Free my Brain from Migraine Pain

Coping with Migraine: Claims of a "Cure"

I was recently presented with a dilemma here on Free my Brain. I want to encourage dialog and exchange of ideas, but I don't intend to provide an open marketplace for sale of migraine "cures."  (Though I will gladly support and even promote helpful products and services.)  Migraine is a complex, genetically based, neurological disease.  The frequency and severity of migraines vary enormously from person to person; so do the number and complexity of triggers and other contributing factors.  What we know now is that this is a neurological disorder, a differently ordered nervous system, if you will, which has existed throughout human history.  Like many congenital conditions, there may have been a valid evolutionary reason for this mutation at one point.  Maybe migraineurs were the human barometers, predicting disastrous weather changes for primitive societies.  I had fun speculating on the evolutionary basis of migraine in the post Our Ancestress: A Fable.

I have heard from many people who have done just one thing and their migraines have gone away.  To them I can only say mazel tov!   (Congratulations!)  Here is a bouquet of flowers to celebrate!   For some it is eliminating just one trigger.  For others it is a particular nutritional supplement, a practice of meditation, regular exercise, a medication, a surgery, pregnancy, menopause, a life or lifestyle change.   I don't know if there are statistics on how many migraineurs find relief from just one thing.  I do know there are large numbers of us out here who need to find a combination of factors to manage and control our migraines.  Here is a bouquet of flowers to console us!  There is no "cure" for a genetically based neurological condition, any more than there is a "cure" for my red hair and green eyes.   (Well, another 15 - 20 years may pretty well eliminate the red hair.)

A great place for some very basic facts and information about Migraine is the recent quiz at My Migraine Connection: Dispelling Migraine Myths.   The two books on migraine featured in the left side-bar on this page are both great resources for learning about migraine and how to manage it.  There is much we can do.  For most of us, we can reduce our migraines significantly.  You have probably heard me say before that I have reduced my own migraine frequency by about 50% through use of abortive medications, supplements, trigger avoidance, relaxation and meditation, and lifestyle changes.

Someone submitted a comment to one of my posts stating that 1) Migraine isn't a disease; 2) there is a cure for Migraine "within us;" 3) he had over 20 years of migraines which are now gone; and 4) you can "retrain" yourself so you have no more migraines; he then went on to promote his methods.  I am genuinely happy for the commenter that his migraines are gone.  I am certainly curious about his methods, and glad that he wants to help others.  I don't mean to suggest he had any but the best motives.  But I am wary of anyone's claim to have a cure.  After some deliberation, I decided not to publish the comment and link.  

There are two ways to look at "retraining."  A nervous system which can be easily triggered into a Migraine attack can be viewed as an over-excitable or hyper-reactive nervous system.  Regular practice of meditation and relaxation can help us reduce the excitability of our nervous systems.  Note that this is not a "cure;" it is a supportive exercise or practice which can strengthen our system's ability to resist triggers.  You could call this "retraining."

But there is another view of retraining which comes from an idea that Migraine disease is psychologically generated.  It is not.  It is a real, physical condition.  It is no more psychological than epilepsy or scoliosis.  I view with rage books like Louise Hay's "You Can Heal Your Life" which suggest that right thinking can solve all our medical problems.  She suggests that "Migraine headaches are created by people who want to be perfect and who create a lot of pressure on themselves. A lot of suppressed anger is involved..."  

And so, if we work like crazy in therapy, meditate, recite mantras and do whatever highly subjective steps Hay seems to think will enable us to let go of the anger and pressure, if we do all that and we still have Migraines, then what?  We failed?  It's like telling someone the devil is causing their Migraines and they just have to really believe in God.  "I do believe!"  "If you really believed the devil would leave you and your Migraines would be gone!"  "But I really do believe..."  It's just a very sneaky way of blaming the victim!

I wish we could do a scientific study of people who want to be perfect and who put pressure on themselves.  In the first place I bet you that's at least 75% of the population.  And I bet you dollars to donuts that 12% of all the perfectionists would turn out to have Migraine disease.  And I bet that 12% of all the non-perfectionists would have Migraine disease too.  What's the incidence of Migraine disease in the general population?  12%!  I think you get my point.

I have been told that if I only distinguished the beliefs from my past that were making me have Migraines, they would disappear.  I will admit I tried to do that.  Like anyone else, I have a past and beliefs were formed in it!  Some of those beliefs are limiting to me.  In a life of nearly half a century, with plenty of self-help, support groups, personal development courses, and therapy, I think I've managed to identify most of those beliefs.  So why am I not cured of Migraines?  Is it my fault?  Or, wait, could it be that I have a genetically based, incurable neurological condition?  Hmmm...  Which is the more logical conclusion?  And which is more empowering? 

For me, the answer is clear.  I am 49, a woman, 5'2", a redhead, a migraineur.  These are facts.  I get choices about what I do with those facts.  I am choosing to vigorously pursue better and better Migraine management.  I am not wasting my mental or emotional energy on "cures."  Or at least I won't, once I'm done with this rant!

