Living with Migraines -- A Real Look at the Pain

The pounding headaches began when I was only seven years old. At first, I didn't understand what was happening or what was causing the pain, but it did not take the doctors or my family long to figure out that as a young child, I had already inherited my mother's migraine headaches. Hers were slightly different than mine. She got a visual disturbance before her headaches came on; I merely got an odd feeling (they call it an "aura"), and then the migraine would hit.

People who do not get migraines fail to understand or have any idea what it's like to suffer with these headaches. In fact, they think you should just "take a Tylenol", or that you are over-exaggerating the pain and using it as an "excuse" not to do work. Trust me, anyone who has had a migraine would rather spend twenty-four hours working than suffer through the intense pain.

Let me describe how a migraine feels. It is seriously like someone is pounding or stabbing you constantly in one side of your head. And it is relentless. The pain leads to nausea, weakness, and sensitivity to light. This is not the pain that a Tylenol can take away; only stronger medications will even begin to help the sufferer.

Through my teenage, college, and young adult years, there were so many activities I missed due to migraines. I would be thrilled about an upcoming event, only to get a migraine an hour before it was to take place. Sometimes, if it was something I couldn't miss (such as a funeral or wedding); I would struggle through it in intense pain. Often, on the way to an event, I would have to stop by the side of the road and throw up if the nausea was too overbearing. This would only cause the pain to intensify. I remember sitting in a college class with a migraine, unable to concentrate, fighting the pain, and inevitably running to the bathroom.

I learned that my migraines were caused by a variety of "triggers". One is hormones: pre-menstrual hormone fluctuations, mid-cycle fluctuations, pregnancy, and post-pregnancy all intensify my migraines. I cannot take hormonal birth control at all, as I get twice as many migraines when I am on it. Stress (good and bad) is another trigger. When my husband and I were moving into our first home, I got a migraine from stress, and was virtually unable to help move at all. Even the weather can be a trigger-a change from humid to moist.

Food is one of the biggest migraine triggers for me. I still have a sad memory of being nine years old and missing out on New Year's Eve because I had eaten an orange lollipop. That was the night when I found out that orange flavor gives me migraines. The list of what I cannot eat (which I have figured out through elimination) is longer than the list of what I can. I can eat no processed meats, aged cheese, orange or orange flavored things, grapes, MSG, foods with preservatives, pork, chocolate, red/orange food coloring. . .and the list goes on. It is embarrassing when I am invited to someone's house and I have to eat almost nothing-they don't usually understand my food limitations because they have never experienced migraines.

Now, they do have some medications that help. Imitrex and Zomig are lifesavers. They are in a family of drugs called Triptans. For me, they do not totally eliminate my headaches, but make them more bearable. I also feel less nausea with these drugs, but they make me very tired. There are also standard strong pain relievers like Fioricet or Tylenol #3, that you don't want to take too often because they can be addictive. Some people are helped by Excedrin Migraine, but it doesn't help me much. Topomax is a new headache drug, but it has tons of side effects (one of my friends went blind for awhile from taking it; another developed seizures). For this reason, I am unwilling to take this drug.

I must mention that Imitrex and Zomig are ridiculously expensive. One pill is over $20. For a stubborn migraine, you usually need two pills. My insurance company will only cover 9 pills a month (with a $20 copy). If you get more than four or five headaches, you are out of luck.

I have tried some natural remedies. Feverfew didn't help. I have had limited success with Q10 (100 mg twice daily), and B2 (once daily). Butterbur is supposed to help, but isn't very affordable at $30 a bottle (which lasts 20 days at the most).

I have two wonderful little boys, and I am a work-at-home mom. Besides my work on the computer, I take care of the boys and manage the household duties. I honestly thank God every day that is headache free. It is such a depressing thing when I wake up in the morning and feel a migraine coming on. I quickly take an Imitrex, but it only half takes away the pain. For the sake of the boys, I must put mind over matter and go about my daily duties. Thankfully, in the afternoon I can nap on the sofa while my four year old is playing and the baby is sleeping. Sometimes, the migraine recurs later in the evening, and I am forced to take another Imitrex, just to keep going.

I hope this has helped those of you who do not get migraines to better understand the life of someone who does. There are a lot of good days, and I love my life, but I wish I didn't have to deal with migraines-I would not wish them on anyone.