Good migraine summary article for someone who doesn't get it?

I've just started dating this woman and she's very nice but she's into this "self-healing" trip and she wants to "help me heal my migraines". I know many of you will be tempted to type "hit her in the head with a sledge hammer", but I'm sure you can relate. She wants to help and her intentions are caring. I've told her migraines are genetic, but that didn't get me anywhere.

I'd like to send her a good article that deals in particular w/ chronic migraine, the lack of cure, and the standard decades long regime of trying everything under the sun, conventional and alternative w/ no success.

Platy

Platy

If you find such an article, please post it. I would love to have that one for a few folks in my life including my children.

So many people think there is a medicine to cure anything, its just not the case. Kudos to you for sticking with your girl though, eventually she'll get it !

Trinity

tnx for your reply trinity. i was ready to give up on her cos i was so pissed.

Wow Platy

I know its hard. I have been married 7 years and my husband still doesn't get why I can't get the laundry done, cook all the meals, run all the errands, do all the shopping etc.etc.

Sometimes I think I never should have gotten married because I "drop the ball" so to speak so often. In the last 25 days I have had 15 migraines...its been hell. Not just the pain, but the feeling of inadequacy too...ugh!

My only adivice to you relationship wise is, make sure she knows what she's signing up for ahead of time, no sugar coating it either. Life with a migrainuer is no picnic, plans that fall through, miserable sick days and no hope in sight.

That said, if she finally does get it, you are BLESSED. Just don't get "pissed", the majority of the medical profession doesn't even get our pain

Trinity

I had to cancel a date with her today because I woke up w/ a migraine. It's so depressing. I was really psyched to see her. Now it will be over a week until I can see her. I hate how much life I miss because of this damn disease.

I am so sorry Platy. I know how it feels, often having to break meetings, other social engagements etc due to unexpected episode.
It's not enough we beat ourselves over it, to add to our misery even those who know us for loooong years look at us with suspicion, ehh?

I hope she will understand anyway, and will wait patiently for next time and you guys will have a fabulous time!

Risa

tnx Risa.

Platy: I found this article and thought it might be of use! Trinity Hope you had an okay day

Top 10 Things I Want to Share About Migraines
Much about Migraines is poorly understood, and there are still many misconceptions about
Migraines. To help you better understand what Migraines are and their impact on the lives of those
who have them, here are the top 10 things I want to share with you about Migraines:
Migraine is a genetic neurological disease. Although the cause and pathophysiology of the
disease is not yet fully understood, current research indicates that it’s caused by genetics
and overly sensitive neurons in the brain that fire in a wave when someone with Migraine disease
encounters a Migraine trigger. At this time, there is no cure for Migraine disease.
According to the World Health Organization, a severe Migraine attack can be as disabling as
quadriplegia.
Migraine afflicts more than 37 million Americans, including 18% of women, 6% of men, and
19 percent of veterans of the Iraq war.
Migraines have other symptoms in addition to the headache. Some of those symptoms can
be as debilitating as the headache or even more debilitating, depending on the person.
Symptoms of a Migraine attack may include:

Tnx Trinity. Is this on the web?

I thinks it's an excerpt from here - scroll down:

http://www.migraines.org/myth/mythreal.htm

worth printing out and hand over to anybody who pooh-poohs our condition.

Risa

An excellent article! Thanks Trinity and Risa.

When I put this on I tried to copy and paste the entire article but it wouldn't take the whole thing. I thought it was good.

Trinity

Unfortunately the science in that article is twenty years out of date. Critically:
"Migraine pain is caused by vasodilation in the cranial blood vessels"

The current theory is neurotransmitter based.

It's true, however apart from that, the rest is pretty on the spot, wouldn't you say?

Risa

It has some good content but I wouldn't feel comfortable recommending it -- it's chock full of typos/mistakes.

How about writing MAGNUM asking for revise/update this otherwise quite good article?

When it first came out, it was the best. Correction - there was nothing like it for us out there...

Risa

http://migraine.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Top-10-Things-About-Migraines.pdf

This is where I found the article I was trying to share. It wasn't from the link from some other migraine forum that was posted.

I don't think any one place ever gets it right, we just have to take what we can find that makes sense to us.

Merry Christmas btw!

Trinity

"Stress is NOT a Migraine trigger. It’s what’s called an exacerbating factor that makes
Migraineurs more susceptible to their triggers just as stress makes anyone more susceptible to the
virus that brings on the common cold."

This is a Teri Roberts article and this is a classic Teri Roberts statement. When she hasn't got facts - which is most of the time - she just makes them up.

As I said in my original post it's damn near impossible to find good data on migraines on the internet. I think you have to go directly to the medical literature - books and journals, which are very difficult for the lay person to decipher (and expensive). But the popular literature as it has filtered through to the internet is, well, crap.

Teri Roberts doesn't get her facts straight? I am very surprised. She is well known Migraine Advocate, and she does helluva
of good work for us migraineurs - for many, many years.
I don't think she deserves to be insulted for no reason.

Teri, to the best of my knowledge, doesn't pull her facts out of the magic hat but she is up to date with the newest,
freshest migraine research.
She is in contact with some of the Migraine Big Medical Kahuna, Dr Krusz for example, and that's where she get her knowledge.
I am sure she did not come up about the "stress is not a trigger per se" fact by herself - she got it from the migraine research.

You can contribute this to the International Headache Society - stress being changed from a triggering factor to exacerbating, not Teri.

There is some controversy as to whether stress is an actual trigger. The International Headache Society has moved it from their list of triggers to their list of exacerbating factors on the premise that it doesn't by itself trigger Migraines but it does make us more susceptible to our triggers. So, what does it matter if stress is an actual trigger or an exacerbating factor that makes us more susceptible to our triggers?.

http://www.migrainecast.com/2007/08/is-stress-a-mig.html
or here
http://www.migrainedisease.com/2007/08/is-stress-a-mig.html

I understand and agree about Internet being full of crap. It's true. It's hard to find something worthwhile.

At the same time, please remember, you do need a layperson article for - a layperson to whom you intend to show it to.

A layperson does not need to read an article full of technical medical jargon.
No, one that simply, clearly and to the point explains our condition is just right, and enough.

Off topic, I actually agree with 'stress is not a trigger itself' theory - I hardly get episodes "from stress", ever.

Risa

In Platys defense, she has a Migraine page on Face Book with some pretty questionable stuff on it about how we just need to "get over it". I think its contradictory to some of her other stuff which does seem supportive...

I don't have FB account, but if you could point me to some other way to see what she wrote or perhaps - copy-paste
the offending material,
I would be grateful, and form my own opinion...

Risa