- Megan Oltman            

Curing is good for meats, cheeses, wines, paints... Maybe our heads don't need it?

                         Hammer image courtesy of Darren Hester

"Breaking the Headache Cycle"

Breaking the Headache Cycle by Ian Livingstone, M.D. and Donna Novak, R.N.

When my migraine pattern suddenly shifted from once month or less to three to four times per week, I went to see Dr. Livingstone. When I first saw him in August of 2004, it was six months after I had two episodes of anaphylactic shock, caused by ibuprofen. I was a little gun-shy of trying new medications. I did agree to try Imitrex – I needed to be able to abort my attacks. But instead of preventive medications, Dr. Livingstone suggested that I get into a regular relaxation routine – using deep breathing, meditation and guided imagery to strengthen my nervous system’s relaxation response.

I first read the book at that time: Breaking the Headache Cycle: A Proven Program for Treating and Preventing Recurring Headaches.  I took on practicing meditation daily, and after about six months I found my migraines reduced to 2 or 3 per month. The methods outlined in the book were very effective for me, in combination with the migraine abortive, to reduce my migraines to a manageable level.

The authors say migraineurs' nervous systems are “very reactive to any change, even good change. This sensitivity is the hallmark of the migraine condition. Unless it is understood and recognized, the migraine disorder cannot be adequately treated.”

If our nervous systems are over-responsive, it makes sense that relaxation and meditation will calm down the responsiveness of the nervous system. Dr. Livingstone cites studies showing that preventive medications reduce migraine about 40% on average (the book was published in 2003 - there may be more up to date statistics on this); and other studies showing that a regular relaxation practice reduces migraines 40% on average. Is it a safe bet to say if doing both, we might reduce migraine 80%? That's a number I could be very happy with!

Many times I pause and do deep breathing when I first feel pain in my head, or even just when I feel my tension mount.  This often down-shifts me from a budding migraine back to a state of no head pain.  I have come to be able to notice when I am getting too excited or too engaged - it's not just negative stress that can trigger me! Not surprisingly, when I got out of the habit of practicing regular relaxation, my migraines increased again. As tricky as it is to remember to take a variety of medications, in the right amounts, at the right times, I think it is even more challenging to establish and keep a routine of putting the busy concerns of life aside and take time out to look inward, breathe deep, become aware of the body, calm oneself, and relax.

I came to these methods already convinced – I was not a stranger to yoga, meditation and relaxation. I had practiced yoga in many periods in my life, starting in my teens, and meditation and guided imagery from my early twenties. Later, as a life and business coach, I have used meditation and guided imagery with my clients to help them get clear about issues that were stopping them, and to visualize what they wanted in their lives. So I wasn’t surprised that this practice would aid with migraine disease as well. The challenge is keeping it in my life as all the demands of life crowd in. The reward is getting to know my own system really well, and gaining at least a little bit of control over it.

By the way, I think preventive medication is a great thing, and many migraineurs find a lot of success with it. I may be headed down that path myself, as my migraine pattern has changed and my treatment will need to change too. But I’ll always keep relaxation as part of my routine.  It makes me feel good!

- Megan Oltman

Nothing to gain from pain!

Vitamin Therapy for Migraine Prevention

This is not News in the capital N sense but news in my life.  I had my first neurologist consult in 4 years today, since Dr. Livingstone moved to Arizona.  I am, like many of us, a complicated case.  In my case the complications include my anaphylactic allergies to (apparently) most NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, a.k.a. most OTC pain meds and quite a few prescription ones).  My new doctor wants to go very slowly in adding medications because of these allergies, and the fact that I tend to get a lot of medication side-effects.  So for the moment he added another form of Imitrex as an abortive (now I will be able to give myself injections, oh lovely) and prescribed vitamin therapy for prevention. 

In a startling piece of non-news, I am sensitive to medications.  He shrugged - "sure you're sensitive - you get migraines."  This vicious circle is familiar to most migraineurs.  Sensitive nervous system - gets migraines.  Sensitive nervous system - gets side effects.  Sensitive immune system (I guess) - develops medication allergies.  So for the next three months, I am to try 400 mg per day of magnesium and 200 mg per day of B2 (riboflavin). 

I am certainly in favor of using nutritional means to deal with illness.  That fits with my holistic philosophies on life!  So I am crossing my fingers.  I know a number of people who have had success with magnesium, though many of them take preventive medications as well.  I have to admit I'm not 100% happy, though.  My recent increase in migraine frequency is taking its toll on my life.  I guess I'm ready to be a bit more aggressive about my treatment.  So we shall see... my new doctor search may not be over.

Read more about magnesium for migraines in The Magnesium Solution for Migraine Headaches.  Let me know what you think!

- Megan

So many pills, so little time!

                                                              newspaper image courtesy of Matt Callow