Everyone with chronic migraine knows it takes a massive toll on romantic relationships and families, but there’s little research on the topic. Here’s your chance to help remedy that. Karen Bacher, a migraineur and family studies PhD student at the University of New Mexico, is recruiting couples to complete an online survey to study the impact of migraine on the families of women with chronic migraine. By sharing her findings, she hopes to raise awareness among health care providers, counselors, and patients’ families.
Participants need to be married or cohabitating heterosexual couples between the ages of 21 and 55. The female must have chronic migraine, while their male partner must not have migraine. Partners will complete an online survey separately, which takes about 45 minutes per person. At the end of the survey, participants will have the option of entering a drawing for a $100 Visa gift card.
Couples interested in participating may contact Karen at bacher@unm.edu for full eligibility criteria, benefits of participation, and the survey link.
Although I haven’t seen the survey, I’ve been emailing with Karen and am really excited about this research project, which is for her dissertation. I believe Karen “gets” the severity and impact of migraine and genuinely wants to do her part to improve the lives of chronic migraineurs. In case you’re not sure, it may help to know she’s had migraine for 29 years and gets no relief from medication, while her sister is disabled due to migraine.
I’m unable to participate because Hart has episodic migraine, but I urge you to do so if you fit the criteria. Understanding the weight of chronic migraine on families and romantic relationships is one crucial element in de-stigmatizing this illness. It could also improve our care from doctors and therapists. And, of course, anything that helps families better comprehend the plight of migraine is a boon to all migraineurs.