che precedono l'attacco emicranico (detti prodromici) e quelli che accompagnano l'attacco vero e proprio.

Uno o due giorni prima si possono manifestare:

Irritabilità

Stitichezza

Depressione o maggiore appetito

Rigidità del collo

Disturbi visivi tipici dell'aura: lampi di luce, abbagliamento.

Disturbi motori e del linguaggio

Formicolio a braccia e gambe

I sintomi dell'attacco emicranico hanno una variabilità soggettiva, sia in quanto a durata che in quanto a intensità, e possono includere:

Dolore pulsante concentrato in uno o più punti della testa, in particolare nella parte anteriore, frontale o laterale.

Nausea

Vomito

Disturbi visivi, abbagliamento.

Vertigini

Sensibilità alla luce (fotofobia), ai suoni (fonofobia), agli odori.

Irritabilità

Nervosismo

Agitazione e confusione

Scarsa concentrazione

Brividi

Sudorazione

Dolore addominale

[my-life-with-migraine]

16 Facts About Migraines

Unless you suffer from migraines yourself, you may think that having a migraine means having a really bad headache. But debilitating head pain is only one part of the medical condition called migraine disorder. Other common symptoms are nausea, dizziness, fatigue, sensitivity to light and sound, and even temporary blindness. The symptoms and causes of migraine look different in different patients, and researchers are only now beginning to understand what the condition is and how to treat it. Here are some of the most enlightening facts we know about migraine disorder.

1. IT'S THE THIRD MOST COMMON DISEASE IN THE WORLD.

Even if you don’t suffer from migraine, chances are you know someone who does: The disorder affects 14.7 percent of the population, or one in seven people, around the world. In the U.S. alone, roughly 39 million people are affected by the condition. Chronic migraine(experiencing at least 15 headache days per month over a three-month period, with over half being migraines) is more rare, impacting about 2 percent of the world population.

2. WOMEN SUFFER MORE THAN MEN.

Of the one billion people on Earth who have migraine disorder, three-fourths are women. Medical experts suspect this has to do with the cyclical nature of female hormones. According to research presented earlier in 2018, NHE1, the protein that regulates the transfer of protons and sodium ions across cell membranes, is a crucial component of migraine headaches. NHE1 production likely fluctuates a lot more in women than in men. When scientists looked at the brains of lab rats, they found that NHE1 levels were lowest when estrogen was at its peak. In general, female rats also had four times the amount of NHE1 in their brains as males. If the same holds true for people, that could explain why women are not only more likely to suffer migraines in the first place, but why they experience them more frequently and more intensely, and have more difficulty responding to treatment.

3. MIGRAINE TRIGGERS VARY WIDELY.

For doctors and sufferers, migraine triggers can be a source of confusion. They vary from patient to patient and often come from unexpected sources that have no relation to each other. Stress, too much or too little sleep, dehydration, alcohol, and caffeine are some of the most commontriggers. Some people get migraines after eating specific foods, like cheese, and others are sensitive to changes in weather conditions like barometric pressure. Some people manage their migraines by pinpointing and avoiding triggers.

4. FOR SOME, AURAS ARE A WARNING THAT A MIGRAINE IS COMING.

Before the nausea, dizziness, and splitting head pain begin, auras warn some people that a migraine is on its way. Less than 25 percent [PDF] of migraine sufferers experience distorted senses, such as numbness or tingling in the hands or face, or blotches of light or darkness disrupting their vision. Auras usually occur 10 to 30 minutes before the migraine develops and last from five minutes to one hour.

5. SYMPTOMS CAN INCLUDE TEMPORARY BLINDNESS …

Unlike migraine with aura, retinal migraine is limited to one eye. Symptoms range from seeing twinkling stars to partial or complete loss of vision. The same eye is almost always affected, and the person typically regains their sight after 10 to 20 minutes.

6. … AND LOSS OF LIMB FUNCTION.

One of the rarest, and scariest, subtypes of migraine is hemiplegic migraine. People with this variant can experience weakness, numbness, tingling, or loss of motor function in parts of one half of their body, including their arm, leg, or face. Though sensations usually dissipate within 24 hours, they can last anywhere from one hour to several days. Sometimes they’re accompanied by typical migraine symptoms, such as head pain, but they can also occur on their own.

