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In Defense of Michele Bachmann, Migraineur, Congresswoman, Presidential Candidate
July 19th, 2011 - Posted by Diana LeeI’ve got to be honest here: I’m not a fan of Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann (R), who has recently announced her intention to run for president in 2012 and even more recently been exposed as a chronic migraine sufferer.
Bachmann and I don’t agree about even one single issue, and I’m not a fan of her high-strung approach to garnering attention. But as a fellow migraineur I can’t possibly sit idly by while the media mischaracterizes migraine disease as a convenient way to make it look like she’s incapable of serving as president. While I don’t agree with her views, there is absolutely nothing about living with migraine disease that disqualifies her from being our first female president.
It’s appalling enough for anyone to be speculating about how incapacitated she might be by this disease based entirely on rumors from former members of her staff. But what’s much worse to me is the incorrect characterization of her problem as “stress related episodes”. What year is this? 2011? You could have fooled me into thinking it was more like 1911 when migraine was treated as a woman’s trouble and weakness suffered by those who couldn’t handle the ordinary stresses of every day life.
The most offensive article of them all (the one that “broke” this story and stole her choice to come public at a time of her choosing or not at all) claims she engages in “heavy pill use” as a result of these so-called stress episodes. Hey, guess what? Most chronic migraineurs take a lot of pills. Why the need to make it sound like she’s an addict in need of rehab because she takes medications for a chronic medical condition? Are diabetics addicts for needing their insulin and/or oral medications? Of course not. This news outlet (using the term news loosely, of course) has absolutely no idea what medications she is taking. Even if some of them are narcotics, what is wrong with that? Narcotics are there for people in pain, for goodness sake.
You’ll probably hear people talking about this given the attention the story is receiving. I encourage you to educate people when you hear them repeating the misinformation that’s running wild out there. As migraineurs we know what it’s really like to live with migraine disease, what really causes our attacks and what we are capable of accomplishing despite them. Please set the record straight anytime you get a chance. This isn’t about politics. It’s bigger than that. It’s about stigma and a scary tendency in our society to continue to treat diseases experienced predominately by women as a sign of weakness. We know better. We’re as tough as they come.
Sources:
Stress-related condition ‘incapacitates’ Bachmann; heavy pill use alleged
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"I had my first migraine when I was 12. I thought I was going blind, the spots in my vision all grouped together and everything went black. The pain was intense and felt like my head would crack open above my right eye." 
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Honestly, I know nothing of her political views or the forums she uses for running for the Presidency. However, I know from personal experience when people don’t like you, and it seems there are many in the government political machine and private citizens that do not care for her person or political views, they will find any reason to discredit you. But what I find offensive is saying she is unfit due to Migraine. I mean we had a President with polio – F. D. Roosevelt and he was in a wheelchair and don’t forget Woodrow Wilson. But now that the political machine can’t stomp her out because her views are too far to the extreme, oh look she has the mysterious, misunderstood, mythical Migraine – get her! And pill popping, nothing hurts like being called a junkie when you’re called a junkie.
Yeah – sticks and stones may break my bones but your words can kill me.
Despite her views, political or personal she needs support, unified, from the Migraine community. We need to stand up for her and say we’re not going to take this (insert an expletive of your choosing) from you well-bodied people who think we should be ostracized or told to sit down and shut up cause YOU in the general public choose to stay misinformed about Migraine.
Migraine Sufferers UNITE! =)
(Can you I am pissed?)
Ditto. I am certainly no supporter. Not only is she a nut job, so is her “christian cousellor husband who’s big thing is converting gays. But I’ve dealt with so much discrimination both in the workplace and socially for having chronic daily migraines (did i mention also refractory?) that this makes my blood boil. This is just what we need. The media running around and telling the public that migraine is nothing but a “stress-induced” condition and we’d all be cured if we stopped being so neurotic!!!
Well said, Abby!
Thank you for this. I am appalled that the media is saying this about her. I can’t stand the woman, she is a nut-case… but her ability has nothing to do with her migraines. There are SEVERAL reasons why she shouldn’t be president… her migraines are not one of them.