When it comes to online Migraine information, the quality of what we find has quite a wide range. It can be bright, polished, and valuable, or it can be... well, rough and stinky.
This feature, "Migraine Pearls or Onions?," highlights both the Migraine Pearls I come across online and the stinky Migraine Onions.
Today's Migraine Pearl and Onion came about because of a post written by a new member on MyMigraineConnection.com. A mother posted about something a mother should never, ever have to face. Her son took his life because he couldn't deal with daily Migraine pain any longer. He didn't have the coping skills for it. Please, take a few minutes to read about this in Migraines: Never "Nice," Sometimes "Fatal."
If you've ever had daily Migraines and / or headaches, or if you're close to someone who does, you know that while we're working with our doctors to find an effective preventive regimen they can't give us something to take away the pain every day or it makes matters worse by causing medication overuse headache, which - in turn - keeps preventives from working. So, it's a draconian period of time when we can have pain-free time only sometimes. To survive this period of time, we need to have excellent coping skills for living with such chronic conditions. Many of us need help developing and / or maintaining those coping skills.
So, first up...today's Migraine Pearl... today's pearl goes to all of those doctors who recognize that we often need help developing and maintaining coping skills and incorporate that development and maintenance into our treatment. On a personal level, I salute all the doctors at the Jefferson Headache Center in Philadelphia - Dr. Young, Dr. Silberstein, Dr. Nahas, Dr. Tramuta, and the other great doctors there. My first visit to the Jefferson was the first time in more than 35 years of Migraines that anyone had ever even mentioned coping skills or depression to me in relation to the Migraines that I'd had since the age of six. Part of my initial visit there was a session with Dr. Tramuta (a psychiatrist) to evaluate me for depression and to evaluate my coping skills. I went into that session with a hugs chip on my shoulder because of all the times I'd been told that my Migraines were "all in my head." He kindly explained his reasons for seeing me, and knowing he was there for me if I ever needed him was a great comfort. Dr. John Claude Krusz, who currently helps me maintain my Migraine treatment regimen, also makes sure that all of his patients are screened to ensure that they have adequate coping skills and that, if they have depression, it's being treated. Every doctor who treats patients for Migraine should do this.
And, today's Migraine Onion. Today's onion goes to all of the doctors who treat Migraine, but never evaluate their patients' coping skills or screen them for depression. Shame on you. Especially to the doctors who told the son of the mother I referred to earlier that he "needed to learn how to live in pain." You, sir, have no business practicing medicine. You are a disgrace to truly caring physicians. I wouldn't actually wish it on you, but you deserve to be in pain and not be able to find anyone who cares enough to help you. You deserve to be told to just "learn to live in pain." Someone should shred your medical license.
If you'd like to make a suggestion for a
Migraine Pearl or a Migraine Onion,
please leave me a comment!
Live well,
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© Teri Robert, 2011
Last updated March 2, 2011