7. KIDS GET MIGRAINES TOO.

Migraine isn’t just a problem for adults—up to 10 percent of all school-aged kids are affected by the disorder, with reported cases coming from children as young as 18 months. According to the documentary Out of My Head (2018), migraine is the third most common reason for child emergency room visits. The symptoms of migraine in kids are similar to what’s seen in older patients: They may experience intense head pain, sick feelings, distorted vision, and sensitivity to sound and light. The major differences are that child migraines often develop suddenly and are shorter than they are in adults. In children, it’s not uncommon for the nausea and abdominal pain to feel worse than the actual headaches. Just as some sufferers don’t experience their first episodes until after puberty, some children with migraine grow out of it. According to one study, migraine symptoms disappeared completely in 23 percent of former child sufferers by age 25.

8. MIGRAINE MAY BE HEREDITARY.

For most people with migraine disorder, it runs in the family. Anywhere from 80 to 90 percent of migraine sufferers report having at least one family member who has it as well. If one parent has migraine, there’s a 50 percent chance their child will eventually have to live with migraine—and that risk shoots up to 75 percent when both parents have the condition.

9. MANY VETERANS RETURN HOME WITH MIGRAINES.

Genetics isn’t the only factor that contributes to someone’s chance of having migraine disorder. One study found that after a 12-month deployment in Iraq, 36 percent of veterans exhibited symptoms of migraine. The cause often stems from head or neck trauma sustained from explosions, falls, or other accidents during their service. While post-traumatic migraine goes away in most patients within a few months, in some cases it can develop into a chronic condition.

10. MIGRAINE IS LINKED TO THE "SECOND BRAIN" IN YOUR GUT.

In addition to the part of our nervous system that responds to outside stimuli, humans have an enteric nervous system: the part responsible for regulating digestion. Some medical experts believe that migraine is closely tied to this “second brain.” People with migraine are twice as likely to have IBS as people with tension headaches. Abdominal migraine, where the pain is concentrated in the stomach rather than the head, is one form the condition takes. It's most often seen in children, but it can affect adults as well.

11. DESPITE THE HIGH COST OF MIGRAINE DISORDER, RESEARCH IS UNDERFUNDED.

In 2017, the National Institutes of Health invested $22 million in migraine research. Asthma research received $286 million, breast cancer $689 million, and diabetes $1.1 billion.

12. THE DISORDER COSTS US UP TO $13 BILLION ANNUALLY.

Though migraine isn't life-threatening like these other conditions, it is widespread enough to have a negative impact on society as a whole. Workers with migraine often end up taking a lot of time off from their jobs, which can cost their employers. According to Out of My Head, it’s estimated that 113 million work days are missed annually due to migraine, adding up a to $13 billion loss.

13. MIGRAINE MAY HAVE INSPIRED PARTS OF ALICE IN WONDERLAND …

In the famous children’s book, Alice drinks a liquid that makes her grow many times her size and eats a cookie that shrinks her to tiny proportions. Migraine sufferers may recognize themselves in these passages. Possible symptoms of the disorder include micropsia and macropsia, or perceiving objects to be much smaller or larger than they really are. Some theorize that Alice in Wonderland author Lewis Carroll suffered migraines and wrote his experiences into his story. The book’s connection to migraine is so famous that today the related symptoms are commonly known as Alice in Wonderland Syndrome.

14. … AND PLAGUED A FOUNDING FATHER.

Another famous person from history who likely suffered from migraines was Thomas Jefferson. His symptoms could last for weeks and often appeared during stressful times in his life. There was even an episode that coincided with one of the most important nights of his political career. One night in June 1790, he invited Federalist Alexander Hamilton and Republican James Madison to his home for a dinner party in the hopes of getting his peers to agree on a location for the new U.S. capital. Despite dealing with lingering head pain from a migraine, he successfully brokered the compromise that landed the capital at its current spot on the Potomac River between Maryland and Virginia. In return, Madison agreed that he would not block Hamilton's plan for the federal government to take on state war debt, thus helping establish the young nation's credit.

