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Help! Need Advice on Managing Studying and Working.

Hi everyone. My name is Saif and I am 26 years old. I have had migraines since I was 10 years old. For the last 7 years the attack of migraines comes daily or day after day in the best scenario and it’s so severe and rough. I tried mostly everything in life and nothing is working. I take 4 pills of paracetamol 500 and 2 pills of Naratriptan every day. My kidneys start to pain and I’m incapable to live my life in any way. I can’t study or work or deal with people. Most of the time I’m in headache or drugged from the pills. I hope someone read this and help me in anyway. BTW I am getting my master's in Germany right now, so any recommendation or help will be much appreciated. Thank you

  1. Hi, Saif. Welcome! Graduate school is so difficult! It is hard even for healthy students, but worse when you are dealing with pain and the other symptoms caused by migraine.

    Are you working with a doctor to manage your migraines? Have you tried anything other than the paracetamol and triptan? There are many options to try, including other medications and non-pharmaceutical routes. You may want to speak to the university health center or the international students office, if there is one, to see about connecting with a neurologist or headache specialist in Germany.

    For now, here is a search I did about university life and migraines -- maybe you will find more insight here.

    https://migraine.com/search?s=college

    We are here to support you! Take good care of yourself and best wishes in your program.

    Melissa, migraine.com team

    1. hi Melissa, i have seen specialist since i was a young kid and they all gave me pills, some of them gave me anti-depression , and it was worst than the headache itself, some of them gave me Botox and still no results.
      I’m in the procedure with a doctors in Germany but it takes long time to get to the right doctor that he really want to help.
      Thank you for your help 😊

    2. Hey there! Glad to see you again. I understand about some of the pills being worse than the pain -- it is a lot of work to find the right treatment, and sometimes the right combination of drugs. We are here to support you! -Melissa, migraine.com team

  2. Hi I am sorry you are struggling so much with migraines. I just started taking college classes again after just working for almost four years. I have noticed my migraines have started to happen more often since. For me personally whenever I get migraines when I am reading or studying, I take a break and go take my rescue medications and lay down with the lights off and rest for a while. I have found that during my classes, having accommodations have been very helpful. I am not sure if that is an option for you in Germany, but it may be worth looking into. I hope you get things figured out soon. Please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any other questions or let us know if we can show you any other resources. Warmly, Tara (team member)

    1. Congrats on going back to school! It's hard work even without migraine. You are so right about how much of a game-changer requesting accommodations in school can be. I write slowly by hand because of a disability, and so in college I needed extra time to do exams. This was before everyone had a laptop with them at all times. It's so important for people to know that they don't have to try to push through just for the sake of appearing "normal." Life is hard enough -- get the help! 😀 Best wishes in your new program! -Melissa, migraine.com team

    2. thank you so much! I am excited about going back and it should be a fun program! Warmly, Tara (team member)

  3. Hi Tara,
    Thank you for Understanding and feeling the pain I’m getting through. That’s right, the attacks comes stronger and more when studying or reading or even concentrate in anything for few minutes.
    I already have a accommodation in Germany.
    To be honest, lately I’m getting bad thoughts and so depressed and kind of lost hope, every day it comes worse and worse, and people don’t understand what i feel and this was also an obstacle in my life.
    What makes me worried that I’m losing hope and during the attack I just want to be dead!! Because it might be the only thing that can stop that pain in my head.
    I appreciate your help Tara ❤️

    1. , I hear how much you are struggling. Migraine takes such a toll on the entire body. Feeling more down and discouraged is understandable in the midst of so much pain. You are not alone feeling depressed as you endure life with migraine. Attack days can be especially brutal. I thought this article might resonate with how you are feeling: https://migraine.com/blog/depression-migraines-unpleasant-cousin Have you spoken with your doctor about the depression you are experiencing? S/he may be able to provide you with some resources and suggestions for helping you manage the depression. I hope this community can be a positive resource for you as well. We are always here to listen when you need support. Know that in this space you are among those who understand and can empathize. How are you feeling today? Thank you for sharing so honestly with us. Reach out anytime. Wishing you a gentle day. ~Allyson (Migraine.com team)

  4. Hi Allyson, i really appreciate you and everyone who is trying to help me with this situation, I’m always trying to be honest about what i feel in migraine but unfortunately if the people who listen to you have never experienced a migraine attacks, they won’t understand what we are saying.
    The article were helpful and for my doctors unfortunately they just want to give me more pills for every symptoms i have, lately i feel like i know about migraine more than the specialist themselves, and i believe that the person who have chronic migraine( every day in my case) should understand his attacks and solve it by himself, because not everyone have the same migraine trigger points.
    Ince again thank you and i hope if anyone got any new information or new article that can help me and the other patients, can share it and s/he will help more than he knows. I’m desperate to anything that can at least reduce the attacks.
    ❤️

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