This is a reader-submitted story. Reader-submitted stories solely represent the personal point of view, experience, and opinion of the author, not of The Daily Headache or Kerrie Smyres.
1. My diagnosis is: Chronic Resistant Migraines
2. My migraine attack frequency is: Six or seven days a week right now.
3. I was diagnosed in: 2000 something
4. My comorbid conditions include: Insomnia
5. I take many medications/supplements each day for prevention and many medications/supplements to treat an acute attack
6. My first migraine attack was: as a child
7. My most disabling migraine symptoms are: the pain, sensitivity to light, sound, and smell, not being able to see
8. My strangest migraine symptoms are: flashing lights and worms floating across my eyes
9. My biggest migraine triggers are: weather changes, allergies, food chemicals
10. I know a migraine attack is coming on when: I wake up, I start moving really fast
11. The most frustrating part about having a migraine attack is: the time I miss with my family and friends
12. During a migraine attack, I worry most about: Getting behind at work and in school
13. When I think about migraine between attacks, I think: I rarely have time between attacks, if I do I worry about the next one
14. When I tell someone I have migraine, the response is usually: I know someone who gets migraines
15. When someone tells me they have migraine, I think: poor you
16. When I see commercials about migraine treatments, I think: don’t be fooled. It doesn’t work.
17. My best coping tools are: relaxation
18. I find comfort in: my bed with big soft pillows
19. I get angry when people say: it’s just a headache!
20. I like it when people say: nothing. Few can really relate and I don’t need you to go through the list of alternative treatments you assume I haven’t tried.
21. Something kind someone can do for me during a migraine attack is: leave me alone to deal with it.
22. The best thing(s) a doctor has ever said to me about migraine is: haven’t encountered a positive statement yet.
23. The hardest thing to accept about having migraine is: I can’t control them.
24. Migraine has taught me: to listento my body.
25. The quotation, motto, mantra, or scripture that gets me through an attack is: this too shall pass.
26. If I could go back to the early days of my diagnosis, I would tell myself: be kind to yourself. It’s going to be a rough ride.
27. The people who support me most are: my family.
28. The thing I most wish people understood about migraine is: it is not just a headache.
29. Migraine and Headache Awareness Month is important to me because: it’s one month people are a little bit more informed.
30. One more thing I’d like to say about life with migraine is: be kind to migraine sufferers.