15. MIGRAINE IS LINKED TO DEPRESSION.

In the U.S., up to 40 percent of people with migraine also have depression. Risk of anxiety, bipolar disorder, and panic disorder are also higher in migraine sufferers. Researchers are still figuring out the connections between mental illness and migraine. While the anticipation of painful symptoms can cause depression and anxiety in some people, experts believe that mental illness is often more than just an effect of living with migraine. The production of the brain chemical serotonin is involved in both migraine and depression. That’s why tricyclic antidepressants designed to increase serotonin levels are sometimes prescribed to treat migraine.

16. A NEW SHOT CAN TREAT MIGRAINE.

Many migraine therapies from the past few decades have been the result of trial and error. Medications designed to treat other conditions, such as antidepressants, epilepsy medicine, and botox, have all been prescribed to migraine sufferers, with mixed results. Earlier in 2018, the first-ever shot made to treat migraines specifically secured FDA approval. The shot, which blocks a peptide linked to migraine, is taken once a month and can improve symptoms or completely eliminate them in some cases. Before the new injection came along, the only other migraine-specific medications patients had to choose from were triptans, which stimulate the neurotransmitter serotonin. They can't prevent migraine, but they can help dampen symptoms by reducing inflammation and constricting blood flow. According to Out of My Head, triptans were first approved more than two decades ago—so new medication options are long overdue.

[my-life-with-migraine]

[my-life-with-migraine]

LET’S TALK ABOUT IT

What we know about migraine? First of all, it sucks. Your life will never be the same once you have it.  Second, migraines can be different from one person to another. So what can we do? Nothing. That’s sad reality, migraine is for life. 

In my life I’ve tried a lot of medications, from antidepressants to antiepileptic and nothing seems to work. After 10 years on medications I’ve decided with my doc to going clean. 

I need a detox from it, mentally and phisically. It’s mindchanging really. 

Stay healthy. 

[my-life-with-migraine]

Life as a chronic migraine sufferer...

[my-life-with-migraine]

🌿Migraine Magick 🌿

Migraine is a type of headache but is so much more then “just a headache”. It is a throbbing pain felt on one side of the head. It will often occur paired with other symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, and sensitivity to light and sounds. A migraine attack can be triggered by a lot of things ranging from loud noises or bright lights to simply drinking alcohol. Even certain foods can trigger a migraine attack. (Chocolate, onions, dairy, MSG, …) Also mentioned will be price point and relief of symptoms that worsen migraines such as muscle cramps, menstrual cramps, etc.

🔮 Crystals for Migraine 🔮 🔮Bixbyite: Relieves headaches and migraines, also helps against mild pain in general. Not to be confused with Bixbite (red Beryl). $ 🔮Chrysocolla: Controls head aches and head complaints, relieves migraines, reduces muscle spasms. $ 🔮Cordierite: Controls fluctuating body temperatures, relieves headaches and migraines, purifies toxins. $ 🔮Lolite: Purifies toxins, controls fluctuating body temperatures, relieves migraines.Often used as cheaper alternative to Sapphire due to similar appearance $ 🔮Magnesite: Helps to calm down and ease stress, loosen tension is muscles, alleviates menstrual pain, controls headaches and migraines. $ 🔮Rhodochrosite: Improves blood circulation, controls headachesm head complaints and migraines. $ 🔮Sodalite: Purifies blood, calsm and controls nerves, controls head aches and migraines, controls nausea. $ 🔮Turquoise: Alleviates menstrual pain, relieves headaches and migraines. $

