Migraines On The Radio

I heard on the Diane Rehm's radio show a segment on Living with Migraines (please listen to the podcast).  I really liked it because of all the good new news on the subject.  I'm also a migraineur diagnosed with migraine with aura (or migraine with complex).  It seems that the medical field is still learning about migraines and that they took some significant leaps in the past twelve years.   I would like to share my experience with doctors and migraines.

Though I had migraines from childhood, I only went to the Veterans Administration Hospital for it in 2001.   Then, my doctor did not admittedly know much about migraines and she promised to get some more information and confer with other doctors.  She ended up giving me codeine and caffeine.  Hold on, there are many several type of migraines and it seems that some migraines get worse with caffeine and some get better.  This combination seemed to work for me.  I did substitute the codeine with ibuprofen and this also worked, and it would allow me to drive.

I moved from California to St Louis, Missouri and sought additional help in 2009 from VA doctors there because I was experiencing some numbness in my body, mainly on my right side.  I ended up seeing neurologists there and they took me off off the ibuprofen which I was taking every 4 hours.  This apparently could lead to some bad things with my internal organs.  They gave me Diltiazem to take every day and Sumatriptan as a rescue medicine.  They also identified the little 'fireflies' I see in my eyes from time to time are part of my aura.  I consider these doctors to be very professional and seriously interested in my case.  I was lucky.  The did not say anything about my body numbness and pain, but I believe them also to be part of my aura because of what I read and hear about migraine with aura.

If I think about it, I can see other aspects of my aura.  Growing up I would sometimes get up and my sight and my hearing would stop for a couple of seconds.  I wouldn't see anything but darkness and heard nothing in that period of time.  I would also get dizzy and see my 'fireflies'.  During a migraine headache, I couldn't stand light or loud noises.  I would also feel weak and would have to rest often.  My headaches usually lasted 4 days.  The Sumatriptan took away the pain, but not my auras, and not my weakness.  Being a migraineur is something I have to live with.

I can see that from 2001 to today, migraine information has indeed increased and there seems to be more help for migraineurs.  If you suffer from migraines, I suggest you find a doctor that is actively helping you and that you are managing it better.  It may still be hard to find the right doctor, but it seems more and more doctors and getting educated on this disease.  Good luck.