Living with migraines — tips for self-management (2/2)
by Daniel Roberts
Problems during school
Life was not easy during my teen and young adult life. My migraines became a problem during exam times. During my GCSE period, I was unable to complete 3 papers but overall my results were positive despite missing lessons. The stress associated with A-levels proved to be more challenging. I suffered a migraine during each examination and was unable to finish my papers. My results were consequently poor.
The struggles of looking for work
After A-levels, I started job hunting. Little did I know just how challenging this would become. The first hurdle was the interview. I found these to be particularly stressful. Typically, I would experience a migraine halfway through; my speech would slur, my eyes glaze over and I would look and sound drunk. I have been told that I looked like a crazed axe murderer. The usual outcome was no job offer. On the rare occasions that I made it through the interview and was offered a post, I would start to feel stressed in my new role, suffer a migraine and be forced to go home. The end result would be a meeting with my employer during which I would be told that “things were not working out”. I would once more be back to square one. It is therefore important to find an employer who understands the situation and is accommodating and can offer a relatively stress-free position.
Another issue in respect of employment is travelling. Some jobs require you to have a driving licence. Passing a driving test is another stressful life event. I tried five times and each time had to give up because of a migraine. On my sixth attempt I was successful and only experienced a migraine after the event!
The importance of family
My Mother and Grand Mother both experienced migraines when they were my age. Though not as severe, they appreciate what I am going through. Other family members see my struggles and are supportive. Both my parents are senior professionals; they would regularly drop their work to hurriedly fetch me from school. In the case of my Father, a consultant lead at a major London A&E department, this would mean having to temporarily leave his staff and patients. Having people around who understand and can help has made living with migraine easier. Not everyone is so fortunate.
A bad experience - Yosemite National Park
The worse time and place that I have ever suffered a migraine, is whilst hiking with my family at 7000ft on a glacier in Yosemite National Park (USA). On the way down, I started to get a migraine. I struggled on for the next 2-hours but had to give up when we were still 1 ½ hours from the bottom. I had a terrible headache and my legs would no longer support me anymore. The light was fading, and we were in bear country. Heroically, my Brother and Father half carried half dragged me down the mountain whilst my Mum ran to fetch the hire car and drive it to the bottom of the trail. During this time, I continued to be sick eventually vomiting only blood. The greatest feeling was getting back to the lodge and being able to sleep.
Coping with migraines
I live a full life. I now have a job supporting a medical writing, research and education company in London. In my spare time, I like active sport such as hiking and mountain biking despite knowing that I may suffer a migraine at any time. I like snowboarding, though passing the motorbike test is proving more difficult.
I hope for better times. In the interim, I have learned not to let migraines rule my life.
Here you can read the first part of “Living with migraines — tips for self-management”.