🌿Herbs For Migraines🌿 🌿Butterbur: Used to treat headaches, fever, general pain and asthma. 🌿Coriander Seeds: Used to relieve sinus pressure and headaches. Hot water is poured over the seeds in order to inhale the steam. 🌿Dong Quai: Used in the form of a spice, tonic or medicinal cream to treat headache, fatigue and nerve pain. 🌿Feverfew: Traditionally used to treat headaches and insect bites. Modern application includes treatment of migraines, dizziness and inflamation. (might cause nausea!) 🌿Ginger: Traditional remedy for migraines, nausea, stomach pain and cold/flu symptoms. 🌿Honeysuckle: Used in traditional Chinese medicine to treat fever, inflamation,infecrions, sores,… It has been found to also treat migraine pain. 🌿Peppermint: Often used as a liquid capsule or topical solution. Treats spasms, nausea and tooth ache. Menthol is an active ingredient of peppermint and stops migraine when applied to temples and forehead. 🌿Valerian: Used for centuries to treat a number of ailments including insomnia, headaches and anxiety. ✨Migraine Care Tips ✨ ✨Keep your hands, feet and head warm. ✨A small amount of caffeine can help relieve pain. ✨Apply a hot compress to neck or head. ✨Lie down is a darkenned room. ✨Avoid loud noises, personally when i am lying in a dark room i put on some very soft white noise such as rainymood. ✨Do not skip meals! ✨Make sure to eat something when taking your migraine medication or the nausea will get worse. * Magick should never recplace your medication and/or doctor’s instructions and advice *

[my-life-with-migraine]

People’s invisible illnesses are not a joke

 My mother suffers from migraines that are often triggered by scent. This can range anywhere from cleaning products, scented garbage bags, cologne/perfume and so on. As such, she’s had to ask for accommodations in the facility she works. This has included wearing surgical masks, industrial respirators, and having a perfume/cologne free work environment.

Here’s the thing, since receiving the accommodations, my mother has gone to the hospital more than six times for perfume exposure. Why? Because her co-workers deliberately wear excess amounts of perfume or cologne to trigger her migraines because they believe their right to wear perfume outweighs her right to live. This is not an exaggeration, my mother’s doctors have repeatedly stated that any one of these incidents could actually kill her.

Oh, and let me be clear, these are deliberate incidents. These are documented grievances with witnesses. Witnesses who saw co-workers put on perfume before interacting with my mother or workers deliberately crossing in my mother’s work area despite not even working in the area. Workers who have admitted to exposing her on purpose.  Even worse, some of those who’ve exposed her are supervisors.

People don’t believe my mother when she says her migraines are triggered by scent. Because they can’t see it, they don’t think it can possibly be that bad. It has taken her literally being hauled off in ambulance for some people to understand the severity of her condition.

Illnesses or disabilities, whether visible or not, are not jokes. Don’t play with someone else’s health or well being. It’s fucked up.

[my-life-with-migraine]

Not all headaches hurt the same — here’s how to know what type of pain you’re having

[my-life-with-migraine]

MIGRAINE HACKS

I know migraine sucks so this can be helpful!

#1 COFFEE - Caffeine helps reduce inflammation, and that can bring relief. It also gives a boost to common headache remedies. Whether you use aspirin, ibuprofen, or acetaminophen, they work faster and better and keep the pain away for longer when combined with caffeine.

#2 ICE PACKS - Apply an ice pack to the painful part of your head. Try placing it on your forehead, temples, or the back of your neck. Be sure you wrap it in a cloth first to protect your skin. 

#3 TURN OFF THE LIGHTS

#4 STAY IN THE SILENCE

#5 HAVING HEALTHY SLEEP HABITS - Sleep deprivation and poor bedtime habits cause migraine. The same for excessive sleep.

#6 KEEP YOUR STRESS UNDER CONTROL - Migraine and stress are strongly linked. Indeed, anxiety, excitement and any form of tension and shock may all lead to a migraine attack. However, some people report that their migraine attacks start when the stress reduces. This is sometimes experienced as “weekend headaches” when, after a busy and stressful week at work, an individual might experience a migraine at the weekend when they are more relaxed.

#7 DO PHYSICAL EXERCISE

#8 EAT AT REGULAR INTERVALS - Hypoglycaemia is the medical condition of having an abnormally low blood sugar (glucose) level, and can be responsible for triggering or exacerbating migraine and other headaches

#9 STAY HYDRATED - Mild dehydration can have an impact on people who have migraine. It is recommended that you should drink at least 8 glasses of water per day. This is in addition to any other drinks you may have. Fizzy drinks can contain the sweetener aspartame which some people link to their migraine.

#10 AVOID ALCOHOL - Beer, red wine, sherry, and vermouth contain large amounts of tyramine, one of the most powerful migraine triggers.

[my-life-with-migraine]

It's ok not to be ok

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