Migraine sufferers are a unique breed of patients. We are seldom understood by those around us as many believe a migraine to be no more than an intense headache. And since people are usually able to function normally during a headache episode we are looked at as exaggerators of our pain when we say we cannot do the things that we normally do – that we would rather be doing.
I have had migraines for as long as I can remember. Early in childhood I remember having frequent headaches and being told that’s all it was. Later, as I entered my teens the headaches were addressed by various professionals and determined to be migraines.
What’s the difference you may ask? If you’ve ever had a migraine – even one – you will know the answer to that question, but if you haven’t I understand; it’s hard to relate to something that you’ve never experienced. My migraines usually begin with an aura. More often than not I will know ahead of time that a migraine is on its way. It’s hard to explain how really, my vision seems to change, it may get a little blurry or less focused – speaking of focus – it will become increasingly more difficult to focus on anything.
Sometimes I get extremely sleepy. The signs vary somewhat from one migraine to another but if I’m awake I usually get a warning that the pain is on its way. But if the migraine occurs while I’m sleeping I will wake up with extreme pain and my medication is less likely to have an effect on the migraine.
You may be wondering why it is that I don’t take my medication prior to the migraine if I get the warning. There are reasons for that – first, it has to do with insurance and money. I use Imitrex for my migraines and this medication is very expensive. My insurance only covers a set number of the tablets per month – not enough since I get migraines approximately three times per week.
So when I sense the aura I have to first decide if it is in fact a migraine coming on or perhaps I am just sleepy. I don’t want to use a precious migraine buster for sleepiness. Sometimes by the time that I do take the medication the migraine is severe enough that it takes longer to eradicate the pain.
That’s the problem with the migraines that you wake up with – they are already in full force so the medication may take longer to be effective. As I said, I have suffered with migraines most of my life.
I know most people tend to ‘outgrow’ migraines at some point and I am still waiting for that time to come for me. In the mean time I have found some products that are helpful to some degree. Let me share what I’ve discovered!
